2007-07-21

allergist visit no.2

For a while now we were suspecting Lucas was allergic to onions and garlic - he'd break into hives, and/or scratch his neck, and/or his eyes would puff, and/or he'd throw up. We stopped all those things completely for a week, and he was great! Then we challenged him with onion/garlic soup, and he stayed great. Which is good, but we still didn't know what he was reacting to, so we went to the allergist again today.
He confirmed very highly allergic to EGGS and DAIRY, and not onions or garlic. He also noted a medium reaction to legumes. His conclusion? Most (if not all) the reactions were most probably due to hidden dairy and/or egg ingredients, or other hidden sources such as contamination on food preparation surfaces and equipment.
Oh and apparently Kosher certification is NOT a reliable indicator for hidden allergens.
It's difficult for us to diagnose allergies because it is a hit-and-miss process: a combination of history, skin tests and blood tests, none of which is highly reliable. What makes it even more difficult for us is that "his system is so primed for an allergic response he might react even when there is no trigger at all."

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