First.. Since I was little (about 9 or 10 years old) I would break out in "hives" for no apparent reason.. The hives would either be on my feet and thighs or my hands and wrist also my top lip would swell for no reason. Most of the time I would notice my finger itching or my wrist, where all the veins are and then the break out would happen. My Mom took me to an allergist and they did the "arm test" where the pricked me with different things. I don't know what they actually where testing for, I don't think it was food allergies. more like mold, cats etc. The allergist told her to keep me away from smoke (which does bother me) and mold.. he said my "hives" where called angioedema (you can read more about that if you click it) and we were basically told it was my veins swelling... Even though this is a condition thought to be hereditary and not known what exactly causes it.. I have always wondered if it could be food related.. It may not be though.. And as I have gotten older the condition doesn't seem to appear as often. So in all honesty I didn't really care as much about what I ate and if food could be a contributor.. I did grow up eating lots of veggies and other foods.. I have always considered my self as a "healthy" eater.. Only Because I would eat lots of vegetables, fruits, meats, dairy, eggs, nuts.. etc! But I also like to be able to run thru a drive thru and grab something fast to eat, and I love going to a restaurant and eating "healthy" (which I am sure even though I had a salad with my meal or whatever... it was never "healthy")
I was out not long ago at a restaurant with my family when my husband pulled the calories up on the rolls we were eating.. I wanted to spit it out right away and couldn't make myself eat another! one yummy roll was close to 400 calories and when we eat them we wouldn't eat just one!! Not to mention fast food and eating out are SO expensive!
(because of the crazy expense of eating out I now sale Pampered Chef, because in all seriousness their products make my kitchen run so much more smoothly and I actually enjoy preparing and cooking foods!! you will probably see Pampered Chef Products in a lot of my pictures that I may post!)
SO back to the reason for all this! 5 years ago I gave birth to our sweet Ansley.. I was able to breast feed her and when she was around 7 months old she pretty much weened herself and I started giving her formula. Before I knew it I had this baby that was miserable and projectile vomiting.. after experimenting I realized it was the dairy so I switched her to soy formula and eventually Silk Soy Milk. She still loves her soy milk and does not drink cow milk at all.. (she does eat other dairy things.. it is just her preference and it does hurt her stomach some if she has to much dairy)
When I had Justus, it was a whole new world.. I thought he would be simple like her and be able to breast feel right away.. However he cried what seems like from Day 1, and seemed like he was in pain. He kept his little legs tightly up at his tummy and cried 24/7.. I don't even remember sleeping.. I thought it was something I was eating (and it was) but could not figure out what.. we tried tons of formulas.. I went thru gas drops like crazy! I thought he just had "colic" and I was going crazy not knowing what to do! Finally our pediatrician told us to try pregestimil.. This was such a life saver.. he had reflux and was on medicine for that we were also told to thicken his formula with some rice. Well I bought Gerber.. when I went back for a recheck and told them something didn't seem right.. I realized he couldn't have soy and Gerbers rice has soy.. I ended up using Earths Best Rice for him.. Justus finally did out grow his milk/soy protein allergy by the time he was one year old.
However I am expecting Baby #3 soon, and more than likely he will have the same issues. I do want to be able to breast feed him, not just to keep from buying tons of formula but mostly because of how healthy it is for the both of us.. I have learned that I also must eliminate these things from my every day diet: Dairy, Eggs, Soy, and Nuts. (peanuts, tree nuts and those yummy nuts you make pesto with!) So at first I was a little bummed, because I love to eat! Really I do! But I am excited to start eating healthier! And don't get me wrong, you can eat healthy and have these things I listed.. I just didn't always eat them in a healthy way! my last 3 "I am going to eat whatever I feel like" meals where: Wendy's, KFC, and Mexican from a local Yummy restaurant! As of Monday (4 days ago since this post) all that junk is out the window! I have also found that a lot of what I eat may also end up being gluten free and not on purpose.. I have realized when buying dairy, egg, nut, soy free foods it is also gluten free. So if you are watching you're gluten intake I may have something informative for you, but I cant make any promises! And like I said I am still learning! I started out literally knowing absolutely nothing and thought it would be simple! My next post will tell you about my reality shock!
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