Re:How will I know if my baby has a food allergy?
A baby food allergy can be very severe. It can mean that the slightest contact with the offending food causes itching, tingling, swelling of the lips, tongue and throat. A food allergy can lead to anaphylactic shock, especially to foods like peanuts, nuts, shellfish or fish. The typical symptoms, however, are milder and include colicky symptoms like crying after eating a specific food.
Other symptoms include diarrhea, gas, nausea or vomiting. There can be streaks of blood in the stool and mucus in the stool, especially with cow’s milk allergies. Occasionally, food allergies can cause constipation.
Symptoms outside of the gastrointestinal tract include hives or other rashes on the skin, ear infections and stuffy or runny noses. Itchy or watery eyes can occur and asthma symptoms can flare up. There can be skin eczema from food allergies. The baby will be fussy and irritable. The symptoms will disappear once the offending food is removed from the diet. Food allergies are the reason why foods are introduced slowly and one at a time so if there is an allergy, you know what food has caused it.
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