Protein Source? no milk, soy, legumes, meat?

[chicagodawn]

My son has reflux (well-controlled finally) and Milk Soy Protein Intolerance. He is 10.5 months old. We are avoiding wheat til 1 year, eggs til 2, nuts til 3. Due to a severe reaction to peas, we are also legume free.

The problem is....he also doesn't seem to digest meat well - each time we try the smallest amounts, he is miserable for days. I am of course fine if he is vegetarian, but can he be, with soy and legume allergies????

Right now he still drinks about 20 ounces of Neocate a day, so we are ok in the short term. He wants to do more solids and less formula, but we Neocate is his only source of protein (and nearly his only source of fats, though he does do avocados). Is anyone else in the same position?

Going to call the Dietician at his GI office, but thought I would see what you experienced allergy mommas have to say

Thanks

Dawn
Ben (mommy, can't I just eat carrots all day?) boy: :

[PikkuMyy]

Hi Dawn,

I was a baby and child with many allergies, including milk, soy, eggs, wheat, etc. but I could have meat. I was, however, mostly vegan.

He will get protein from other whole grains (look them up because some, like quinoa and oats, contain much higher protein counts than others.) From what I remember, whole grains give more protein than white, processed.

Also, my DH is very allergic to peas but only when raw. Did your DS have them raw or cooked? DH is also allergic to quite a few other fruits but also only when raw. I have the same thing. I was also allergic to a few legumes as a child but not others. Some of them are very different. Just like I can eat almonds until they come out my ears but don't even let me touch a peanut or I break out! Given his limited diet, it might be worth it to test other legumes in very tiny, cooked, quantities. Cooking changes the proteins and many other people can have cooked things they can't eat raw.

You might want to cross post this in Nutrition and Good Eating because other vegan parents will have better info about what foods contain what proteins.

[Kashel]

What meat is he eating? He may be reacting to the natural amines in meat... which are higher in some types of meats than others...

The least likely to incur a reaction are FRESH chicken and lamb. BUT you need to make sure that they are very fresh - preferably from a butcher (not supermarket as they are packed in a different manner). Try cooking them without oil in the microwave.... make sure that they are not browned, because this will also increase the amount of amines...

See if he reacts .....

Good luck!! More information on naturally occuring food chemicals can be found at:

http://www.fedupwithfoodadditives.info/

including a food elimination diet. The website is focused more on behavioural problems, but the RP Hospital in Australia uses the diet for kids with allergies and food intolerances...

[Chanley]

If you are avoiding wheat, you may want to avoid several other grains as well. Oats, rye and barley to be exact. They all contain gluten which is a pretty big allergen.

[Kashel]

Oh I should have mentioned I have been a vege for 15 years so I am def. NOT pro meat!!! but if you can't eat grains and legumes then meat seems a logical choice

[Missy]

Oats actually do not contain gluten. Most oats processed in the US have a high risk of x-contamination with wheat, but Irish oats are considered safe. Quinoa is a great source of protein; our son is allergic to it, but I've heard it makes a good hot cereal and a lot of people use quinoa flour in their baking.

I had a thread on here recently about much the same thing, because I wondered how a vegetarian would get enough protein given our allergies. When my dh and I were discussing it, he reminded me that there was a rice protein powder we had considered using if needed. I would guess that's an option if you're not dealing with a rice allergy.

Good luck!
Missy

[mamamillie]

Nutritional yeast has loads of protein. Never gave it to a baby, though, but my 3 year old loves it.

[mwherbs]

even with foreign oats I still react- there isn't the exact protein thought to cause gluten intolerance but some people do have reactions as well. So for one idea is to get some decent intestinal colonization with probiotics- a variety of lactobacillus like reuteri and rahamnosis have been shown in studies to reduce allergic reactions