Did you know that many children can suffer from food allergies without you suspecting it? That consuming some foods can cause allergic reactions?
Food allergies usually manifest on different parts of the body such as the skin, hands, feet, mouth, eyes, and nose. In children, in their first stage of growth when complementary feeding begins, we must be attentive to how the baby receives new foods that are progressively incorporated into their diet. Not only to know what foods the child can tolerate, but also to determine if children experience any type of allergic reaction.
This type of allergy usually has a hereditary factor, some parents with allergy problems tend to transmit this type of symptoms to their children, but they are also associated with environmental factors and the early introduction of food in children. The most common allergy-causing foods are peanuts, dairy products, and eggs.
What is sometimes most impressive is that most allergies are caused by foods such as peanut butter, eggs, dairy products and derivatives, soy, wheat, chocolate, strawberries, tomatoes, or shellfish.
What symptoms can occur from this type of allergies?
Diagnosing this type of allergies is sometimes not easy since many in many cases can be confused with other similar conditions. However, the most common symptoms in this type of allergy are:
Appearance of edema in localized areas: lips, tongue, face and sometimes in the eyelids.
Difficulty swallowing due to swelling of the glottis.
Nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain, cramps may occur.
Itchy skin due to the appearance of local or generalized urticaria.
Erythema or hives on the skin.
Atopic dermatitis: a very common inflammatory skin disease in young children.
Bronchial asthma.
Rhinitis (nasal congestion).
Crisis of bronchospasm.
In more severe cases, loss of consciousness can occur, hence the importance of being alert when a new food is introduced into the baby's diet, and observing if it presents any of the aforementioned symptoms.
How long does it take for symptoms to appear?
These symptoms can appear in the following ways:
Immediate: It is when they appear a few minutes after eating the food, generally this occurs within the first 30 minutes. The effect-cause relationship is notable and the most common symptoms are anaphylaxis, vomiting, asthma, and hives.
Delay: symptoms appear after two hours of ingestion of food. The most common are digestive symptoms such as diarrhea associated with protein-sensitive enteropathy.
Delayed: appear days after ingestion of food, such as atopic dermatitis.
How to avoid food allergies?
Because the baby's immune system is immature in its first months, we must avoid some foods as they can cause allergies such as: cow's milk, eggs, nuts, shellfish, soy, strawberries, blackberries, peaches, kiwi, peanut butter and gluten that can cause food intolerance.
Therefore it is recommended:
Do not include the aforementioned foods before 6 months of age.
Present them one by one, keeping in mind to wait 3 to 5 days before trying a new food, so that if an allergic reaction occurs, the food that caused the reaction is known;
Continue to breastfeed the baby while introducing solid foods into her diet.
Once the food is introduced, continue to include it regularly in the baby's diet.
Prevention:
There is no way to prevent this type of allergies, that is why the food allergen is recommended to avoid symptoms. In the event that any food causes an allergic reaction in the baby, we must suspend the consumption of food and consult the doctor to carry out corresponding studies. In case of severe allergic reaction, we must call an ambulance immediately.
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thanqqq dear your information is really very helpfull