Life

Milk allergies are hard to diagnose

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"The more symptoms a child has, and the more different systems those symptoms are in, the more likely it is that there is an underlying allergy. "But it's very difficult for GPs to separate what is just persistent crying, colic or reflux from those who have the same symptoms caused by an underlying milk allergy. There's no easy test - the only way you can find out for sure is cutting milk out and seeing if they get better."

As well as asking about symptoms, doctors will also enquire if symptoms got worse when a baby moved from breastfeeding to bottle feeding, whether symptoms are responding to treatment, and if there's a family history of allergy. While allergies aren't specifically passed on through families, what can be inherited is an allergic tendency, or atopy. If this happens, then environmental factors will dictate whether the allergy develops.

If babies are breastfed and start showing milk allergy symptoms, the mother may need to cut milk and dairy products out of her diet, and babies who are fed formula or a mixture of formula and breastmilk can try hypoallergenic formulas.

Dr Fox says infant soy formula is not recommended for babies under the age of six months because plant oestrogen levels are high and there's a safety concern.

Also, he says a significant proportion of children with milk allergies, and particularly the delayed type, react to soy as well.

Maureen Jenkins, clinical director at Allergy UK, says babies with a milk allergy tend to be poor feeders, and may posset (regurgitate curdled milk) which is often misdiagnosed as a reflux problem. "All of the symptoms, like sleeplessness, eczema and reflux for example, could be misdiagnosed as another condition that's commonly seen in a baby," she says. "But if they're all together, and the child's got moderate to severe eczema, then the alarm bells should be ringing." She says babies will often see a doctor many times before a milk allergy is diagnosed, and she advises parents to keep a very strict record of what the child consumes, symptoms and their duration, to help a doctor diagnose the source of the problem more easily.

But although the diagnosis and subsequent management of the allergy can be difficult, there is light at the end of the tunnel for most families - the British Medical Journal says most children with milk allergy outgrow it, at an average age of five years for IgEmediated cows' milk allergy, and by the age of three years for uncomplicated non-IgE-mediated allergy.

* For more information about cow's milk allergy, see isitcowsmilkallergy. co.uk or call the Allergy UK helpline on 01322 619 898.