question for parents w/ allergies

[jayell79]

I want to ask the parents here, if you had previously known allergies did your children develop the same allergies as well? Or did you discover your allergies together, but you suspect you had been dealing with them all along?

After skimming thru the roll call, I noticed a lot of mothers & fathers with allergies that their children also had. All of the books I've read claim there is no known genetic link between specific allergies, but there is an increased risk for allergies in general if the parents are also allergic. I'm extremely nervous about this since I have multiple, severe food allergies. My diet is already extremely limited, it's hard to further eliminate things I'm not allergic to just because it may cause my baby to become allergic. Do you think this is necessary to do while pregnant? Should I eliminate things like egg, dairy and nuts before even starting to BF, or wait to see if she has any kind of reactions first? I guess what I'm asking is, are there any preventatives? Can you prevent allergies by avoiding all possible allergens?

[lastrid]

I think one of the best preventatives is to make sure that your GI flora is in really good shape before you deliver. I have leaky gut and I think that's what caused my son the majority of his problems.

[Chinese Pistache]

Originally Posted by lastrid

I think one of the best preventatives is to make sure that your GI flora is in really good shape before you deliver. I have leaky gut and I think that's what caused my son the majority of his problems.

I agree with this. I believe I have leaky gut and my dd received antibiotics at birth which further caused her problems. We don't a have family history of allergies and my other children have no allergies (and they also did not receive antibiotics as infants).

I wouldn't do so much with elimination, but I would work on your gut by taking probiotics and enzymes (among other things) and then, giving your newborn probiotics. See the sticky above called "Healing the Gut" for more information.

[mtn.mama]

Exactly what these ladies said. Do your best to fix your gut before your baby comes, and do your best to keep it healthy. I'm certain my leaky gut has caused so much discomfort for my little girl. And now I'm praying its not too late to help her avoid a lifetime of problems. I think my sensitivities started at the beginning of my pregnancy and were not acknowledged until Taslyn was two months old. Not a very good start for her:: But now I'm seeing a naturopath who has me on a good track. I'm starting to FEEL improvement. And my baby looks healthy and sounds happy (as long as she's not reacting to something I ate). If your diet is already limited, and you know what you react to and can avoid those foods, I would not further eliminate. But I would try to practice good rotation, and possibly try to limit exposures to the top 8.

[jayell79]

Originally Posted by Chinese Pistache

I agree with this. I believe I have leaky gut and my dd received antibiotics at birth which further caused her problems. We don't a have family history of allergies and my other children have no allergies (and they also did not receive antibiotics as infants).

I wouldn't do so much with elimination, but I would work on your gut by taking probiotics and enzymes (among other things) and then, giving your newborn probiotics. See the sticky above called "Healing the Gut" for more information.

I don't see that thread up in the sticky section? I had been taking probiotics and digestive enzymes before I was pregnant. The bottle of probiotics said not to take while pregnant or BF, so I asked my OB. He simply said no, not to take them, but I could eat all the yogurt I wanted. So, I've been trying to eat at least one serving of yogurt a day. But aren't the same probiotics found in yogurt? Granted, the caps I was taking had different types and a lot more biotics than yogurt has in it. Are some strains not safe to take while pregnant?

I did a quick google search and found no evidence that either probiotics or digestive enzymes are harmful to take while pregnant. If fact there was a study done in 2001 that showed giving probiotics to pregnant mothers with high risk for allergies was associated with significantly decreased incidence of eczema in their babies. This is thought to be because probiotics promote the overall health of the immune system. I'm going back the the health food store on Monday, to replenish my supply!

[USAmma]

I think it's a good idea to be careful if you yourself have a food allergy history-- it can be genetic. However the things you develop allergies to are usually determined by what you were exposed to and what condition your body was in at the time. Not always the case but generally so.

I had a milk intolerance as a baby but have no known food allergies. I have horrible, awful enviro allergies especially to certain plants and animals. I also have EE but mine is not food-based, it's pollen based.

Both my dd2 and I have asthma and she also has EE. My dd1 has no asthma and only skin contact allergies to grass. Otherwise she's healthy.

[thepeach80]

I don't have food allergies, but I have drug/seasonal/environmental allergies and asthma. DH is allergy free as best as we can tell. All the kids have been at least milk/soy/egg intolerant and the last 2 had to be supplemented w/ rx formula. My oldest ds has the same drug allery as I do, but they seem to have different seasonal allergies and no pet allergies like I do. I personally wouldn't avoid anything extra for a first baby since it's a crap shoot. If your first baby ends up w/ allergies, avoiding those in your next pgcy has been known to help and also been known to not help. That's lots of help huh?

