Milk allergy question

[Amylcd]

Is it possible for a child to develop a milk allergy after drinking it (with no problems) for a year?

[changingseasons]

Yep. Allergies can appear at any point in a person's life.

[Amylcd]

Thanks for the quick reply. DD has had severe diarrhea for two weeks now, and a "pin prick" rash (full body)... Milk is the only food she gets on a daily basis (the food she eats changes daily, but she drinks milk every day). Looking back, she has had pretty much all of the signs since birth. Diarrhea *at least two - three times a week, since birth*, eczema, rashes, frequent ear infections, etc. I feel like a horrible mother for not putting this together sooner, but her reaction has never been this bad before.

How long after cutting out the milk will it take to see an improvement?

[Aletheia]

Even if you had figured it out when she was 2 months old () you'd feel guilty for not figuring it out earlier! It's fine. You are a good, vigilant mama who can fix problems once they present themselves... no sooner.

In this case, I'd imagine you'll see a big difference in her bowel movements within a couple of days. But casein can linger for as long as 3-4 weeks.

IF she is bf, you need to avoid, too.

Be thorough! It all needs to go. Butter, too. THen you can start adding things in one at a time.

[Mommy2Haley]

I didn't figure it out until DD was 18 months and then didn't figure out eggs for another two after that.

You can find df butter, cream cheese, etc.

[larkedyflarp]

It could be the amount as well. My daughter has life threatening allergies to milk but she can tolerate egg baked in stuff but not a straight scrambled egg.

The allergist explained it like if you put cold water on the stove to boil it'll take longer than if you put hot water on there initially.

If her reactions aren't life threatening or really bad, you might take it out for a few weeks until you get her back to baseline and then give her a tiny bit of dairy at least twice a week.

It is possible that if her reactions are relatively mild and you took it out completely the reactions can be more severe later if she comes in contact.

[changingseasons]

Originally Posted by larkedyflarp

If her reactions aren't life threatening or really bad, you might take it out for a few weeks until you get her back to baseline and then give her a tiny bit of dairy at least twice a week.

It is possible that if her reactions are relatively mild and you took it out completely the reactions can be more severe later if she comes in contact.

This applies (well, it might... it's pretty controversial) to IgE ("true") allergies, but not necessarily to IgG allergies/intolerances. But either way, I would take dairy out for a minimum of 6-12 months before reintroducing, even if you are going to try the small continual exposure method. That way it gives her gut a chance to heal a bit first. (The controversial part is that some schools of thought say that the longer you avoid a food, the better chance you have of outgrowing the allergy. The other school of thought is that you need small, continuous exposure to the allergen [think allergy shots] in order to get rid of allergies.)