This is what happens when I don't update for a few weeks! I haven't been listing all our food trials lately, but we've had some exciting new passes. Jake's food trials have been less strict. After a few days, if I see no sign of discomfort, I call it a pass. I really think we've hit all our "fails" that we're going to have.
Chicken
Beef
Sunflower Seeds (sunflower seed butter is a great peanut butter sub!)
Strawberries (these were iffy before, but I think it was something in my diet, not Jake's)
Tomatoes
Olive Oil
Several spices (basil, oregano, garlic)
At this point we're just avoiding Rice, Oats, Bananas, Avocado, Grains other than wheat, millet and corn, Soy, Legumes, Nuts.
I'm think we're ready to try soy and nuts soon!
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Ascorbic Acid: Pass?
We are trying a new iron supplement: Enfamil's Poly Vi Sol with Iron.
Ingredients: Glycerin; Water; Ascorbic Acid; Ferrous Sulfate; Vitamin E Succinate; Niacinamide; Artificial Flavor and Color (Caramel); Polysorbate 80; Vitamin A Palmitate; Thiamin Hydrochloride; Riboflavin-5-Phosphate Sodium; Vitamin B6 Hydrochloride; Vitamin D3
I waffled back and forth. The iron supplement we were giving him had no Vitamin C. He needs the Vitamin C to absorb the iron. Since his last iron check we gave him the same supplement but made sure he had an orange or some strawberries along with it to help with absorption. Then we forgot it at the in-laws when we were on vacation. Dang. I picked up the MyKidz iron supplement that the PA had prescribed at his last check. The ingredients made me uncomfortable. There was a "starch" listed, but didn't say where the source was. Was it rice starch, potato starch, corn starch? It contained ascorbic acid, of course. The kicker though? It was strawberry-banana flavored. Jake had a classic FPIES reaction to bananas. I don't want to go there. So we chose the lesser of two evils and went with the Poly Vi Sol with Iron where only one ingredient made me uncomfortable: Ascorbic Acid.
Jake's doing great on the new iron supplement. He takes it everyday mixed with his applesauce and shredded coconut.
So what does this mean?
Ascorbic Acid is not a trigger? All Ascorbic Acid is not created equally? Gerber has some serious cross contamination issues? Jake grew out of his Ascorbic Acid trigger? That jar of Gerber pears that contained only pears and ascorbic acid was a FAIL!
I don't know. I'm still leery of it. I still scan labels for it. But when that label says "less than 2% of one or more of the following:" and Ascorbic Acid is listed, I don't cringe anymore. I let him have it.
So there it is. One less item on our trigger list.
Ingredients: Glycerin; Water; Ascorbic Acid; Ferrous Sulfate; Vitamin E Succinate; Niacinamide; Artificial Flavor and Color (Caramel); Polysorbate 80; Vitamin A Palmitate; Thiamin Hydrochloride; Riboflavin-5-Phosphate Sodium; Vitamin B6 Hydrochloride; Vitamin D3
I waffled back and forth. The iron supplement we were giving him had no Vitamin C. He needs the Vitamin C to absorb the iron. Since his last iron check we gave him the same supplement but made sure he had an orange or some strawberries along with it to help with absorption. Then we forgot it at the in-laws when we were on vacation. Dang. I picked up the MyKidz iron supplement that the PA had prescribed at his last check. The ingredients made me uncomfortable. There was a "starch" listed, but didn't say where the source was. Was it rice starch, potato starch, corn starch? It contained ascorbic acid, of course. The kicker though? It was strawberry-banana flavored. Jake had a classic FPIES reaction to bananas. I don't want to go there. So we chose the lesser of two evils and went with the Poly Vi Sol with Iron where only one ingredient made me uncomfortable: Ascorbic Acid.
Jake's doing great on the new iron supplement. He takes it everyday mixed with his applesauce and shredded coconut.
So what does this mean?
