Help & Advice

Help & Advice

Can my child have a food intolerance ?

Written by Bunmi. Wednesday, February 8th, 2012

Food allergies are becoming more relevant in the UK adult population, as more and more of us begin to learn that we suffer from various food allergies. It is now claimed that between 20% to 30% of UK adults believe that they suffer from food allergies. The FSA carried out a report believing the actual figure was much less than that, between 1 or 2% some researchers believe that the actual figure is slightly higher than that between 3% and 4%, but according to the FSA report; allergies in children are actually higher at between 5% and 8% (source NHS website), therefore it is becoming more important to find out if children do suffer from allergies.

The most common food allergies to children and babies are from milk, eggs, wheat, soya and nuts. Symptoms to look out for are coughing, sneezing, running or blocked nose, watery eyes and diarrhoea, so therefore many parents are now getting their children tested food intolerances.

There are various methods of food intolerance testing, this can range from blood testing, where a blood sample is taken, a hair test where a hair follicle is taken, a skin prick where a tiny amount of allergen is ingested into the skin or a Vega test where your body is tested to an allergen by a current. (Not suitable for babies)

As mentioned earlier more and more parents are having their children tested for food intolerances. Below are some example links to various websites who offer food intolerance testing. Alternatively contact your doctor or health professional before making a decision on which avenue to go down.

Hildha on 04/07/2012 at 07:02 said:

I’m glad to see a follow up post on this sittauion, but so sad to see that you didn’t get a response from the Superintendant or Principal. What a glowing sign of disregard for the health and welfare of students that neither of these persons in positions of authority chose to respond. Good for you for attending the school board meetings and pressing this issue. With the rise of food allergies, it is time to eliminate these unnecessary possible exposures and the sense of alienation at not being able to participate fully. My daughter is also ana. to dairy and we had a sittauion last week at her daycare (one of many we’ve had there ) I pack her lunch and fill out a slip with what she is to have for breakfast, lunch and snack. Apparently, someone used the same spoon to put her food on her plate that they had used to spoon out another chid’s soup. Some of the soup was on Lilly’s food. She knew better than to eat it, and ended up eating only her fruit cup that she knew was indeed safe since everything else was on the same plate as the soup had touched. When she pointed this out, no one did anything about it. When I brought it up to the owner, I was basically told I was unappreciative of the measures that they DO take and what else did I want them to do!!! Can’t wait for the day that this allergy doesn’t rule our lives!

Reply to this comment ↓
Tenzin on 18/09/2012 at 09:21 said:

Benadryl makes most people a litlte loopy, though (it’s an older antihistimine and has more noticable side effects, but it’s also really fast acting, which is why hospitals still use it). I’d suggest Claritin or Allegra or one of the newer ones instead. Talk to the pharmacist about what they’d recommend. Quite often the drug store has a pamphlet or a chart that compares the pros and cons of each drug.And yeah, it’s *recommended* that you consult with a doctor about such things, just to rule out other problems (like a persistent bacterial infection, or something) but if you clear up with antihistimines, you probably don’t have to go in.

Reply to this comment ↓