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Are you and your family new to food allergies? Know that you’re not alone.
If your child has an adverse reaction that involves the immune system after eating certain types of food they may have a food allergy.
If your child has symptoms after eating certain types of food, they may have a food allergy.
But what is a food allergy, and what are common triggers, signs and symptoms?
Here, you will find information on the most prevalent food allergies in infants and children, their causes, their symptoms, and how to alleviate them through dietary management.
Cow milk, a childhood staple and a key source of vital nutrients, is also responsible for the most common food allergy in early life. Milk allergies can cause symptoms like vomiting and diarrhea. You may also see skin rashes or eczema, and the appearance of respiratory issues like wheezing.
CMA may persist in as many as 50% of children up to the age of 1. Less than 25% remain allergic after 3 years of age, while some cases persist into early adolescence.
Around 1 in 3 children who have CMA may later develop multiple food allergies (MFA).
There is currently no cure for cow milk allergy. As with any food allergy, the best way to manage CMA is to avoid cow milk and foods that contain dairy proteins with guidance from your doctor or dietitian.
For infants, the first choice is usually to continue breastfeeding while mom removes milk and dairy from her diet, following guidelines from a doctor or dietitian. It might be necessary to supplement her diet with nutrients normally found in dairy foods, such as calcium. A hypoallergenic formula can be recommended if there is a need to supplement or replace breast milk.
Beyond infancy, a substitute for milk is often recommended until at least the age of 2 if a cow milk allergy has not been outgrown. This ensures that the key nutrients normally provided by cow milk aren’t missing from the diet.
Many families have children who suffer from Multiple Food Allergies (MFA). Typically, they are allergic to the proteins found in milk and potentially one or more other foods such as eggs, fish, crustaceans, molluscs, tree nuts (e.g., almonds, walnuts), peanuts, wheat, triticale, mustard, sesame seeds, sulphites, and/or soy.
Symptoms can range from those associated with CMA and more. Having MFA can make life challenging for you and your child. Meals at home, dining out, and meeting nutritional needs can become obstacles.
Experts estimate that up to 8 out of 100 children are allergic to one or more foods, and about 30% of those children have multiple food allergies.
MFA currently has no cure. The way to manage food allergies is to avoid the foods that you’re allergic to, under medical supervision. Much easier said than done!
For infants allergic to multiple foods, the first choice is to continue breastfeeding while mom avoids all food allergens, under medical supervision. There may be a need to supplement her diet with nutrients that the avoided foods are high in.
If formula is needed to supplement or replace breast milk, a formula like Neocate may be recommended for infants with MFA.
Older children and teens with MFA may be at risk of not getting enough key nutrients when eliminating common food allergens from milk, soy, egg and wheat. Neocate formulas can help close nutritional gaps that may occur due to an elimination diet.
Eosinophilic Esophagitis is due to a high number of eosinophils in the esophagus. Eosinophils are a type of white blood cell that normally function in the body to fight off infections. Some allergens, such as the proteins in cow milk and soy, can cause them to build up in a child’s esophagus, where they aren’t normally found.
Symptoms may include vomiting, gastroesophageal reflux (GER), nausea, food aversion, difficulty swallowing, poor growth or chest and abdominal pain. Fortunately, while there is no cure for EOE, proper dietary management can be effective.
Close to 3 out of every 4 children with EOE are male
There is currently no cure for EOE, but there are several ways to manage the disease.
A change of diet may help manage symptoms of EOE. Doctors need to uncover which specific foods trigger EOE and remove them from the diet.
Dietary management may involve the following:
A combination of an elimination diet and amino acid-based formula helps to remove the food allergen and close nutritional gaps. With symptoms improving, the next step is to reintroduce food by doing food trials.
Food protein-induced enterocolitis syndrome, better known as FPIES – pronounced as the letter “F” followed by the word “pies” -, is an allergic reaction to food in the digestive tract.
It is a type of food allergy that usually starts in infancy but can last for several years. Symptoms occur generally two hours after the food is consumed and mostly affect the digestive system. They can include severe vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, dehydration, low blood pressure, and low body temperature. Milk, soy, rice, and oats are amongst the most common FPIES allergens.
FPIES is still under research; it is currently unknown how many people are affected by the condition in Canada.
As of today, there is no cure for FPIES. Once a diagnosis is made, the only solution is to avoid the trigger foods under medical supervision.
Your doctor may advise removing the allergenic food from the diet for a period of time. Children with FPIES usually grow out of the condition by the age of 3. To check if the allergy has been outgrown, a medical professional may conduct a “food challenge test” by reintroducing the trigger food little by little, monitoring for any symptoms.
Breast milk is the first option for infants with FPIES but if that is not possible a hypoallergenic formula like an amino acid-based or extensively hydrolyzed formula is often recommended to ensure the intake of key nutrients that may be missing from the elimination diet. If an infant suffers from FPIES beyond the age of 1, a hypoallergenic formula is often recommended to ensure continued intake of key nutrients, to supplement the elimination diet. Up to half of children with FPIES to milk protein may also suffer from FPIES to soy protein. Soy formula might be suitable as a third formula choice for patients without soy allergy and greater than 6 months of age. It should only be considered under physician supervision.
Short bowel syndrome, simply known as SBS, is a condition that may impede your child from getting the right nutrients they need to grow. It occurs when a portion of the small intestine and/or colon is removed. A shortened small bowel can be a serious condition, commonly causing malabsorption and intolerance to normal foods.
SBS may require the use of an amino acid-based formula like Neocate.
SBS typically begins in infancy but can also occur later in life. It is not clear how many children suffer from SBS as there are many possible causes.
The small intestine and colon play vital roles in digestion. The small intestine absorbs the majority of the nutrients and fluids your body needs to function, while the colon absorbs water. Any loss of the small bowel reduces the area available for absorbing nutrients and fluids, resulting commonly in malabsorption in patients with SBS.
Most infants will need total parenteral nutrition (fed directly into the bloodstream) initially. The goal is to transition (as tolerated) to oral nutrition or tube feeding. This gives the small intestine time to adapt after surgery, increasing absorption of nutrients.
Neocate is made with a specific fat blend. One-third of the fat is MCT (medium chain triglycerides), which is more easily absorbed. The remaining two-thirds of the fat is LCT (long chain triglycerides), which is important to help the gut adapt to the digestive process.
Around the world, food allergy prevalence in children is increasing, and cow milk allergy may last longer into childhood than previously thought. Children with food allergies are at increased nutritional risk and may have potential growth problems later on.
Neocate is here to help meet their nutritional requirements.
Neocate has been created for kids with food allergies, at all stages of their growth and evolving needs. Their tastes and preferences will probably change over time, so age-appropriate solutions are essential to support adequate nutrition.
Neocate and the Neocate Junior range provide a large variety of flavours and packaging, to keep things exciting as your child grows older.
Neocate® is a family of hypoallergenic, amino acid-based specialized formulas for use under medical supervision and is indicated for cow milk allergy, multiple food allergies and related GI and allergic conditions. Talk to your healthcare provider about product recommendations.
Neocate Nutra is suitable for use in children and infants older than 6 months of age (not suitable as sole source of nutrition). Neocate Nutra is not intended for bottle or tube feeding.
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