Here are his symptoms, what is most likely?

[Acugirl]

My ds is now 1! He has suffered all yr from a variety of symptoms and I still do not know the culprit.

Currently, he is still bf and eats solids-mosly fruits, veggies and turkey/chicken/lamb. No dairy for him, soy, nuts or wheat products (occassional oats).

We have a dog.
We live in a old house with a lot of wood/dust.

He used to have bright red cheeks/eczema but that has been gone for a while now-after a homeopathic treatment the redness went away.
BUT, he itches all night long-on his scalp, diaper area etc.

His scalp looks ok, but is a bit dry sometimes. Nothing serious.
He has sporatic tiny patches of eczema behind his knees, or on his wrists on and off.

Right now I am eating limited dairy, and limited wheat but pretty much everything else.
He was RAST tested ige and igg back when he was around 6 months and skin tested for top 8 plus dander, dust mites and feathers. The only positive that came back was peanuts.

So, now I am wondering what to do. He is healthy as a horse and has no respiratory problems-thankfully. But the itching keeps him and I awake most of the night.

We have a new mattress and cotton sheets washed with all free and clear. No rug in the bedroom.. Would a hepa filter in the bedroom help?
Does this sound environmental or food or both?

I am confused and overwhelmed!
Would you do more allergy testing now that he is older?

Since the symptoms are not immediate I really have a very hard time pinpointing what it could be.

Thanks!

[mclisa]

Not all eczema is allergy based so you might not be able to eliminate the cause.

I had C tested at 6 months (only milk, egg, peanut positive) and then retested at a year (had 16 food allergies). It is possible to add more allergies so you might consider checking into that.

I wouldn't rast test. It only has a 60% accuracy. Ask that the lab use innunocap which has over 90% accuracy (similar to skin testing).

[tysmamaca]

Have you tried cod liver oil, primrose oil, or borage oil? Some babies with eczema need more omega's in their diets.

I used to rub EPO and borage oil on my dd's scalp when it was really itchy and dry and that would always take care of it. I also give her high vitamin CLO and it keeps her eczema at bay.

When she was allergy tested, I found out that she was allergic to wheat and dairy but just cutting those out of her/my diet was not enough to keep the eczema away. She really needed those extra fats in her diet.

[Acugirl]

Thanks, your replies are helpful.
I will ask for immuocap-and hope for some results! not that I want him to have food allergies, but it would be nice to have an answer.

If I am bf is it enough for me to take the essential oil?
I was taking EPO for a bit, but I know prob not enough-how much should I take?

I will try rubbing it on his head before bed tonight.

Thanks!

[tempestjewel]

Dairy is notorious for causing red cheeks- have you tried eliminating it 100% from your diet as well to see it helps? Wheat comes through breastmilk as well. With my younger DD, she gets a bad diaper rash every time I have dairy- even if its a small amount. I am now strictly avoiding and her diaper rash is non-existent.

I second the essential fatty acids. I give DD evening primrose oil (one capsule twice a day) and high-vitamin Cod Liver Oil. I also sneak flax oil into her food.

[mclisa]

I'm not sure about your dose of EPO. I'm bf and taking 5 capsules of cod liver oil which equals a tsp.

I rub 2 capsules of EPO nightly on my dd. I try to sneak in flax seed oil into her formula. It is suppose to be a tablespoon, but I doubt that she gets in that entire amount.

[caholcomb]

A book I found helpful for detecting allergies (both environmental and food) was "Is this your child?" by Dr. Doris Rapp. I helped us figure out several foods are kids are sensitive to. I think what was most helpful about the book was that it verified for me that I wasn't insane.

[fortunecookie]

What are you using to bathe the baby? My son has super sensitive skin and kept getting a rash when he was younger. We eventually traced it back to his bath products. Hubby liked to use the bubble bath with ds once or twice a week. It was for sensitive skin but it was still to much. Now we only use organic plain bar soap and not very much of it either. When I soap him up I pull the plug in the tub and let it drain, rinse him off completely and then fill it up again with just water for another final rinse before we call it quits.

[Acugirl]

Thanks again all...
to answer your questions, when we do use any soap we use california baby sensitive...but mostly it is just a bath in plain water...I haven't even washed the tub with soap! just rinse it out...

I have started taking fish oil again myself and decided to try cutting out sugar and dairy again-I had done this for months when he was younger, but nothing helped at that time...
His skin is really clear now, but the itching continues-that is what I don't understand...also the nightwaking and uncomfortableness at night.
My ped thinks it is not food allergies since he doesn't have gi probs-but he is a bit constipated...I know peds don't know much!

Anyway, I feel so sad for him and me-it is hard enough having a baby with out all this added stress!