Allergy Diet Day 1

Diana's leg on Day 1. This is before she really got to scratching it.  She was very itchy.

Diana's ankle on Day 1. This is about as bad as it gets. She scratched it until it bled.

Backs of Diana's knees. This isn't as bad as it gets.

Diana woke up and like most mornings she was VERY itchy. She scratched her legs until they were bleeding in just the time it took me to change her diaper. Incidentally, this is why it's taken so long to potty train. I can't just sit her down on the potty for 10 minutes because she'll ruin her skin in that time. With the exception of one random day last year, there has never been a time since she was three months old that she hasn't taken the opportunity to scratch exposed skin. I'm not exaggerating. She can't wear shorts or dresses in the summer because her knees are "hot spots."

It's not that hard to find foods that are wheat-free, or dairy-free, or even nut- or egg-free, because they're common allergens. But it turns out to be nearly impossible to find food that don't have ANY of those ingredients. Even gluten free products have egg or dairy, or egg-free products have nuts, etc. We basically put Diana on a diet of meat, rice, vegetables, fruits and her multivitamins.

That morning, Diana ate some corn flakes, an improvised stir fry ("meat and rice") of jasmine rice and roast beef, a multivitamin and her orange juice. After her nap, she had a baked potato, some grapes and a rice cake. Then she sat on the potty for some potty training and SHE DIDN'T SCRATCH HERSELF. It was miraculous. For 10-15 minutes she didn't scratch. She just sat there talking and reading books like any other kid. I suspect that even if she isn't itchy, she has been scratching herself for so long that it's just a habit, so the fact that she didn't even feel the need to do it out of habit was incredible.

That night for dinner I made gluten free corn dogs that she ate with rice and grapes. Some of the oil from the fried corn dogs got on her face and made her itchy, but after a bath she was good as new. In fact, she miraculously DIDN'T SCRATCH HERSELF again! Not at all! It was absolutely amazing!

Diana's legs before bedtime on Day 1.