Infant Allergies – What You Should Know

It can be worrying and frustrating for a new parent to deal with recurrent troublesome symptoms in their baby, not knowing exactly what the matter is. If there are continuing or recurrent symptoms of digestive or respiratory tract disturbances you may want to consider that infant allergies could be at the bottom of your baby’s discomfort.

infant-allergiesIt could be milk allergy or intolerance if-

  • Baby has an immediate reaction to consuming formula, milk or milk products. Sometimes the reaction could be delayed as well, but there could be repeated and recurrent symptoms in either case.
  • The reaction could be stomach ache (colic), constipation, diarrhea, acid reflux, skin rashes and reddening.
  • Watery eyes, stuffy nose and coughing could also be reactions to an allergy or an intolerance.
  • The baby may also fail to put on weight and thrive due to these symptoms occurring repeatedly.

Before assuming that the above symptoms are an allergy or intolerance, get a proper diagnosis from a doctor because there could be other reasons for the above symptoms as well.

Other common infant allergies include nasal allergies which can produce cold-like symptoms such a stuffy or runny nose, with thin runny nasal discharge, frequent sneezing, itchy or watery eyes, dry cough, breathing through the mouth and also skin rashes. It can be difficult to tell whether it is a cold or an allergy that is producing these symptoms, but remember; colds will clear in a week or two whereas allergic symptoms will persist.

What things could an infant be allergic to?

There are several things that surround a small baby which may be acting as allergens. Things such as a pillow, blanket or other items of baby bedding could be causing the allergic reaction. Other indoor allergens could include things such as pet dander, dust mites, mold and so on. Pollen, grass and similar allergies are more common among older toddlers than infants.

Detecting infant allergies

Babies can be around allergens for a long time before they show an allergic reaction to them – for instance the baby blanket that you have been using since the baby’s birth may produce an allergic reaction several months later. So it is best not to use guess work for allergies but to undergo an allergy test to confirm its presence or absence.

The good news about infant allergies however is, that babies often outgrow these allergies as they grow older. The bad news is that these allergies make a baby more prone to asthma, sinus and ear infections and so on.

 

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