For those of you who don't know, my youngest son Cooper started in with chronic and unexplained diarrhea right after his first birthday. All signs seemed to point to a food allergy, but it was nearly impossible to pinpoint WHICH food(s) were the problem. He never has skin reactions (or "histamine" reactions of hives, swelling, etc.) so traditional allergy testing quickly became a waste of time. We tried a total elimination diet (no milk, soy, wheat, egg, nuts, or fish) which should take care of all the most popular allergens. I later added to that list beef, corn, and fruit. What's left? Literally rice, oats, chicken, and vegetables. That's all he has eaten for a majority of this time frame. We supplemented him with special "allergen free" formula. All of this gave us NO improvement, not in the slightest. I quit the formula, I fired doctors and went to new ones, gave him probiotics, I've logged thousands of hours on the internet reading everything I can about eosinophils, diarrhea, the whole digestive system, every type of intolerance, you name it. I've experimented with his diet, kept logs, and analyzed EVERY LITTLE THING. In the end, still clueless. It was like no matter what we did, nothing worked.
I feel very nervous even typing this.... because it seems like I've had 200 previous "theories" that never seem to pan out. It's a tiresome subject for me just as much as it is for you. I have run into brick walls and wanted to give up so many times I can't even count. So much guesswork, so many tests, so many doctors, so much experimenting. As a mother I have fought and fought this battle for the last 18 months with barely any progress or promise.
Until now!
I'm so excited (but remember, nervous) to announce that Cooper has been diarrhea-free for the last two weeks, at least! Not only that, he's doing it AND eating wheat, fruit, dairy, and a bunch of other stuff!!! I am currently convinced that
THIS LITTLE BOY
is allergic to corn.
So why didn't we see results before? Well I suspect it is because I am just now learning that corn (and corn derivatives) are in freaking EVVVVVERYTHING. Corn is not a hugely popular allergen, so the FDA is not required to include it in allergy warnings on labels. You have to look extra closely. High fructose corn syrup is the big one. It's not just in soda and treats like you would think. Did you know corn syrup is in:
Oh yes. Every single brand out there,
even the fancy healthy-looking kinds.
Here is the brand I have found
without any high fructose corn syrup.
And it's very affordable.
And I now worship them.
Corn syrup is also in:
Gotta go organic if you want to avoid it.
Want cereal in the morning? Forget it! I DARE YOU to find a breakfast cereal from a regular grocery store (not health food store) that does not have corn or corn syrup in it. Oh, and it must not resemble gravel. That's where I draw the line, hahaha. In truth, there is only one that I have found and that is Walmart's generic Rice Chex. Can you believe it, the name brand of Rice Chex still has corn in it!?!? UGH.
Corn STARCH is another big one. You will find it in:
- Kraft mac n' cheese
- lunch meats
- powdered sugar
- baking powder
- pretty much every soup and sauce
Oh, and guess what was the #1 ingredient, the first thing listed for that special allergen-free formula we were shoving down his throat for months and months? CORN SYRUP SOLIDS (58%) Hmmm.... no wonder he never improved despite the elimination diet. It had to be the formula all along.
The bottom line: Sorry to bore you with new stuff I'm learning. It's very eye-opening to read labels more and more. I HOPE this theory proves to be the last and final true one!!! This is the best trend we've seen out of him, ever, so I'm thrilled. The best part is that poor little Cooper is now able to eat a short list of "normal" things. He is SO happy to have been introduced to much yummier foods. A few of his new favorites are:
- peanut butter sandwiches
- apples and applesauce, starting a few other fruits
- goldfish crackers!!!
- homemade pancakes and waffles (we use Agave syrup instead of regular)
- cheese sticks
- cow's milk with Carnation Instant Breakfast -- CHOCOLATE MILK!
- and Mom's famous slushies :D
He must think he's died and gone to heaven. If this continues.... I will too.
10 comments:
Oh, I'm so happy for Cooper. What a long road but how great to see improvement:)
Yeah!!! Happy day. High fructose corn syrup is so bad for you. I try to avoid it for my kids, too. Alpine Valley bread is made from all natural stuff. No corn syrup. It's made from honey. You can get their day old bread for 50 Cents a loaf at the factory on Country Club and Southern, right by Sonic. Their bread is yummy, too. The closest to homemade that you'll find. Also, I've been making my own yogurt. It's delicious and simple to make. It's pure and you can put your own fruit and sweetener in it. My kids and Steve love it. We eat it with granola, or just by itself. We can eat a gallon of this stuff in a week. It's so good. Let me know if you want the directions.
I love that it's still going so well! I did know that corn and all it's derivatives are in a lot of things you wouldn't expect--a friend of mine growing up had a few family members who were allergic to corn and I learned how to inspect labels with all of them. But the ones you listed that I didn't know are baking soda and powdered sugar--crazy!
He'll be one HEALTHY kid, that's for sure--if he can't have soda or most junk foods, he'll be eating better than all the rest of us! :)
Congrats!
What a relief, to feel like you've got it figured out...especially if it works!! I REALLY hope this is it for him!
Wow! I so hope things continue going well. I'll have to keep my eye out for things with no corn ingredients!!
Poor little Coop! That's a lot for him (and mom) to endure!! I'm so glad you're finally making some real progress in "the search for a cure"!!!
Oh that is great! That is in everything. Now at least you know what to avoid. He is such a cutie. I am happy for you and your family. What a relief.
Man I can't believe you've had to deal with all of that for so long. I don't know if I would have been able to handle that kind of stress. I'm glad there is some hope that you finally figured it out (knock on wood).
Alpine Valley Bread is reall good. I use to get it all the time there, it only has like three ingredients in it and you can find it at costco and sprouts. Sometimes at costco they have it with raisins or cranberry in it, which is yummy in the morning. Also "Classico" spaghetti sauce doesn't say organic on the bottle but it doesn't have any added sugars or anything in it and you can find that at Costco too.
That would be so rough to avoid corn syrup, it really is in EVERYTHING. I'm sure sprouts is becoming your new favorite place to shop. They don't have health food stores like that here, so atleast you have some of those close by.
Major congrats. I can't imagine what it feels like to have your baby not being able to eat what all the other little boys can. I am so glad that you figured it out. I think mothers deserve a MD degree far more than those who go to school!
Wow!! That is really awesome. I can't believe that's what he's allergic to, but am so glad that you discovered it. He's probably loving all the new eating possibilities out there.
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