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Cough, eczema-allergies?

post #1 of 9
Thread Starter 
My dd is 25 months old. She has always had very sensitive skin, but developed eczema maybe a year or so ago, with very rough, scaly red patches all over, particlulary on her legs. It got a lot better with California baby lotion and a lot of avacado and flax seed in our diet (we weaned off the lotion as the diet seemed to be helping); however, it has been flaring up again in the past week or so, possibly due to an increase in dairy consumption. She has also had a cough since February or so-it started as a cold, but has continued as a hacking cough, particularly when she is sleeping or just after she wakes. The doctor said perhaps allergies, we have been seeing a chiropracter with little success, who also says it is probably allergies. So, any thoughts? They suggested giving up wheat and dairy to see if that helps. I don't even know where to begin! We do no eat a lot of dairy, and are vegetarian. Is there anything else that could be trigger of this? She is an otherwise very healthy happy kid, although she has never been a great sleeper. Any thoughts would be much appreciated
post #2 of 9
I just posted yesterday because of my DS's cough. He is 12mo, and his eczema started shortly after his 1st vax at 3mo. (We're not vaxing any more, needless to say).

Anyway, when DS was around 7mo, I found these boards and went free of dairy, eggs, gluten and soy. About 3 days after stopping just wheat, his whole-body eczema vanished and was limited to just the corners of his mouth (which come and go often.) So, for about 5 months, we were free of big symptoms -- no more blood in diaper, eczema, diarrhea, red ring around anus, etc.

Then, the pediatric GI in our family started pushing me to add dairy back to my diet (I breastfeed) so DS could start drinking it. This was 2 weeks ago. Three days after I started eating dairy again, his GI started and his spit up for the first time in 5 months.

I have had a hard time quitting dairy because it is just so good, and I started eating gluten again because I thought, what the hey. But DS developed a cough yesterday, 2 weeks after starting the "bad" foods again, and I am almost certain it is due to his lowered immune response because it has been dealing with dairy, gluten, etc. in his system.

Anyway, that has nothing to do with what you asked -- just my personal testimony to how powerful cutting dairy out has been, and how it has immediately started wreaking havoc on our health again. (I had alopecia areata -- it went away for 2 years and I lost my first patch of hair a week after started dairy/gluten again.) Needless to say, I finally decided to cut cold turkey again today.

Keeping a detailed food journal of what your DC eats (and what you eat if you BF) is key. I also record behavior, poops (consistency, frequency, etc.) and any other things you consider relevant (meds, if any, etc.)

I also started reading Kenneth Bock's Book on the "4 A's" -- autism, ADHD, asthma, and allergies --- I really recommend it to anyone dealing with any of those! I forget the exact title --- I think it's "Healing the New Childhood Epidemics".

Hope that helps, even a little.
post #3 of 9
Thread Starter 
thanks-that was a big help actually! I think it is time to bite the bullet and try giving up wheat and dairy. Thanks for sharing your experience.
post #4 of 9
Personally, I'd go off gluten (not just wheat) and dairy. Then if everything goes away, you can try another gluten grain to see if it's just wheat. Make sure to look up all the hidden ingredients (though with the allergy labeling, things are a little better these days). Alot of people think since they're not drinking a glass of milk, that they're not getting a lot of milk, but it's in a LOT of stuff. Go with fresh whole foods.

Keep a food journal during this time with all symptoms, in case there are other culprits.

And keep in mind that if things don't go all the way away while you take those out (and it could take a couple weeks to see the difference), it may not be that she doesn't have those two intolerances, it may be that there's more than just those two.

Is there a correlation to when the symptoms started and when she started solids?
post #5 of 9
edit
post #6 of 9
Oh no! I thought this was the thread *I* started! I'm so sorry!!!

This is was sleep deprivation will do...I don't know how to move posts...I guess I will copy and paste?

Sorry, again!!!
post #7 of 9
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by kjbrown92 View Post
Personally, I'd go off gluten (not just wheat) and dairy. Then if everything goes away, you can try another gluten grain to see if it's just wheat. Make sure to look up all the hidden ingredients (though with the allergy labeling, things are a little better these days). Alot of people think since they're not drinking a glass of milk, that they're not getting a lot of milk, but it's in a LOT of stuff. Go with fresh whole foods.

Keep a food journal during this time with all symptoms, in case there are other culprits.

And keep in mind that if things don't go all the way away while you take those out (and it could take a couple weeks to see the difference), it may not be that she doesn't have those two intolerances, it may be that there's more than just those two.

Is there a correlation to when the symptoms started and when she started solids?
I don't remember when the ezcema started-she always had very sensitive skin and got heat rashes and such. I will think about it! The cough started just this past winter, when she was almost 2-I don't think we added anything different to her diet. We have been wracking ouir brains trying to think of any environmental things we may have changed in the house, but can't come up with anything.
I will do some research about the gluten, thanks. We do most stuff from scratch, but I am quickly realizing how many of our usual meals contain cheese and/or just bit of dairy. Gluten, I an imagine, is even trickier! Thanks for the advice.
post #8 of 9
Thread Starter 
Oh, and we are still nursing, so I assume this means no dairy/gluten for me as well?
post #9 of 9
Did she start coughing after the house was closed up more for the winter? If that's when, then it could be dust or mold. That's when my kids started their chronic coughing and it was after 2yo for all of them. We didn't change anything, that's just when they started being sensitive to it. We had DD1 tested and her's was very high for dust/dust mites. We have a HEPA filter vacuum, encased her mattress/pillows, changed dusty drapes to wipeable roman shades, no stuffed animals in her room. We put her pillows in the dryer once a month on high for an hour (kills dust mites) and even her comforter is washable in hot water. Closet door is always closed. We do still have carpet in there, but we're going to change to hardwood (we have hardwood in all the rooms in the house except the kids' bedrooms unfortunately).
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