Ascorbic Acid is not a trigger? All Ascorbic Acid is not created equally? Gerber has some serious cross contamination issues? Jake grew out of his Ascorbic Acid trigger? That jar of Gerber pears that contained only pears and ascorbic acid was a FAIL!
I don't know. I'm still leery of it. I still scan labels for it. But when that label says "less than 2% of one or more of the following:" and Ascorbic Acid is listed, I don't cringe anymore. I let him have it.
So there it is. One less item on our trigger list.
Don't feed the baby.
We recently returned from a week vacation with family. A whole week without Trader Joe's or Whole Foods. We survived! However, I did pack a jar of Jake's organic apple sauce. A large jar.
We stayed with my in-laws who are always overly accommodating. Right when we arrived the first words out of my mouth were "Don't Feed The Baby". And they all obliged.
Within a few hours of arriving I made a quick trip to the grocery store and bought some essentials. Yogurt, milk, cheese, bread, fruit, corn chex and goldfish. This was his diet most of the week. Along with his applesauce (mixed with iron).
I read every label. We went out for fast food a few times. Twice I had to ask for the (very large) box the food came in so I could read the ingredient label. Twice I was very glad I did because the food item had rice flour. Rice Flour seems to be a staple in the fast food industry. Twice the family ate out and Jake and I went for a walk instead.
It was a wonderful week. Lots of outside playtime, lots of family time, lots of fun. And NO REACTIONS. Yay!
We stayed with my in-laws who are always overly accommodating. Right when we arrived the first words out of my mouth were "Don't Feed The Baby". And they all obliged.
Within a few hours of arriving I made a quick trip to the grocery store and bought some essentials. Yogurt, milk, cheese, bread, fruit, corn chex and goldfish. This was his diet most of the week. Along with his applesauce (mixed with iron).
I read every label. We went out for fast food a few times. Twice I had to ask for the (very large) box the food came in so I could read the ingredient label. Twice I was very glad I did because the food item had rice flour. Rice Flour seems to be a staple in the fast food industry. Twice the family ate out and Jake and I went for a walk instead.
It was a wonderful week. Lots of outside playtime, lots of family time, lots of fun. And NO REACTIONS. Yay!
Friday, June 10, 2011
Still Anemic.
Talk about having the wind knocked out of you. Jake's numbers were actually WORSE (hemogolobin 9.8)! I admit I haven't been giving him the iron every single day, but we should have seen SOME improvement. So this leads me to believe he's not absorbing the iron. He's not getting enough vitamin C. The nurse practitioner we saw today (our doctor was not there, and *yay* another new person who has no clue about FPIES) prescribed a different iron supplement with Vitamin C. "I don't know if the Vitamin C is ascorbic acid or just plain old Vitamin C." Hmmm... I don't understand this. Any Vitamin C listed on any food or medication label I have ever read (and I've read A LOT of them) use ascorbic acid for Vitamin C. But hey, maybe this one time I'm wrong.
So I went ahead and had our pharmacy order the new supplement. We'll get it next week. The hubs and I talked about giving it a try, even if it has ascorbic acid in it. While Jake's new toddler formula contains AA, it's listed under "less than 1%". I really do wonder if that reaction eight months ago from what we thought was ascorbic acid (pears and ascorbic acid were the only ingredients listed), may have been a cross contamination of another baby food containing rice/oats/bananas.
Do we risk it?
In the meantime, I'll continue to give him the iron supplement we have and try to push some Vitamin C with it.
So I went ahead and had our pharmacy order the new supplement. We'll get it next week. The hubs and I talked about giving it a try, even if it has ascorbic acid in it. While Jake's new toddler formula contains AA, it's listed under "less than 1%". I really do wonder if that reaction eight months ago from what we thought was ascorbic acid (pears and ascorbic acid were the only ingredients listed), may have been a cross contamination of another baby food containing rice/oats/bananas.
Do we risk it?
In the meantime, I'll continue to give him the iron supplement we have and try to push some Vitamin C with it.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Truth is..