[tallanvor]

Well, and then there is the question of when did you develop your allergies? My mom has multiple food allergies, but she developed them later in life (like late 20's, early 30's, I think). My food allergies/sensitivities I've had my whole life. My husband has no allergies at all that we know of. I dealt with environmental allergies from a very young age and still suffer from them. However, my oldest, as far as we know has a wheat sensitivity and that's it. My son, I suspect slight environmental allergies, but nothing that has ever really given him any discomfort. He is also sensitive to milk, though I'm not sure it is a true allergy. The youngest, I don't know. Suspect milk issues and she tends to have respiratory issues much more than the other two. And she's already had her first ear infection at about 8 1/2 months. My older two have each had one ear infection. I had chronic ear infections, which were tied to my allergies, and they started at about 9 months, so I'm a bit concerned about the baby already having one.

But you know, I'm allergic to peanuts, craved them while I was pregnant with my son, ate them (probably shouldn't have, but I did), and he has never had any problems with them at all. While I think there are things you can do to help your children not have allergies, there is no guarantee they will work.

[naturals]

I have no allergies at all..but DD is practically allergic to everything..except 10 foods or ingredients..I can attribute it to a yeast infections I had due to multiple antibiotic usage during a complicated pregnancy and then had a c section so more antibiotics..then mastitis and thrush so more antibiotics ..Wish I had known before what was happening, Anyways now that I am avoiding all these foods its made a great difference.

[jayell79]

Originally Posted by tallanvor

Well, and then there is the question of when did you develop your allergies?

That's a good question. My mother knew about the environmental allergies when I was a baby. The first time I touched grass I broke out in hives. My food allergies became really apparent in Jr. High school, but I would guess I had been struggling with them my whole life. I was diagnosed with dyslexia in 1st or 2nd grade. Again the doctors were no help, and my mother was told I would grow out of it! I just learned to manage it myself and simply didn't eat the things I knew would make me sick, which was mostly wheat. It wasn't until last year (27 yrs old) I was in and out of the emergency room (in minor anaphylactic shock and was sent home with a bogus diagnosis and a pain killer each time!) that I put my foot down. I changed doctors, and saw several specialist before I was finally was referred to an Immunologist. Needless to say I don't have much respect for doctors in this area.

[Chinese Pistache]

As far as taking probiotics, I think pregnancy is a really important time to take them. Most commercial yogurt isn't going to have a significant number of bacteria. You could always make your own, though.

Do you also take fish oil?

Oh, and the sticky is at the top of Health and Healing http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=434071

[Ruthla]

I'm not sure if I have true food allergies or just intolerances, but my kids don't appear to share any of my food issues.

[mclisa]

I would try to preserve your child's "virgin gut". That means only breast feed for as long as possible. Avoid solids until at least 6 months. No formula in the hospital either. Not even a fr=ew cc's.

[cat19]

Our allergist recommends no nuts or seafood in the last 3 months of pregnancy and while BFing. He does not recommend avoiding anything else unless the child reacts.

[Poddi]

Both DH and I have seasonal allergies (hay fever). Our first son has all sorts of allergies, our second son doesn't seem to have any yet. I didn't develop allergies until my 20s. My theory is our immune system need regular exercise. If the environment is too clean it might get weird. DS1 was never sick as a baby and DS2 caught colds a few times when he was little. I suspect that might have helped to make his immune system work right. I haven't caught a cold for about three years before I developed allergy.

I'm very interested in the probiotics. It would be wonderful if our immune system can be fixed. I hate my allergies, it limits my outdoor time during the most wonderful time of the year.

[Chinese Pistache]

OP, this thread is a great read: http://www.mothering.com/discussions...allergic+child

[jayell79]

Originally Posted by Chinese Pistache

As far as taking probiotics, I think pregnancy is a really important time to take them. Most commercial yogurt isn't going to have a significant number of bacteria. You could always make your own, though.

Do you also take fish oil?

Oh, and the sticky is at the top of Health and Healing http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=434071

Thank you for the link. No I can't take fish oil because I'm also allergic to white fish and shellfish. I do take hemp oil and flax seed oil for my omega fatty acids instead.