So my kid has a food allergy.

[d3n]

Well, my 4 year old has been diagnosed by my wife and I as having a food allergy.

Nothing obvious as far as symptoms go except that he has a small smooth spot on one side of his tongue where he tends to chews on it. Conventional medical wisdom calls this 'geographic tongue' and treats it with steroids. He also has fine wrinkles under his eyes.

He also tends to act like an 'ADD' kid... sometimes. The family usually eats from the natural foods store at any rate so his behavior has been hard to pin down until this point. It simply seemed random.

Through a little trial and error he seems to be reacting to artificial dyes. Mainly red dye and food additives (MSG.) Sugar is not an issue. We've started keeping a food log for him to help narrow things down.

Anyone have kids with food alergies?

 

[mercanucaribe]

FOod allergies cause smooth spots, wrinkley eyes, and ADD symptoms? Man, I thought all 4 year olds had ADD.

 

[nsafreak]

He's allergic to artificial dyes? DAMN! I thought it sucked to be allergic to peanuts in any form like I am now. Dyes are in tons of pre-packaged foods so it can't be easy doing grocery shopping anymore.

 

[d3n]

Apparently,

our info came from a book titled'Is this your child'

A few indicators;

Allergic nose rub
Eye circles
Red ears
Red Cheeks
Eye wrinkles
Aggression
lack of allertness
and the tongue spot.

If this is typical of many kids who actually ADD then artifical dyes are screwing allot of kids up.

 

[CrazyPerson]

www.webmd.com

 

[Mark R]

Well, what you are describing is not an allergy - an allergy is a very specific abnormal reaction to a specific non-toxic substance.

The field of food 'intolerances' is rife with pseudoscience and quackery, proferred by people with hidden agendas. However, this should not be taken as a generailisation. My point is that you need to be careful of your sources. There is certainly some evidence that suggests hyperactivity may be related to some food dyes.

I would discuss your suspicions with your doctor, just in case there is something else that should be looked into first. However, because there isn't that much good science behind environmental causes of hyperactivity it generally hasn't gone mainstream - so don't be surprised if your doctor doesn't know much about it.

If you have found through food-record and diary keeping that there is an association with certain foods, then avoiding them would certainly be appropriate. If you haven't tried to pin down exactly what the triggers are with written diaries - then I would suggest doing this while you contact an association who can put you in touch with people with similar concerns.

 

[d3n]

Originally posted by: Mark R
Well, what you are describing is not an allergy - an allergy is a very specific abnormal reaction to a specific non-toxic substance.

The field of food 'intolerances' is rife with pseudoscience and quackery, proferred by people with hidden agendas. However, this should not be taken as a generailisation. My point is that you need to be careful of your sources. There is certainly some evidence that suggests hyperactivity may be related to some food dyes.

I would discuss your suspicions with your doctor, just in case there is something else that should be looked into first. However, because there isn't that much good science behind environmental causes of hyperactivity it generally hasn't gone mainstream - so don't be surprised if your doctor doesn't know much about it.

If you have found through food-record and diary keeping that there is an association with certain foods, then avoiding them would certainly be appropriate. If you haven't tried to pin down exactly what the triggers are with written diaries - then I would suggest doing this while you contact an association who can put you in touch with people with similar concerns.

Hidden agendas I can believe. What I can't believe is the drastic change in behavior after my kid eats some foods.

 

[SaigonK]

Originally posted by: d3n
Well, my 4 year old has been diagnosed by my wife and I as having a food allergy.

Nothing obvious as far as symptoms go except that he has a small smooth spot on one side of his tongue where he tends to chews on it. Conventional medical wisdom calls this 'geographic tongue' and treats it with steroids. He also has fine wrinkles under his eyes.

He also tends to act like an 'ADD' kid... sometimes. The family usually eats from the natural foods store at any rate so his behavior has been hard to pin down until this point. It simply seemed random.

Through a little trial and error he seems to be reacting to artificial dyes. Mainly red dye and food additives (MSG.) Sugar is not an issue. We've started keeping a food log for him to help narrow things down.

Anyone have kids with food alergies?

Wow! And I thought I was the only one who had this isue when I was a kid....
I was allergic to red dye, artifical flavors/colors, MSG and the like...I was fine as long as I didnt eat it or drink soda, then once I did...bouncing off the walls, wouldnt go to sleep (literally) for two days at a whack..my mother used to stay up and cry wondering what she was going to do with me...

Then my doctor got the bright idea of changing my diet, but a little at a time. Needless to say it worked wonders...i can handle the stuff now, but if i eat too much of that crap I get wound up and stay up for 30 hours in a row...then crash like I was on crack or something....

Diet! Diet! Diet! it is key to controling the issue, treats are ok, but get rid of the things you least suspect..or the ones you do suspect but are reluctant to drop...like Pepsi or COke, breakfast cereal is a big one...Lucky Charmns, Fruit Loops, etc...get him to eat Kix with honey, no sugar...
Candy and fast food are killers too...

 

[dderidex]

You sure it's not just something simpler like sugars/complex carbs?

I mean, in excess, those do bad things to ADULTS (you put on weight faster with a high-sugar/high-carb diet).

And they are rife in a lot of things kids eat - pops, cereals, etc.

 

[d3n]

well, sugar seems to have no effect. Hes fine with pasta and bread too.

 

[dman]

Our daughter is allergic to some foods (citrus fruits mostly). We introduced them to her as an infant one at a time and learned about them that way. We noticed a few that caused her to be more upset than usual and her eczema would break out too.

She's 3 now and pretty much doesn't eat anything other than the 5 things she likes. I believe that's normal, mostly because every kids menu in the USA has at least one of those things (Grilled Cheese, Chicken Nuggets, Spaghetti, Mac/Cheese, etc)

Good luck narrowing down the list I hope it takes care of the problems for you and your son.

 

[Tom]

too bad there's no doctors in your country.

Good luck !

 

[Chaotic42]

Well, I'm not a kid anymore, but I'm allergic to banana peppers. :shudder:

 

[d3n]

It's not that hes a full blow psycho hdad kid.. His behavior really hasn?t been unmanageable. Periods of inatativness were the big thing. I could see it being a problem in a class room.
We were looking into the off spot that appeared on his tongue, which lead into all of this.