Just saw the allergist this morning! Xander has a severe milk allergy. 
We'll do a blood test in a year to determine the likeliness of him outgrowing his milk allergy, but until then (and even after that I guess), we cannot give him anything that contains milk.
Anyone deal with milk allergies? Got any good alternative recommendations for things like milk, cheese, etc.? I don't even know what I have to avoid, that's how clueless I am!
GOLD / squash / 13464 posts
Poor guy! I can't believe he's not reacting to the dairy in your milk, that's so great for you! I would say you should probably plan on extended nursing if possible. And then consider soy milk, almond milk, or coconut milk as alternatives.
blogger / pineapple / 12381 posts
Check out my mspi post for all the things that contain milk and milk proteins. I'm sorry!
honeydew / 7589 posts
Gosh, I'm sorry!
You are definitely going to need to start reading labels, cause there is hidden dairy in A LOT of stuff. I was a vegan for many years so I learned about how to avoid it and good replacements. I'll try to come back and post more later - if I forget, wall me!
squash / 13208 posts
Oh no! Sorry to hear! My DS had a dairy allergy too! Dairy is in everything so read all labels!!!
Milk - we did coconut milk
Cheese - no good alt.
Butter - earths balance
yogurt - coconut milk yogurt
Gosh its been 3 years so I cant remember what else we had to find alts for.
Oh this is silly but DS couldn't eat happy meals (dairy in the breads and breading on chicken) - when DS turned 2 and passed the milk challenge I took him to Chic-Fil-A as a treat =)
pomegranate / 3003 posts
I had a severe dairy allergy as a baby. I was given soy based formula as an infant and soy milk as a toddler, and outgrew the allergy entirely by kindergarten.
wonderful grape / 20453 posts
is he allergic to goat's milk, too?
The good news is that he is so young, he won't know what he's "missing out" on for awhile! And hopefully he outgrows it!
squash / 13764 posts
Goodness! Sorry to hear this...Glad you found out sooner rather than later though!! Is he also allergic to soy?
blogger / pineapple / 12381 posts
@Adira: oh your allergist should do some counseling with you too.
pomelo / 5524 posts
Oh no...I'm so sorry!!
While S doesn't have a milk allergy, he does have an egg allergy. I was absolutely clueless as well with all of the different things that contain egg that we now had to stay far away from.
First...take a deep breath! It's definitely incredibly overwhelming when you first find out that your child has an allergy. You are now hyper aware of everything that he ingests. It's not as bad as you think, and you've identified exactly what it is which is sometimes the hardest part.
How hopeful is Xander's allergist that he will grow out of his milk allergy? S's allergist is pretty hopeful that S will eventually grow out of his egg allergy even though it might take him longer than others. He could be 6 or 7 by the time he fully grows out of it, but we're monitoring it with blood tests just like you'll be doing with Xander.
I've found some incredibly helpful sites that have great recipes for kids with allergies, and I'm finding that there are so many more options out there in the grocery store for those who have these types of allergies. This is a great website that I've gone to for some resources:
http://community.kidswithfoodallergies.org/pages/community
If you have any questions or just want to vent about how unfair it is that our kids have allergies...feel free to wall me 
wonderful pomelo / 30692 posts
@MamaMoose: The allergist actually thinks his eczema is caused by dairy in my diet, but he said it was up to me if I wanted to cut out dairy and see if his eczema improves. Since his eczema is fairly mild and we're able to control it with creams, it's not necessary for me to eliminate it from my diet.
@Mrs. Jacks: Thanks! I'll check it out!!
@Mamaof2: Thank you!!! I'll have to look into those things and keep on looking! It's going to be such a huge change for us because Hubs and I have no food allergies so we're not used to having to check the labels! Although maybe this will force us ALL to eat better too, haha.
@deerylou: Thank you for that! The allergist actually showed me a chart of people with milk allergies and depending on your severity, a lot can outgrow it! We'll have a better idea when we have his blood test done next year as to his chances of outgrowing the allergy or not. I really hope he does!! But I guess I should plan on him not, haha.
pomelo / 5524 posts
@Adira: And going through the site that I just posted, I found a little travel sized list of things to look for when shopping for a milk allergy:
http://www.kidswithfoodallergies.org/resourcespre.php?id=37&title=Milk_allergy_avoidance_list
wonderful pomelo / 30692 posts
@blackbird: Goat's milk - I don't know. How would I know that?
@hilsy85: No idea about soy, but that's what the allergist suggested we try as an alternative.
@Mrs. Jacks: He did give me a lot of information that I haven't fully digested yet! He gave me a list of things to look for in labels that we need to avoid (I haven't even read it yet) and some information about milk allergies.
@2PeasinaPod: Until we have the blood test done in a year, there's no way to know his chances of outgrowing the milk allergy. So... no clue yet! Thank you for the link!
GOLD / wonderful coffee bean / 18478 posts
You'll have to do a lot of label reading. The silver lining is that he'll probably eat very clean. Not too many processed foods since so many things have hidden dairy. That's how I look at it anyway ...
Earths Balance is a great butter substitute. I am not a fan of dairy free cheese so no suggestion there. Coconut milk yogurt is very yummy. We haven't decided about what we're doing about milk yet. My baby turns 1 next month so we'll have to tackle that soon ... I bought some hemp milk to taste and it wasn't bad!
GOLD / wonderful coffee bean / 18478 posts
Oh and there is dairy free bread in the organic aisle of our supermarket. My baby loves it!
pomegranate / 3003 posts
@Adira: Yes, the statistics show that most children do outgrow dairy allergies! I was voluntarily vegan for several years in my youth, and actually enjoy and prefer many soy/rice/almond based products, now. I have honestly never consumed a full glass of milk in my life, and use almond milk in my granola, smoothies, and simply to drink. I do eat and drink things with milk in it, of course, but it's never been a beverage I enjoyed.
