Delaying Dairy & Egg b/c of family history - But toddler has slow weight gain

[J2]

I have been delaying the introduction of dairy and egg for my DD b/c my son has allergies. But my DD (12mos old) has had slow weight gain since she was 2wks old and now, in the past 2 months, hasn't gained anything. Her weight always decreases on the growth chart and now she is below chart. Her length also continues to decrease on the growth chart.

I'm starting to wonder if I should introduce eggs or dairy to help her calorie and protein intake. And then just watch and make sure she doesn't have a reaction like my son. My son gets a rash after stooling from dairy. No reaction I have seen from egg but egg came up positive on testing.

So what would you do? Continue to delay these foods? Or try them out even though there is family history?

Again, she is 12mos old. And she continues to be breastfed.

[dulce_mami]

My DD had very slow weight gain while we were still ignorant of her allergies. Once we took the allergenic/intolerant foods out, her intestine started to heal (good stools) and she started growing much better. So I would say to hold off on the eggs and dairy for now and maybe try to eliminate from her and your diet other possible culprits (soy, gluten, nuts?). Does your DD like avocadoes?
Mine ate a whole avocado in one day ( those would be the GREAT days, other days she would eat close to nothing except BM ...)

[lil_earthmomma]

Some alternatives to dairy and eggs would be avacados (as the pp said) and full fat coconut milk and coconut cream and coconut oil. These are great sources of fat, and my boys love them! My ds will drink coconut milk like it's goin' out of style. I can make whipped cream from the separated coconut cream (I don't add sugar just a splash of vanilla), rice pudding, smoothies, creamy pasta sauces, soups... the opportunities to add coconut into my and my children's diet are endless.

[elanorh]

I would wonder whether you've got an unidentified allergy causing the slow weight gain .... Are you seeing any other signs of allergies?

Otherwise, the pps have had good advice of other foods to add to the diet to increase your calories. If you eat meat, a nice fatty roast (with the fat bits on the meat) can be another higher calorie food; dark meat on the chicken .... I think I added olive oil to many of our vegetables to bulk up the calories for dd1.

Personally I wouldn't add dairy or egg yet. Our allergist told us to wait 'til two to add eggs with dd2, since dd1 has allergies (and dd2 did as well but he said he'd have recommended waiting regardless just based on dd1's allergies).

If you do add one, dairy is the 'after twelve months' one, but personally I'd want to rule out the possibility that an unknown allergy is causing the weight gain issues.

[crunchy_mama]

I would guess there is an unidentified allergen or intolerance as well. I would guess perhaps soy as it often goes with dairy, but that is just a guess.

[J2]

She doesn't eat anything with soy, so it can't be that.

She's had slow weight gain since she was 2wks old. She was born over 9lbs and gained really well in the first 2 weeks then it slowed way down and now the past 2 months she hasn't gained anything. I do need to start giving her avocado more again. And she loves black beans so I need to make those again. Olive oil and coconut oil are good ideas since I don't want to do butter/dairy.

I don't necessarily think it is an allergy issue causing the weight issue that she has had since she was a newborn. But I don't know. She has steadily decreased in weight percentiles since 2wks old and is now not on the charts...for the regular chart that is. The WHO's breastfeeding chart places her at a much better place on the chart. So this hasn't been an issue since just starting solids...its been all along.

[LaurieG]

Originally Posted by J2

She doesn't eat anything with soy, so it can't be that.

She's had slow weight gain since she was 2wks old. She was born over 9lbs and gained really well in the first 2 weeks then it slowed way down and now the past 2 months she hasn't gained anything. I do need to start giving her avocado more again. And she loves black beans so I need to make those again. Olive oil and coconut oil are good ideas since I don't want to do butter/dairy.

I don't necessarily think it is an allergy issue causing the weight issue that she has had since she was a newborn. But I don't know. She has steadily decreased in weight percentiles since 2wks old and is now not on the charts...for the regular chart that is. The WHO's breastfeeding chart places her at a much better place on the chart. So this hasn't been an issue since just starting solids...its been all along.

Do you eat things with soy, or eggs, or dairy? If so she is getting exposure to those things through you.

But I also wouldn't assume food intolerance/ allergy just strictly on the basis of slow growth. There could be lots of other reasons. Do you see any evidence of allergies in DD (what do her stools look like, her skin, her sleep, any dark circles under her eyes, reflux, colick, fussy disposition??) If you aren't seeing any evidence of food allergies in her I would probably food journal for awhile to figure out how many calories she is getting and then consult with a HCP. It could be nothing - just her adjusting to what will be her normal body height and weight - but I personally would want to rule things out (mainly b/c my dd has a growth disorder and so things like this are a red flag to me - just my bias). And I definitely agree with pp's about making sure the foods she eats are nutrient dense.