Milk Allergy Part 2 - Tips for Managing Milk Allergy

This is part 2 of a series by guest writer Lauren Morgan, a dietetic intern at the University of Maryland and blogger at The Blue Plate Special. Having grown up with food allergies, and because of her training as a dietitian, she has a strong interest and technical knowledge of this topic. Feel free to leave a question or comment for follow up!

In part 1 on milk allergy, we introduced a definition and some common symptoms of milk allergy. In this second part, we offer a few tips if you are trying to manage your child’s nutrition when he or she has a known milk allergy.

Do we know the reasons why a child may develop milk allergy? Is it because of genetic reasons or are there environmental factors?

This is a good and complicated question because the causes of allergies are not well understood. Children develop allergies when they come into contact with allergens, thus this is an environmental trigger. Children are at greater risk for developing allergies if one or both parents have allergies, so this is the genetic component. Researchers do think that there is generally a strong genetic component although it is not well understood.

How to achieve proper nutrition and avoid calcium and vitamin D deficiency if my child has a milk allergy?

Like we mentioned last week, milk is a great source of calcium and vitamin D which are very important to the body. Calcium is key for healthy bones, especially for children as their bodies are growing and developing, and vitamin D is necessary for our bodies to absorb the calcium. The good news for parents of kids with milk allergies is that there are other places to get these important nutrients if your child cannot have any milk or milk products.

Many foods are fortified with calcium these days including fortified ready-to-eat cereals, soy milk (although many children with milk allergy are also allergic to soy so be careful with this one), sardines, collards, spinach, kale, okra, and soybeans and tofu (again watch out for the soy allergy). Many of these foods have much lower amounts of calcium then a dairy source so be aware of this to make sure your child is getting enough calcium.

Our bodies can make vitamin D, and all we need for this is some sunlight to activate the process! However, many Americans are deficient in vitamin D for several reasons including that we are more careful and precautious in the sun by applying more sunscreen. While sunscreen is very important (especially on your children!) it is still possible to make some vitamin D. By exposing your arms and legs in the sun for about 15 minutes and then applying sunscreen you will be safe in the sun and produce enough vitamin D when doing this 2-3 times a week. If you are uncomfortable with this or do not think you can be out in the sun enough then food sources or a multivitamin with vitamin D are a good way to make sure you are getting enough. Food sources include egg yolks, saltwater fish, liver, and some vitamin-D fortified cereals.

What precautions should be taken when traveling or eating out?

Eating out when you have a child with a milk allergy can be a scary thing. Closely evaluate the menu and pick items that are traditionally milk free; however, you cannot completely rely on this because you never know what ingredients a specific recipe will call for. The safest strategy is to ASK! Talk to your server and ask to speak with the chef; they can tell you exactly what ingredients are in the dish and if it is safe for your child to eat.

The Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network has a wonderful resource for eating out! Their chef card template is available for download for FREE. Just fill out the card with the ingredients your child cannot have and then present this to your chef when dining out.