Luckily, I've never had to deal with allergies. (Well, except for that one time when I took an Asprin and got a 2.5 hour bloody nose, and now tell all doctors that I'm allergic to Asprin, but I'm not sure if you would call that a real allergy.)
ANYway... we've discovered that Avery has what's called a Dairy Protein Sensitivity. I've heard most babies outgrow it by 6 months - here's hoping we are in that group! Because I'm nursing, I have to cut out all dairy (and you would be surprised at the foods that have "hidden" dairy in them!). It is SO hard because pretty much all of my go-to recipes for dinner have dairy in them. Mostly cheese; man I'm a big fan of cheese.
Before I stopped eating dairy, Avery was up every couple of hours screaming. Even if I fed her, she wouldn't just go right back to sleep, and she had lots of gas. She spit up quite a bit... all day long. She was hit and miss on the poopy diapers as well - nothing for a couple days, then total blowouts the next. After I cut out the dairy, it was a drastic change: she hardly spits up at all, her diapers are much more regular and - probably the most important - she is sleeping well. Hallelujah!
After I realized that going off dairy was going to help my sweet baby, I went through a depressed/panic phase thinking that I couldn't eat anything.. and then I talked to some good friends who have kids with a dairy allergy, and realized I could eat "normal" food. It will just take a substitution here and there. I'm posting all of this in the chance that there is someone out there who could use this information!
I have to include here, as I've already stated on my "food" page, that how food tastes is of primary importance to me. I'm not going to substitute some blob of who-knows-what and tell my brain it's cheese just to say I ate "cheese." And I really don't want to cook two separate dinners so my family can eat our usual, while I prepare something different for me. So... I'm on a quest for dairy-free dinners that - substitutes included (if needed) - taste good to me, my hubby, and Harvey.
First up, the list of allergy-friendly substitutes for my go-to dinners/snacks (thank you Shauna!)...
Are any of you on a dairy-free diet? Do you cook that way for your children? Know of any other secrets to cooking dairy-free? DO share! Pretty please?
ANYway... we've discovered that Avery has what's called a Dairy Protein Sensitivity. I've heard most babies outgrow it by 6 months - here's hoping we are in that group! Because I'm nursing, I have to cut out all dairy (and you would be surprised at the foods that have "hidden" dairy in them!). It is SO hard because pretty much all of my go-to recipes for dinner have dairy in them. Mostly cheese; man I'm a big fan of cheese.
Before I stopped eating dairy, Avery was up every couple of hours screaming. Even if I fed her, she wouldn't just go right back to sleep, and she had lots of gas. She spit up quite a bit... all day long. She was hit and miss on the poopy diapers as well - nothing for a couple days, then total blowouts the next. After I cut out the dairy, it was a drastic change: she hardly spits up at all, her diapers are much more regular and - probably the most important - she is sleeping well. Hallelujah!
After I realized that going off dairy was going to help my sweet baby, I went through a depressed/panic phase thinking that I couldn't eat anything.. and then I talked to some good friends who have kids with a dairy allergy, and realized I could eat "normal" food. It will just take a substitution here and there. I'm posting all of this in the chance that there is someone out there who could use this information!
I have to include here, as I've already stated on my "food" page, that how food tastes is of primary importance to me. I'm not going to substitute some blob of who-knows-what and tell my brain it's cheese just to say I ate "cheese." And I really don't want to cook two separate dinners so my family can eat our usual, while I prepare something different for me. So... I'm on a quest for dairy-free dinners that - substitutes included (if needed) - taste good to me, my hubby, and Harvey.
First up, the list of allergy-friendly substitutes for my go-to dinners/snacks (thank you Shauna!)...
- Toffutti Better than Cream Cheese, and Toffutti Better than Sour Cream (haven't tried them yet, but I'll let you know how it goes!)
- Best Life or Nucoa brand margarine sticks
- Blue Bonnet Light spreadable margrine
- Enjoy Life Foods Chocolate Chips (tried them... and they were perfect in the chocolate chip cookies I made. My whole family loved them so much we ate the whole batch before I could get a picture. I'll bake them again soon and post the recipe.)
- Soy Delicious Coconut Milk ice cream (not quite real ice cream, but still tasted really good. I got vanilla, and stirred in some raspberry jam for flavor.)
- and of course... Rice, Almond, or Coconut Milk. (Soy milk tastes funky to me..)
Are any of you on a dairy-free diet? Do you cook that way for your children? Know of any other secrets to cooking dairy-free? DO share! Pretty please?
Glad things are working for ya!! It's hard at first, but gets easier with time!!
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