Anyone NOT listen to allergist?

Baby_Bunny_Hopeful · October 2011

I've posted here a few times before.... long story short- DS has had eczema (moderate) since he was about 3 or 4 months old. His eczema never flared up due to any specific foods... but we got him tested for allergies last month just to be sure (no allergies, asthma or eczema are in either of our families)... he tested positive for corn and cottonseed (which is in everything).

Per the allergist and pedi's recommendation, we removed ALL items with corn and/or cottonseed from DS' diet. Which pretty much means he can only eat fresh fruit, veggies and grilled meats as well as dairy.

It has been about 2 weeks, and his eczema is the same, if not a bit worse (which happens as seasons change).

Since eczema was the only symptom that could have been caused from said allergy, and it is still present without DS eating those things... could the test have been wrong?? DS never had any other symptom other than the mild eczema, and if removing these foods from his diet causes NO change in that, I am tempted to stop avoiding these foods!!

I will give it a few more weeks to see if anything changes... but I'm really skeptical that he has these allergies, even though he skin tested positive for them. I mean, he used to eat these items ALL the time before the dx, and was just fine other than the eczema, which he still has without eating that!

Advice/suggestions??

magdusia · October 2011

Did he have a skin test and/or a RAST test?

if he had a rast test, what were the levels?

Also, what in the world made the allergist test fro cottonseed? that's such a strange thing to test anyone for.. or am i missing something?

I agree with you, I would wait 2 more weeks.. it sometimes takes 4 weeks for their skin to clear. But if the eczema is not bothering him, i probably would still offer it, just in moderation. I would probably do a non-gmo and organic diet for him..

After 4 weeks i would request a new test. Sometimes you can be positive for an allergy and your body knows how to handle it. We don't have any allergies on either side also and allergist said that if she tested me or my DH for a bunch, one of us would probably be positive for something, but we never show any signs.

Baby_Bunny_Hopeful · October 2011

Thanks!!!

He had a skin test- not the RAST test. We're on a waiting list to get into AI DuPont (a pediatric hospital that is local and world renowned)- but it will take a few months to get an appt and have the RAST test.

I don't know why the allergist tested for cottonseed. He tested for a total of 20 things that day. He wasn't a pediatric allergist- just a general one. I honestly didn't think DS had allergies, so I didn't do as much research prior to making the appt than I probably should have- and just took him to the first available appt within our medical insurance plan coverage.

His eczema doesn't seem to bother him when he's awake- but he scratches at his wrists and the back of his neck while sleeping. But he still sleeps 12 hours a night... so other than waking up with his wrists being red and scratched up, you would never know!! His eczema bothers me more than it bothers him. I feel like everyone notices and judges him.

I agree, I would only offer foods with those ingredients from time to time- maybe one cookie for dessert once or twice a week... or a happy meal on a special occassion, etc...

My concern is that what if I did that, and he had a SEVERE reaction?!? (He has NEVER had any reaction before, but I worry that what if he does now that he has the dx)?? I know nothing has internally changed with him since the dx, but in my eyes- I now know and am afraid!

g_belle · October 2011

I think you need a new allergist. And I agree with your plan of action.

I don't agree with our allergist on everything- but I do agree with his theory on allergy testing little ones:

If eczema is the ONLY reaction you are seeing and it isn't bothering your little one (sleep, weight gain and development wise)- it could just be eczema. The only reason he agreed to test B was because of our history and because we were seeing clear eczema reactions in correlation with my diet in an EBF baby. And we only tested for the 3 foods I questioned. As we introduce more solids into B's diet he drilled into us that an eczema reaction alone is not a reason to cross a food off our list unless it happens more than once in direct correlation with that food (so we'd pull it, wait for skin to clear and then reintroduce. same reaction gets the food crossed off our list).

Testing a kiddo that young is bound to give you lots of false results. And testing for 20 random things makes no sense to me.

