Food Allergies

I'm pretty sure that at some point I mentioned Carson's food allergies, which we believe to be dairy and gluten.  Now that he's a toddler it's really hard to control what he eats, especially with a doting Grandma right next door.  However, I try to limit those two foods as much as possible and I'm thankful that Carson loves coconut milk, fruit, and veggies!

It turns out little Emily has the same two allergies which probably means I do to and have just been ignoring the symptoms.  Thankfully Emme is only nursing at this point so cutting certain foods out of her diet are fairly easy.

This last week I cut out both dairy and gluten.  Her pin prickly rashes instantly went away and a few days later so did her gigantic welts that were crusted over and now slowly her eczema is healing and nearly gone! So that is good news.

However, I miss bread desperately!   I'm thankful for all the gluten free foods on the market.  Plus, this doesn't mean I'm done with bread, I just get to now experiment with other grains besides wheat.  After I'm done nursing Emme, and my own gut has had a chance to heal from gluten, I will probably try Sue Gregg's soaking grain methods and see if we have any reactions to it.

Living without dairy has been the hardest.  I never realized how many of my recipes called for cheese or milk!  It's been fun finding new and tasty recipes though and I hope through this culinary change, 2012 will be the healthiest year my family has ever had!

I did want to post the symptoms of gluten and dairy sensitivity.  I was surprised to find that I had a lot of the symptoms on each list. Most of the symptoms are not major medical issues and may not even cause you to give it a second thought.   You just get used to certain health issues or don't even realize they're an issue at all, you just learn to live with it...like dry skin.  Even if you do cut these two culprits out of your diet, it can take 2-3 weeks to see results from cutting out dairy and sometimes up to a year for adults to see results from cutting out gluten!  Here's a list just in case, you too have some hidden health issues!

Dairy Sensitivity:


    Abdominal Pain                      
    Acne
    ADD/ADHD                            
    Anxiety
    Arthritis                                
    Canker sores
    Constipation                          
    Diarrhea
    Ear Infections
    Fatigue
    Fibromyalgia
    Gas
    Headaches
    Heartburn
    Indigestion
    Iron deficient anemia
    Irritability
    Irritable Bowel Syndrome
    Joint Pain
    Lactose Intolerance
    Osteoporosis
    Poor Growth
    Poor immune function (frequent illness)
    Sinusitis


Gluten Sensitivity:


    Mouth Sores (canker sores)

    Cracks in Corners of Lips

    Tooth Enamel Defects or Discoloration

    Frequent Indigestion

    Malodorous frequent gas

    Malodorous light or clay colored stools

    Steatorrhea (floating stools)

    Bloating

    Abdominal Distension (look like gained 2 sizes, belly is hard)

    Chronic diarrhea or constipation

    Irritability or Moodiness

    Depression

    Muscle Weakness

    Chronic fatigue, (Exhaustion)

    Bone or Joint Pain, (Aching Joints)

    Infertility (miscarriage, delayed puberty in girls, irregular menstruation.)
    Skin Rashes (eczema, psoriasis, boils)

    Dermatitis Herpetiformis (skin rash related to celiac disease)

    Failure to Thrive in Babies, Short Stature in Adults

    Peripheral Neuropathy (tingling or numbness in arms and legs)

    Ataxia (gait difficulty, balance problems, uncoordinated walking)

    Weight Changes (Sudden gain or loss of weight)