Does my baby have a food allergy? ?

Question

My baby is 5 months old. Hes been on cereal (rice) for a little less then a month. But for the first couple of weeks he just spit most of it out and hardly ate any. Hes eating more now... not much though. I noticed the last week or so that he was a little red around the eyes. Actually kinda pink (not bad) and wondered if he was allergic. But, I over worry about everything and just figured I am being paranoid. But, the last couple days his cheeks have been a little pink. Today was the worst day, just these pink circles on his cheeks. Not like a rash though. Could he be allergic? Should I stop feeding it to him? And, Ive read that rice is food that they are most likely to have allergies to. Does that mean he will have alot more to other things? I just dont know what to do... am I being to paranoid?

Answer 1

I thin kyour doctor would be able to help you out the most.  you don't want to stop solids if you don't have too.  Let you doctor see the red on his checks to determine if he is allergic.

Answer 2

First of all babies shouldn't start any type of foods until they are 6 months old...For the same reason that they may get allergies...I would stop all foods and take him/her to the doc...

Answer 3

It's possible that he wasn't ready yet to start cereal and that's why he was spitting it out at first.  Were his eyes red all day?  My 6 month old son gets a little red around his eyes when he sneezes or coughs.  If he were allergic he would probably be getting very fussy and might or might not have gotten a rash.  Rice is supposed to be very non-allergenic so the odds of him being allergic to it I guess are slim.  Have you tried feeding him anything else?  Does he have similar reactions?  It may be that he isn't ready to eat solids yet.  In any event, you should probably discuss his reactions with his doctor just in case.

Answer 4

Rice allergies are on the rise because of the use in infants diet before they are old enough to digest it.

The red circles you describe sound like the start of eczema which is a common allergic reaction.  IF you are using a commercial "add water" rice cereal there is also a fair chance it contains milk protein (casein, why, skim milk powder, etc) and that is a more likely allergen in children under 2 years of age.