What Exactly Are the Signs of a Food Allergy?

K.: Hey, read the following and I hope that this helps:

The complex process of digestion affects the timing, location, and particular symptoms of an allergic reaction to food. All of the symptoms of food allergy occur within a few minutes to an hour of eating. A food allergy can initially be experienced as an itching in the mouth and difficulty swallowing and breathing. Then, during digestion of the food in the stomach and intestines, symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain can start.

I hope this helps,

M. G.

All of the other responses are good and I agree. I just wanted to add some. My family has a corn allergy which is in just about everything but not listed as "corn". We didn't know this for 3 years with my 2nd son. My two oldest sons react differently and then I react differently. My oldest gets sores around his mouth and headaches and sometimes stomach aches, he also won't complain of any discomforts, but has behavioral issues. My second one gets stomach aches and diahrea. I get migraines, sores in and around my mouth, diahrea, fatigue, brain fog, stomach aches. All three of us will violently through up and have diahrea if we overdose on it. Corn has MANY different derivatives and reacts differently in your body depending on the derivative. Although we react very quickly once ingesting, it can last days. I will also have anaphalactic reactions to alcohol. One more thing, you can have a reaction if not actually allergic to a specific food, but if are allergic to latex. I am allergic to latex and get the itchy mouth, inside of ears and throat when I eat avacados, melons (almost any kind), bananas, strawberries, raw potatoes and several more.

If you are concerned about food allergies, I would have a blood test done instead of the scratch test. Blood test for food allergies is much more accurate and less invasive. The reaction to food can be very different on the skin rather than being digested where there is a chemical reaction happening.

Good luck. I hope this helps.

My kids both have a non threatening allergy to dairy. My daughter cried for the first full year of her life. My son didn't seem to be bothered by it but he would have a little blood in his stools sometimes and then there was the killer diaper rash that came on within minutes and would bleed and he couldn't sit down. I think it you will know if there is something wrong with him. I kept taking my daughter to the doctor saying there was something wrong with her and he kept saying she was fine and making me feel like I was a nut case. I finally switched doctors and on the first visit I told him there was something wrong with her that he needed to figure out and he got right on it. Mommys intuition is a very strong thing so don't worry about noticing. The site that the last person mentioned is a very good sight that you should check into. As far as baby food. I made all of my daughters baby food I would make a bunch and freeze it in ice cube trays. I think the key is you have to cook them for a long time to get them to where they will puree really smooth. It is much easier when they are a little older and eating chuncky foods. Have you ever heard of the magic bullet? I just got one of these and wish I would have had one when I was making baby food. You really can just grind up what ever you are having for dinner after you have slowly introduced all of the foods and it is much easier. good luck

My son has food allergies to peanuts, dairy, wheat, eggs, dogs and also to nickel. We learned of his allergies at 9 months when he had a break out of welts. He also had eczema from just a couple months old that is now attributed. The nickel caused round, red circles on his skin. The peanuts can cause anaphylaxis. I'd recommend reading up on allergies at http://www.foodallergy.org.

Hi K.,
My youngest is allergic to bananas, kiwi, (probably macadamia nuts - those 3 go together I have heard) and MSG. With bananas and kiwi he vomits until it is out of his system, then acts totally fine. With MSG it is a bit trickier. If he eats cheese puffs with MSG the area around his mouth and hands would get red and break out in little bumps. However, it also increases his blood pressure and makes him extra-hyper. He also broke out in hives the first time he had chicken noodle soup with MSG in it. The reactions can vary widely, so just try to take note of any unusual behavior or physical changes after eating a new food. Often they don't react until the 2nd or 3rd time severely enough to notice.
I have a tree nut allergy and my reaction is asthma. You are doing great introducing foods slowly! I used my little machine to grind carrots, pears, etc.. to feed mine when they were babies, but I did not do anything special, just ground them up and served them. Hope all goes well and you find no food allergies!

In our family it ranges from facial swelling to hives. More specifically, we have had eczema, itchy feet, hives on the face or feet, lips swelling, eyes swelling, sneezing, and itchy ears (often this will result in tongue-clucking to try and itch the inside of the ears.)

I don't know anything about a mill, but I found that using natural foods is better than baby foods. Look at the ingredients on the baby food and you will find added stuff. Once he can mash with his gums, you can give him semi-soft food cut up(fresh fruit, cooked veggies, shredded meat) without worrying about choking.