Truth is... we've never really followed our allergists advice. Dairy, check. Wheat, check. Soy? Hmmmm. Let's just say I plan to up my soy intake for the next few weeks as we start weaning. That will be the last big bang.
Truth is... I gave Jake formula. He hated it, of course. I really didn't expect any different. He doesn't like anything but breast milk and water. I will probably end up sneaking the can I bought into his food. After that? Who knows if I'll buy another can or not.
Truth is... I kept a journal during my other older kids toddler-hood. Guess what? They ate the same foods Jake is eating practically, without breast milk or formula. And they thrived. They are now super intelligent, well functioning kids, who like sushi.
Truth is... if Jake passes soy, I may try ascorbic acid next. And if he passes that... I'm going all willy nilly on his diet and let him have anything that doesn't contain rice, oats, quinoa, beans or bananas. Period.
Truth is... there's ascorbic acid in formula. He didn't react. WTF? Gerber?? Do you have an answer?
Truth is... Mama gut hasn't failed me yet.
Truth is... I gave Jake formula. He hated it, of course. I really didn't expect any different. He doesn't like anything but breast milk and water. I will probably end up sneaking the can I bought into his food. After that? Who knows if I'll buy another can or not.
Truth is... I kept a journal during my other older kids toddler-hood. Guess what? They ate the same foods Jake is eating practically, without breast milk or formula. And they thrived. They are now super intelligent, well functioning kids, who like sushi.
Truth is... if Jake passes soy, I may try ascorbic acid next. And if he passes that... I'm going all willy nilly on his diet and let him have anything that doesn't contain rice, oats, quinoa, beans or bananas. Period.
Truth is... there's ascorbic acid in formula. He didn't react. WTF? Gerber?? Do you have an answer?
Truth is... Mama gut hasn't failed me yet.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Allergist Appointment
Jake had an allergist appointment today. All went well. He was pleased with Jake's progress and new foods, of course. He had a few suggestions to get more calories into the little guy. With our recent pass of corn and dairy, he'd like us to try some Toddler formula for a calorie boost. I'm not sure Jake will agree with this, but it's worth a try. The boy only likes water to drink. He'll drink OJ or milk every once in a while, but only if his older brother does! So we'll see how that works out. He gave me the OK to start weaning. On one hand, this makes me happy. He's getting enough variety in foods, he should be OK to be weaned now. However... my baby doesn't need me anymore. It's hard. I'm ready to have my body back, but I'm not ready to let my little guy grow up either. We have always had the breast milk to fall back on. It's always been our safety net. But we have so many foods now, I feel confident he's fine without me. That being said, I'm starting to take away the 3am feeding first. Then we'll start weaning the daytime feeds. I imagine in a month or so we'll be done. It's a bittersweet feeling.
We don't need to go back to the allergist until Jake is 2. He plans to do a patch test again at that time with the foods Jake had FPIES reactions to and the foods he had reactions to with his first patch test. It will be interesting to see what the results are.
Interesting happening this week.... I ate a sandwich from subway that unknowingly had rice and oats in the bread. Jake had a bad diaper. Undigested food, acidic, yucky. Only one though. I've had that sandwich before. Only a handful of times. This is the first time I really looked up what was in the bread. Anyway, I'm wonder if any of our other bad diaper experiences were related to a subway sandwich, or actually the food trial we were doing at the time. Just a thought.
We don't need to go back to the allergist until Jake is 2. He plans to do a patch test again at that time with the foods Jake had FPIES reactions to and the foods he had reactions to with his first patch test. It will be interesting to see what the results are.
Interesting happening this week.... I ate a sandwich from subway that unknowingly had rice and oats in the bread. Jake had a bad diaper. Undigested food, acidic, yucky. Only one though. I've had that sandwich before. Only a handful of times. This is the first time I really looked up what was in the bread. Anyway, I'm wonder if any of our other bad diaper experiences were related to a subway sandwich, or actually the food trial we were doing at the time. Just a thought.
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