Will my child grow out of their cow’s milk allergy?
Many, but not all, children outgrow their food allergies. This depends on the individual child and can vary by type of food and how sensitive your child is to that food.
Your Dietitian will re-assess your child to check for signs and symptoms and may advise you on how to appropriately introduce foods. This process may include several tests, such as skin prick testing, blood tests, and/or oral food challenges such as the Milk Ladder depending on the type of the allergic reaction.
Don’t worry if your child still shows ‘positive’ reactions in skin or blood tests. It may be that a food challenge is still attempted, speak with your Doctor or Dietitian before attempting to re-introduce any foods that have been excluded.
The Milk Ladder
The Milk Ladder is a step by step tool on how to introduce milk into your child’s diet at home. The aim is to start at the bottom and work your way up, with each step the amount of cow’s milk increases or the allergenicity (how likely a food is to cause an allergic reaction) increases. This may be because the product is cooked at a lower temperature or for less time, leaving more of the cow’s milk proteins intact. Always follow your Doctor or Dietitians advice and do not attempt to reintroduce foods unless your healthcare professional has advised you to do so.
*Skripak et al., 2007, J.
Allergy Clin. Immunol., 120 (2007), pp. 1172-1177