Earth Balance, Tofutti, and Soy/almond dream make decent alternatives to butter, ice cream, yogurt, and cream cheese. The only thing I can't find a decent alternative to is cheese. Real cheese is hard to replicate.
wonderful pomelo / 30692 posts
@Andrea: Thanks!! I'm going to have to try all the alternatives and see what I like, haha. I don't want to give him stuff that I find gross, haha. But it's helpful that others have gone through this before me!
@deerylou: Thanks for the information! I'll have to try out these alternatives! Presumably if Xander never has cow's milk, he won't really know what he's missing out on! The allergist did mention that some people can have milk in baked goods or if it's been highly processed, but can't have the raw stuff (like yogurt, cheese, milk, etc) and we won't know if Xander is like that or not until we try. Though we won't be trying until after his blood test (if ever)!
GOLD / wonderful pomegranate / 28905 posts
So interesting that he has a severe allergy but doesn't react strongly to milk in your diet since he's EBF.
I would check out Kellymom. they have a list including foods with hidden dairy.
GOLD / papaya / 10206 posts
@Adira: Hugs mama!! All the PP's have great suggestions, and I agree that there is no good dairy free cheese, though Rice Parmesan isn't awful when it's mixed in things.
I would spend some time on the nutritional info sections from some of your fave restaurants and make up a list of 'safe' foods. We did a lot of traveling when I was on an MSPI diet for DD and having a list of 'go to' foods from various restaurants was super helpful. We ended up eating at a lot of chain restaurants just because they have useful websites.
squash / 13764 posts
@Adira: if it's just cow's milk, then I would definitely give sheep's cheese and goat cheese/milk a try. I have a friend who's very allergic to cow's milk (can't even have it cooked in things) but can eat sheep/goat stuff no prob.
pomegranate / 3872 posts
Daiya cheese is the best dairy free cheese I've tried. Their cream cheese is pretty good too. I like that they are soy free.
wonderful pomelo / 30692 posts
@locavore_mama: Thanks! I'll check out Kellymom!
@prettylizy: Good idea!! I didn't even think of that! Luckily we discovered his allergy early so I can plan stuff in advance, but there's just so much I didn't even consider! I think I'll just continue feeding him fruit and veggie purees for the rest of his life. 
@hilsy85: I don't think they tested for goat's milk, though I'm not actually sure... they just said "milk" though I'll check the paperwork he gave me when I get home!
wonderful pomelo / 30692 posts
@JerricaBenton: Thanks for the tip!! I'll have to look into that!
honeydew / 7488 posts
I'm sorry to hear this! Although dairy is a tough one, I feel that we have come a long way in terms of education and awareness of food allergies. Fingers crossed that he will outgrow it!
bananas / 9973 posts
Oh no! I can only think of a positive is that nowadays there is a lot more information out there for supporting this kind of allergy. I think Mrs. Jacks post will be really helpful. Poor X.
bananas / 9227 posts
DD is also allergic. It's daunting at first, but very doable once you've gotten the hang of things! Hugs!
wonderful pear / 26210 posts
There are so many alternative products out there, like non dairy ice cream so he can have junk food just like his peers!
If you are looking for resources, try looking for vegan diets.
coconut / 8430 posts
We give my LO hemp milk. She guzzles it down! We also do coconut milk yogurt from Trader Joes.
pomelo / 5258 posts
@Adira: I'm sorry to hear that. Can I ask what kind of testing was done? My LO has an appointment with an allergist on Friday and I don't know what to expect. I made the appointment because of an egg reaction but I wonder if she has dairy-related eczema as well. Was Xander tested for several allergens?
GOLD / wonderful coconut / 33402 posts
Oh no!! I can't believe he doesn't react more to the milk in your diet. Hopefully it will be something that he grows out of with age.
pear / 1609 posts
I buy daiya cheese for DS and he loves it. It's pretty pricey though. The hardest for us is dining out. Today I met DH for lunch and microwaved a veggie burger for DS before we left and fed that to him.
Also make it known to everyone in your family. And don't be afraid to repeat it. Someone slipped DS dairy and I was pissed. They didn't know but they also didn't ask if he could have the said food either and I wasn't nearby.
wonderful pomelo / 30692 posts
@Corduroy: Based on his reactions, he was only tested for an allergy to milk. It's a skin test where they picked his back with a control, histamine, and the milk to gauge his reactions. Xander found it mildly unpleasant, but wasn't overly bothered by it. Other children react more strongly.
Also, eggs is one of those foods that contain histamine-like substances, so it's entirely possible to have a reaction due to eggs, but not be allergic! Good luck to you!
@MamaJ: Thanks! I did e-mail all the grandparents and siblings, but I'll have to make sure everyone is aware when we're with other people! Or just not leave Xander alone with anyone ever!!
pomegranate / 3393 posts
I'm sorry to hear that, and hope he has a chance to outgrow this allergy!
Vegan food blogs will have tons of recipes and product suggestions for you to try, and almost any sweet or savory recipe can be made with subs. Just google ”dairy free xx” for any dish and a huge number should pop up! Good luck!
grapefruit / 4712 posts
Hope he out grows his allergy! I also hope that he has no more scary reactions.
We just found out N has an extremely mild allergy to dairy. DH and I are dairy free anyway so it isn't a huge deal for us. N loves rice crèmes, they are completely dairy free. They have a lot of alternatives out there to dairy.
pomelo / 5621 posts
Sorry to hear that. I really hope that he grows out of it. Sounds like there are lots of alternatives and resources out there. Also glad that you don't have to cut dairy from your diet.
I guess the plus side is you will be more aware of what he is eating and you will probably eat better yourself.
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