What to do if your baby has an allergic reaction

As a mother of children with allergies, I know how scary it can be to deal with a child who has an allergic reaction. Here, I will share exactly what to do if your baby has an allergic reaction. Keep this post saved for future reference.

Here’s a little of my experience with introducing allergenic foods to my babies. For context, my two eldest daughters are anaphylactic to eggs and a range of nuts. My son does not have any allergies at this stage.

When I began introducing solids to my eldest daughter, I had no idea about how to safely introduce allergenic foods. Within two months, my daughter had two severe anaphylactic reactions to cashews and eggs, which resulted in hospital visits. We got her tested for allergies after she turned one.

My second daughter has less severe allergies, however, reacted to eggs on the second exposure and then almonds a few months later.

My son, thankfully, has no allergies. However, because my two daughters had several reactions between them in their first years of life, I was very anxious to introduce allergenic foods to him. Since I had done my nutrition training, I felt more confident knowing what to do if my son had a food reaction.

I hope this post helps give you more confidence as you begin to introduce allergenic foods to your baby.

Before I go through each step, make sure you download my Starting Solids Checklist below.

What I will cover in this post

• What to do if a baby/child has an allergic reaction
• Severe vs non-severe symptoms
• Some ways you can holistically manage allergies

What to do if a baby/child has an allergic reaction

It can be scary seeing your child develop a rash or having problems breathing after being introduced to a certain food. Which is why I want to give you a step by step protocol in what to do if an allergic reaction arises.

Let’s first clarify what a food allergy is. A food allergy is an immediate immune response to a trigger food within two minutes to two hours of said food being introduced. If symptoms arise between 2 hours to three days of the trigger food being introduced, it is likely to be a food intolerance or sensitivity and not an allergy.

What to do if your child is having an allergic reaction:

1. Stop the meal and separate your child from the food.
2. Wipe their hands and face.
3. Stay with your child and monitor for any swelling and/or lethargy.
4. If you think that your child is having an allergic reaction by this point, I suggest giving the child an age appropriate antihistamine liquid to help calm symptoms (optional but highly recommended to have on hand if you choose to use).
5. If symptoms are mild or moderate, contact your health care provider.
6. If symptoms are severe, call an ambulance.

Now, this goes without saying, but in the case where your child is having an allergic reaction, it is best if you try to stay as calm as possible. I can say with certainty that I was in a total panic when my eldest daughter had her first few reactions and it simply makes the situation worst. Focus on breathing steadily and keeping your emotions in check. This will result in a focused mind and being able to think rationally.

How to proceed?

With severe food reactions, these foods should not be reintroduced unless in the future, the food allergy is outgrown.

With moderate to mild food reactions, there’s no telling if the symptoms could get worse with more exposure to the trigger food. Therefore, you should speak to your health care provider about the potential of reintroducing the trigger food in the future and a safe way of doing so.

Severe vs non-severe symptoms of a food allergy

These symptoms are non-severe symptoms of a food allergy:

• Hives around the body
• Mild face rash
• Reddening of skin (without swelling)
• Tingling or itching of the mouth and/or ears.

These symptoms are severe symptoms of a food allergy:

• Swelling of the face, throat and/or mouth
• Throat tightening
• Difficulty breathing
• Wheezing: severe asthmatic reaction
• Abdominal pain and/or vomiting
• Anaphylactic reaction includes: lethargy, weakness, floppiness, drowsiness or unconsciousness.

If you suspect your child is having an anaphylactic reaction, then you should call the ambulance (000) or 911 (if based in the US). Once a child has been diagnosed with anaphylaxis, you must keep an EpiPen (an adrenaline-loaded syringe) with them at all times. Adrenaline interrupts the allergic reaction by opening airways and narrowing blood vessels, which can reverse symptoms of an allergic reaction.

Some ways you can holistically manage allergies in babies/children

If your child has a severe allergy to tree nuts, peanuts, fish and shellfish, it is likely it will remain lifelong. Only 10-20% of children who have these allergies will outgrow them. Yes, there are ways to work with your health care practitioner about a desensitization protocol, however, you will need to work with them to see what your options are and how successful the outcome can be.

However, children who are allergic to wheat, milk, egg and soy are more likely to outgrow their allergies. Even though these allergies tend to be resolving less frequently than in previous decades.

This leads me to suggest ways to support your child’s gut health while holistically managing allergy symptoms and beyond.

For those children with allergies that are more likely to be outgrown, I suggest finding ways to treat their gut health. Many babies/children who have allergies or intolerances likely have eczema or a leaky gut. When the intestinal wall of your baby’s gut is compromised, tiny gaps can occur between the cells of the membrane lining. This allows food particles to leak through the gut lining and into the bloodstream, which can cause an allergic immune response resulting in eczema and other symptoms associated with food sensitivities.

The healthier a baby’s gut is, the better their digestion and immune system will function.

Here are some practical ways to support your baby’s gut:

• Offering anti-inflammatory foods: blueberries, colourful vegetables, dark leafy greens, coconut oil and fermented vegetables, to name a few.
• Giving your baby a baby-friendly probiotic with strains that lower histamine levels (bifidobacterium bifidum, bifidobacterium breve, bifidobacterium infantis, lactobacillus gasseri and lactobacillus plantarum, to name a few). Here’s an infant probiotic I recommend.
• Offering prebiotic foods (prebiotics feed beneficial bacteria in the gut): bananas, oats, asparagus, garlic, onion and apples.
• Reducing inflammatory foods as much as possible: refined flours, sugars, cakes, muffins, chocolate, lollies, chips and so on.

Of course, these suggestions do not mean your baby will outgrow their allergy/sensitivity, but when you begin to heal their gut microbiome, they will be more likely to tolerate foods, even the more allergenic foods.

More posts on the blog

Safely introducing the most common allergenic foods to babies

Nourishing labour aid drink for birth

Can you work and homeschool your children in Australia?