Food Allergy Tests

This is what started our healthy journey:

Between the ages of 9 and 17 months, our son E spent most of his time shuttling between pediatricians and hospitals. He had a bout of asthma every fortnight. He watched TV while hooked onto a nebulizer. His bedtime routine was 2 Ventolin puffs, 2 Flixotide puffs, followed by a goodnight kiss.

We sent E for a blood test to check for food allergies and sensitivities. The IgE (immunoglobulin E) test did not turn up any allergies, but the IgG (immunoglobulin G) test (results above) showed that he had a major intolerance for his daily staple - milk.

As an experiment, we:

• Replaced his daily milk with a mix of 2/3 rice milk + 1/3 formula;
• Eliminated most of his trigger foods from his diet. Common offenders were dairy, wheat and eggs. E-specific triggers included broccoli, tomatoes, carrots and citrus fruits.

And what miraculous results. Since then, E barely visits the pediatrician once a quarter. We've tucked the nebulizer away on the top shelf. And we no longer have to wake up in the middle of the night to check if he's wheezing.

E is now a bubbly 2.5 year old boy, and our hunt for dairy-free and gluten-free recipes continue!