Paleo for Sensitive Baby page

[Leah]

Hi, My husband & I have two children (3 & 10 months) Our youngest has been very difficult to say the least... eczema & reflux. My husband has been paleo for about 2 years now & my oldest son & I have been about 90% I say. I am just having a hard time trying to figure out what to feed my youngest. He's still breastfed as his main source of nutrition, but loves to eat! Fruits, veggies & meats! I just know when he turns one he will be eating more food as his main source of nutrition and the variety of stuff he's eating now, I don't feel very confident in knowing that... He's been food allergy tested & is allergic to almonds (possibly other nuts), tropical fruits (which includes coconuts!), eggs, corn & dairy makes his reflux worse. I am going to try to reintroduce egg yolk to him this week & see how he does. The first time resulted in an eczema flare up. I cook paleo pancakes, bread, cookies & bars & things but can't give him any of that because of his allergies (it's all either cooked with eggs & nut flours!) I NEED HELP!! I introduced quinoa to him this morning to see how he does with it & maybe I could use a sprouted quinoa flour to bake with for him?! He tolerates sheep & goats milk, so I've been giving him a bit of yogurt & cheeses. Ideas PLEASE!!! I'm really at a loss with him...

[noodletoy]

give the baby meat. meat. and meat. liver too. pureed veggies and low-sugar fruits.. i wouldn't worry about faux pancakes and treats -- he's just a baby. keep it basic. i don't know why you're so concerned about having him consume grains? he'll do just fine (and sounds like even better) without them.

are you sure he's allergic to coconut? it's a drupe, not really a fruit -- like olives.

what else did you feed him with the eggs last time? try offering them in isolation. also try for pastured eggs. they generally have a better diet than cafo supermarket eggs.

[Annieh]

Pumpkin, carrots, kumara - mashed with butter. Chunks of tender slowcooked meat. Avocado, banana. Grated cheese.

If he's already eating these things, which you say he is, then that's probably enough variety, so just increase the quantities as he grows and reduces the breastfeeds.

[Leah]

He loves meat! But right now only chicken, turkey & salmon as recommended by his ND. She want's us to wait on the red meats until he's one... Not concerned about him consuming grains! We don't eat them anyways. I do tho occasional quinoa which is not even technically a grain. I'm just needing MORE ideas. He eats a ton, but the same things over & over again because I don't know what else to give him. :-/ Maybe more I'm feeling bad for him because he always wants what brother is eating & he can't have it. My 3 year old REALLY loves his paleo pancakes!!! lol I'm just looking for substitutes & recipe that he can have too. It would also be nice to only have to cook one meal & have everyone able to eat it!

YES! Very allergic to coconut! I can't even drink it without a massive break out...

Nothing else with the egg, but he got bathed with soap around the same time. Not sure if it was the egg or the soap that made him break out. But we are trying again with the egg as soon as he clears up again. And it was a yolk from one of our chickens.

And: He also can't have acidic things. Tomatoes, citrus fruit etc....

Just seems like EVERYTHING I make he can't eat! Unless it's plain meat & roasted veggies

[noodletoy]

am surprised your nd is asking you to not feed him red meat. iron deficiency can cause serious issues in babies' development - especially breast-fed babies.

Iron Deficiency in Infants And Toddlers | Seattle Mama Doc.

also, it's not uncommon for infants to begin outgrowing allergies and sensitivities. these issues may not last forever.

[Leah]

red meats don't help reflux & can make it significantly worse...
Yeah that's exactly what were hoping for! He already seems to tolerate certain things better now than he did just a few months ago, so that's a good sign! Also reasons why he's not on any medication for either issue... we want him to outgrow them & not cause even more allergies for the little guy!

[meeshar]

I've always thought that babies grow out of milder food allergies/sensitivities as they get older, someone correct me if I'm wrong. Some doctors won't do allergy testing on babies under a year old (if not older) because they're so sensitive that there can be a lot of "false" positives that would normally be outgrown. For example, my daughter used to get a contact rash from eating squash, but she loved the stuff so much that I didn't stop feeding it to her. After eating it a few times she stopped getting the rash.

Personally, I'd start exposing my child, one thing at a time, that way it's clear which foods are causing reactions. And I wouldn't write off a food after just one exposure if the reaction was mild either.

[Leah]

Yes! You are right! Our ND expects him to outgrow most of his allergies, if not all. His eczema is not a slight case however! Right now I'm doing everything I can just to keep his flare ups down & he's not anywhere near eczema free... He's had eczema since he was 2 months old. Our ND didn't recommend an allergy test for the same reason, but I wanted it done because no matter what I cut out of my diet, his eczema wouldn't completely go away. Unfortunately the test didn't even tell us anythig we didn't alreay know from elimination. I'll start introducing that stuff back in when we have his eczema more under controll & he's older!

[adamm]

As a father of three, I'll reiterate what some have said. Meat and veg. Try red meats, especially lamb. Our doctor recommends lamb as the first meat as it is easiest to digest. If it causes more flair ups, then you can always stop.

Why bother making "fancy" food, as someone mentioned? He is less than a year old. Mashed meats and veg should be sufficient, and certainly give him the nutrients vitamins he needs (along with your breast milk, of course).

--Me

[Leah]

Again, I'm not worried about his nutrition now since he's breastfed... but soon he will be relying on food as his main source. Lamb is a great idea when we start red meats. Thanks. Sounds like I might just be worried for nothing. His food selection isn't huge, but I guess he doesn't need a lot of options to be getting adequate nutrition. What would you all recommend as a drink, since he won't be switching to milk?