Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Possible food allergy

Well, Jacob's biopsy results came back today and it's still unclear as to what exactly may be stunting his growth. However, there's a 98 percent chance that it is not celiac disease! Hallelujah!

Dr. Rosen, Jacob's gastroenterologist, told us he did see inflammation on Jacob's small intestine, but much of it was located on an allergy cell on the lower part of the intestine near his stomach.

So, what exactly does that indicate?

According to the doc, in the simplest words he could muster, Jacob most likely has a food allergy. He said everyone reacts differently to food allergies. Some break out in hives or rashes. Others, like Jacob, may struggle with growth.

To what food he's allergic is the new mystery. It could be peanuts, it could be dairy, or it could be wheat. Dr. Rosen is going to refer us to an allergist to continue, and hopefully conclude, the investigation.

Erin's putting her money on dairy, but we're hoping the odds are against her. The reason she thinks the culprit may come from a cow is because Jacob was, in fact, once allergic to dairy—at six weeks old.

One day Erin found blood in Jacob's stool. Our pediatrician at the time determined he was allergic to cow's milk, so Erin had to cut dairy completely out of her diet if she wanted to continue nursing him. He's consumed a lot of cheese and milk without a bloody stool he stopped breast feeding, so we assumed he outgrew it. Another reason you shouldn't assume.

Whatever food he may be allergic to, we'll change our habits to help our little man grow big and tall... especially tall. For now, we're very thankful we can rule out celiac disease.

We'll keep everyone posted as we get more information.

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