I'd get the benedryl dosage from your pedi just in case and maybe see a dermatologist if you haven't to make sure your eczema dx is correct also.

Baby_Bunny_Hopeful · October 2011

Thank you so much!! Great advice!!

When I EBF (2.5 months until I introduced formula and then did a combination of BM for half the day and formula the other half when I returned to work)- he didn't have eczema until ~3-4 months... so I can't say for sure the cause.

We've been to a dermatologist who dx it as mild/moderate eczema. We have tried numerous ointments, creams and lotions all which have moments of treating it and other moments it doesn't help. It's like fighting a losing battle. That's why we got the allergy test.

We definitely want a new allergist, though. The one we went to was horrible. NO bedside manner, rude, sarcastic and unprofessional... all of which makes me even more skeptical of the dx and of doctors in general!

If his eczema doesn't completely go away while on this diet, and we reintroduce the foods- how can we be sure there is no direct correlation?

I'm just soooo worried about a severe reaction (since they prescribed an epipen, jr)!! Allergist said he sincerely doubts DS would ever have that type of reaction- but that it was his suggestion for us to have one on hand just in case. That really scares me.

g_belle · October 2011

they gave you an epi pen based on a skin test alone and no serious (i.e. breathing issue) reaction history? I'd get a new allergist asap. Also- check the weight requirements on the epi pen. Granted my oldest DS was a peanut- but for a while we weren't given an epi because he didn't meet the weight requirements.

ETA; I just looked on the epipen site- the minimum weight for the epi jr. is 33 lbs. Now- my DS still doesn't meet that requirement- but I know before he hit 20 lbs our dr. wouldn't give us the epi. I"m not sure how the determination of risk vs. cost for an overdose of adreneline is made- but I'd ask my pedi/allergist a lot of questions about that one.

carlinlp · October 2011

Cottonseed and corn are two very prominent GMO foods. Is he now on an organic diet? It's very very possible he's reacting to pesticides, fertilizers and / or the chemical GMO component in conventionally grown food. Organic, fresh produce, pastured, grass fed meat and eggs may be a road you seriously consider going down.

magdusia · November 2011

Baby_Bunny_Hopeful:
Thanks!!!

He had a skin test- not the RAST test. We're on a waiting list to get into AI DuPont (a pediatric hospital that is local and world renowned)- but it will take a few months to get an appt and have the RAST test.

I don't know why the allergist tested for cottonseed. He tested for a total of 20 things that day. He wasn't a pediatric allergist- just a general one. I honestly didn't think DS had allergies, so I didn't do as much research prior to making the appt than I probably should have- and just took him to the first available appt within our medical insurance plan coverage.

His eczema doesn't seem to bother him when he's awake- but he scratches at his wrists and the back of his neck while sleeping. But he still sleeps 12 hours a night... so other than waking up with his wrists being red and scratched up, you would never know!! His eczema bothers me more than it bothers him. I feel like everyone notices and judges him.

I agree, I would only offer foods with those ingredients from time to time- maybe one cookie for dessert once or twice a week... or a happy meal on a special occassion, etc...

My concern is that what if I did that, and he had a SEVERE reaction?!? (He has NEVER had any reaction before, but I worry that what if he does now that he has the dx)?? I know nothing has internally changed with him since the dx, but in my eyes- I now know and am afraid!

He tested for 20 things via a skin test? yayks!!!!! i haven't seen that yet. Usually it's top 8 and maybe a few more. That's actually strange to me. It sounds like you got a false positive. Skin tests are known for that. That's why i trust the RAST test much more.

I think once you wait 2 more weeks and it doesn't go away, i would do an elimination diet on him.. remove the top 8 and then every 2 weeks introduce something for one week. Or have your Pedi do a RAST test for the top 8 and add a few more (cottonseed (?), sesame...).. Most Pedis will do a RAST test. They might not know much about allergies in general, but i think they can read a RAST test result and know if there are any present allergies.

Also, carry around benadryl with you.. so in case of an emergency you can give that to him.

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