- "They're unlikely to have environmental allergies at this age" = nonsense. As restrictive and difficult as this diet was, our observations were also largely inconclusive. Our graphs suggested that there might be a slight sensitivity to wheat (with a 24-hour delay in affecting her skin quality and itchiness), which surprised us since there isn't a family history of wheat sensitivities.
- Diana's itchiness and skin quality are almost completely unrelated. She was itchiest on some days when her skin was almost perfect, and the days she didn't scratch at all, her skin was at its worst.
- Oral Allergy Syndrome (OAS) is a thing. When Joseph's mom told us some of the kids were allergic to fruit, I was floored. I admit I did not take that information gracefully. God makes pure, natural fruits out of sunshine and dewdrops, and my daughter can't HAVE ANY??? I did a lot of research into fruit allergies. Most of my non-anecdotal information came from the Mayo Clinic and the website of Dr. Adrian Morris of the Surrey Allergy Clinic in London. It seems that people who are allergic to certain kinds of fruits can actually have a sensitivity to allergy-provoking pollens. For example, the major allergen in birch pollen has a similar structure to the major allergens in apple, hazelnut, carrot, cherry, pear, tomato, celery, potato and peach. Birch pollen can cross-react with the allergens in any of these fruits and vegetables and people with a birch pollen allergy can have a sensitivity to any or all of them. Symptoms of OAS include tingling of the mouth, tongue, and throat or a localized itching reaction on the face around the mouth. When I gave Diana a handful of sunflower seeds as a healthy snack one day, her cheeks flushed red and she started scratching around her mouth. Sunflower seeds fall under a possible ragweed pollen sensitivity, so she may have to watch out for that one day, and she may also be sensitive to anything else that cross-reacts with ragweed pollen (bananas, melons, tomatoes, honey, chamomile tea). Here are the major OAS food-pollen allergen groups:
- Birch pollen: apples, carrots, celery, hazelnuts, plum, wheat, fennel, walnut, peaches, pears, raw potatoes, parsnip, onion, buckwheat, honey, nectarine, cherry, peanut, tomato, spinach, kiwi
- Ragweed pollen: bananas, melons, tomatoes, honey, chamomile tea, sunflower seeds
- Mugwort pollen: apples, carrots, celery, melon, kiwi, peanuts, various spices, chamomile tea
- Grass pollen: melon, tomato, swiss chard, orange, wheat
- Latex (not a pollen, obviously, but still a sensitivity associated with food):
What we're doing now
It was a bit disappointing that there were no definite correlations between food allergies and Diana's skin, but it was at least relieving to be able to rule out some potential allergens that I'd been unsure about. She spent a whole week without dairy or eggs and her skin condition and itchiness went all over the place anyway, so it seems unlikely that she's allergic to those.
Since she showed a possible slight sensitivity to wheat, we decided to try a gluten free (GF) diet for a week and see if that affected her at all. Interestingly, despite the fact that there's no family history of wheat sensitivity on either side, we started seeing changes in her skin after only a few days. I noticed that the raised, rough, red, almost calloused patches on the inside of her thighs and backs of her knees disappeared. Though it was still itchy (maybe itchier?), her skin felt softer- like normal, healthy skin. Since I'm the person who spends the most time with Diana, that was a big change to me, although it was more difficult anyone else to see. The biggest and most unexpected side effect was that Diana's nose cleared up. She has had an almost constant stuffy nose for more than a year, and she was always sneezing and having a hard time breathing if her mouth was otherwise occupied. After less than a week without wheat, her congestion just went away! That was definitely noticeable to more people. It feels like a small victory to have something to show for all our diet and allergy speculations. Diana has been GF for more than three weeks now! She's too young to understand about allergies, but it seems to work if I just tell her that she can't have whatever wheat-based food she's asking for and offer her rice crackers, fresh or dried fruit or cheese instead. Her sensitivity is fairly minor, so if we have lunch at someone's house and she eats some bread or pasta, it doesn't set us back too far.
UNfortunately, Diana's skin is currently a wreck. Like with so many flare-ups in the past, I don't really know what could be causing it. We have been using Arm & Hammer Free and Clear Detergent in the laundry. We ran out a couple months back and I bought Purex Free and Clear, because I assumed all free and clear detergents were the same. [Sitcom laughter.] Both kids' skin broke out and after about a week I realized it was the detergent. We went back to A&H, but their skin didn't improve much. It's possible they may have changed their formula somehow. After about a week of having my heartstrings pulled by watching Diana cry and bend her nails backward ripping at her legs, I was feeling frustrated and lost and found the website solveeczema.org. I may have been a little weepy that week, but I did actually cry while reading it and the blog of a mom who fought her son's severe eczema with the plan from the Solve Eczema site. Their approaches- the background, the science, their hypotheses, and testing- just made sense. The bottom line is the difference between detergents and soaps. Go to the Solve Eczema site to read about it if you're interested. Normally I hate anecdotal cures relating to eczema, because everyone has an eczema story. "Oh yeah! My grandma/mom/son/grandson/self had eczema on their hands/face. It was so itchy, but they grew out of it/found a lotion that helped." That kind of story is COMPLETELY NOT HELPFUL. You just have to look at my children to know that their eczema is not like the mild eczema your child had on their hands when they were a baby. But moms who deal with moderate-severe eczema are troopers and scientists who are devoted to finding cures for their kids because they have to watch them suffer every minute of the day and night. These moms in particular make a good case for switching to soaps vs. detergents. We're trying to make the switch, but we're also working on finding the right soap products that won't irritate the kids' skin. It's another long process, but it seems like a worthwhile thing to try.
And that's where we are. Aside from her skin problems, Diana is an incredibly smart, growing girl. She loves running around and being with her family. She can count to ten (five, reliably, but ten when no one's looking) and is learning the alphabet and having fun with discovering puzzles and asking "why?" about almost everything. She loves reading Dr. Seuss books and sometimes surprises me by opening them up and reading them herself. (She has a good memory!) She is disarmingly sweet sometimes and stubborn other times. I guess that's a two year old!
Liam is 19 lbs with three teeth and beginning to get around. He's a tank of a little boy who loves his sister, the dog, his dad and his mom (almost in that order). He sits up, rolls across the floor and swims in circles on the hardwood to get where he wants to go. He's enjoying more solids and is happier as a result of getting more food. He's trying out lots of different sounds in his baby talk. He especially focuses on imitating Diana, and many times just seems content to let her do the talking. His interests especially include pulling hair and eating paper.
 |
| Liam at eight months old and Diana smiling for the camera. |
No comments:
Post a Comment