Ready for a list?
He is very allergic to cats, and we have one. She's 17, and we just won't get another. Meanwhile, we've been advised to keep the cat away from him, have him wash his hands after handling her, and change our air filter frequently. We could do shots for this and his bad dust allergy. He has an allergy to dogs which is thankfully mild, so no problems there other than the fact that getting a dog wouldn't be such a hot idea.
We already have a documented nickel allergy. This child has a severe, horrid reaction to nickel. He had a little bracelet as a preschooler with a large nickel snap. It took all my bravery to take that boy to the doctor because it sure LOOKED LIKE someone burnt him with a large cigar. It only took a few days, and it realllly did look awful.
He also has a milk allergy, just like Woodjie. He had milk on his cereal and in his cup for breakfast this morning, but lunch was a sad affair. Potato bread from Woodjie's stash. Soy milk. No chips. You would think that barbecue or salt n vinegar chips wouldn't have milk in them. (You'd be mistaken.) He had some Fritos from Woodjie's stash. Ohhh, some little boy has a lot of adjustments to handle.
D asked why he couldn't just go on eating milk and why bother not feeding him stuff he's allergic to if we haven't seen a major problem as yet? So... I did some research.
For starters, loose or bloody stools are a common symptom. Now, I don't search through anyone's stools, but seems to me you wouldn't want ANY blood in your stool, let alone wait for stuff to get so bad that you can SEE the blood in them. And chronic snuffles. Emperor is always just a little nasal there, but mind you, I'm guessing it's going to be hard to tell which allergies are bothering him when.
I know you're reading, so there you go, D.
Here's a link readers may find interesting: there are several different ways to test for allergies. The method we used for Emperor is called the "fast" method. As implied, the "fast" method would show a pretty immediate reaction to the allergen in the blood. To my mind, all the more reason to try to avoid the allergens or at least reduce them.
Just a few thoughts from someone who has been researching into alternative health for some years:
ReplyDeleteThere are some people who are just allergic to all kinds of milk, but actually they are quite rare. Most people are allergic to pasteurized milk that has been heated, which kills off all the natural enzymes that help you to digest it. Raw milk is more like what breast-fed babies would get. Raw goat's milk is often better for people than cow's milk too. Even babies allergic to breast milk tend to thrive on raw goat's milk.
Many pet allergies are caused by a combination of what the person is eating and what the pet is being fed. Think about how the pet is usually fed the same food every day. I have seen people who were highly allergic to cats actually not have any reactions at all to mine over the years. My cats were fed some raw meat and organic foods and purified or spring water and raw milk. Actually, I am allergic to cats too, but not the ones who eat healthier foods or are outside supplementing their diets.
Metal allergies are also a problem for me. Nickel is one but iodine is the worse, I cannot even use iodized salt as it builds up in me pretty quickly. Before I realized this, I once had someone tell me if I react to metals on my skin, like cheap jewelry, that I would most likely be reactive to iodine also and I really am! I have never found anything that helps eliminate the allergy so the best course of action is avoidance and moderation. I really have to watch supplements because of they usually have iodine added, but I keep a bottle of oral EDTA on hand as it helps to remove many metals from the body and use it as a cleansing chelation treatment periodically throughout the year, particularly when I have been eating salted foods.
Just some things you might look into if they interest you.
I used to be allergic to all poultry products when I turned thirteen. Yes, I'm not allowed to eat chicken and eggs. That's why my early teenage years were terrible.
ReplyDeleteBut it passed. It's gone now. I don't know how it happened but it's just awesome like that.
And I didn't know that EDTA can be used to treat metal allergies until I read that comment. I thought they were just used to treat metal poisoning. But whatever, EDTA is pretty safe to use I think since we have them in most canned food products so... yeah, science is cool. =]
Allergies are a pain! :o(
ReplyDeleteWe just got rid of our cats (11 and 9). Ron couldn't take the medication that worked best to control symptoms anymore because it caused his blood pressure to go up. The adult foster home already had a cat and didn't want more.
Cried all day...
Oh no! I hate to say it, but with a dust allergy stuffed buddies are not really the best thing. Bouncer is allergic to dust mites, so I just washed his frequently, even if they weren't supposed to be washable (I put them in a net). They always held up pretty well.
ReplyDeleteI really feel for you having to sort through everyone's various allergies! (((hugs)))
I'm not exactly sure how I stumbled on your blog, but I thought I'd just mention something briefly about our family's history with allergies and a CURE!
ReplyDeleteI can totally relate to your son's nickel reaction. My daughter had blistering sores as an infant (and now scars at age 3) from allergic reactions.
My son (now 5) had off the wall autistic-like behavior and uncontrollable spinning and flapping at random times during the day.
We had them both treated with something called NAET (http://www.naet.com/). I know the site looks low budget - but when you don't have major pharmaceutical backing it doesn't have the same flashy marketing ;). All I can say is that it worked so well for us - no more elimination diets and we have had great results. It eliminates allergies by "resetting" your nervous system using acupuncture points. Thankfully it is done with accuPRESSURE and not accupuncture using needles. I'm not sure how the kiddos would have handled that.
Well, something to consider. I hope you find a solution that works for you!!
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI've been through the milk allergy thing. It was a real uphill battle with both of the boys. Potty training was a nightmare until I tracked down the cause. Bloody stools were frequent.
ReplyDeleteAccording to my reading (and experience)--and if I understand what you're saying this is a milk protein allergy--if you can keep ALL DAIRY in all forms out of their diets for a year, you stand a very good chance of them outgrowing the problem. Did you know that processed meats are made on dairy lines? That the calcium in "enhanced" orange juice is dairy based? That there are cake mixes that have it and cake mixes that don't?
Also--I found that soy triggered the same symptoms and learned--after researching it--that this is common. Soooo . . . we eliminated soy as well (which was a real headache as we ate vegetarian most of the time in those days). They drank rice milk instead.
We all became consummate label readers--and the boys learned to ask "what's in this" when they went to friends' houses. Indeed, it took roughly a year and a half to two years of policing their diets to eliminate their body's response to the presence of dairy. Both those boys are now fifteen and twenty and can eat whatever they want.