Dairy allergy? Questions, questions, questions.

[Lady TS]

Ok, to begin with ds was eating cheese and had no problems. Then when he turned 18 months/2 years(somewhere in there) I introduced cow's milk. Then he weaned and I started giving him more cow's milk and he would get eczema and the anal ring thing and sometimes a diaper rash.

So a few months ago I started giving him the Better Than Milk soy drink and that was ok as far as I remember. I got organic soy milk from the fridge at the store and that bothers ds--diarrhea.

So I switched as of this morning to rice milk and he told me his tummy hurt and he had green mucousy poo a little bit ago.

Does this sound like an allergic reaction to you?

I know he is also working on his molars, so I don't know if the molars are causing the ucky poop/rash on the bum or if he's allergic to the rice milk also.

:hissyfit
Sometimes I wish I knew it all. What are the classic symptoms for dairy allergy/soy allergy/rice allergy(is there such a thing?--maybe it's an additive in the liquid milk-alternatives?)?

Is there a calcium-only vitamin for kids?

[cobluegirl]

It could be an allergic reaction or it could be the teeth...as for calcium...there is calcium in lots of veggies and fortified oj...

[Lady TS]

It could be an allergic reaction or it could be the teeth...as for calcium...there is calcium in lots of veggies and fortified oj...

I know there's calcium in broccoli and green leafy veggies and beans, but it's not near so much as milk so I worry that he won't be getting enough.

Orange juice still gives him a diaper rash, so I'm holding off on that for awhile longer and will try again. That would make it easy if he weren't sensitive to that/it wasn't too acidic for him!

[KarenBoo]

When I'm in your situation - a "reaction" with multiple possible causes, what I do is eliminate all of the possible causes for 3 weeks, and then reintroduce one-at-a-time, but I do the reintroduction when DD is healthy and not teething, vacationing, or otherwise "off." This plan keeps me from going nutso when DD is reacting and I don't know why! I just go on auto-pilot with this plan.

As for calcium, there are calcium supplements, but you just have to watch what you give if you are dealing with food allergies. I give DD a calcium supplement from my ND. It's called Calcium Lactate from Standard Process. It is actually supposed to be a "no-no" for milk allergy folks, but my HIGHLY allergic DD tolerates it just fine. I grind it up in her water, and she doesn't notice it. Standard Process also makes a Calcium/Magnesium supplement. I really like their products, but I believe you must get them from an ND.

Also, other sources of calcium: leafy greens, broccoli, almonds, sesame seeds, sea vegetables, bone broth (specially made stock), and beans (some more than others).

We avoid unfermented soy at our home because of the health risks. Some people LOVE soy and think it's a super healthy food. I'm in the opposite camp myself. We also avoid "calcium fortified" stuff at our home.