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Egg allergy is when your baby or child has an abnormal reaction to the protein in eggs. Egg allergy is common in babies and children under the age of five, but egg allergy is usually grown out of by the age of 5. Symptoms will usually present in your baby or child immediately or within two hours of eating egg.
There's egg in foods you may not have realised, such as processed meat and meat products, cakes, pastries, salad dressings, fresh pasta, battered and bread crumbed foods, ice cream and some chocolates and sweets so it can sometimes be difficult to realise what the reaction was too.
If your baby is suffering from egg allergy our specialist dietitians can help. To book an assessment please contact us.
Egg allergy symptoms differ between individual babies and children but usually occur very soon after eating the egg or egg product. Symptoms of egg allergy are usually more severe, the less the egg has been cooked or processed, therefore your baby or child may not have shown a reaction to egg before. Some common reactions include the following:
If your baby has one or more of these symptoms described, they could have an allergy to egg. To talk to one of our dietitians to see if she can help, please contact us.
The causes of egg allergy is not known, but a baby or child is more likely to have it if they have a history of eczema and they are also more likely to be allergic to other foods. There is no evidence that delaying the introduction of egg past the age of six months will decrease the risk of an allergic reaction, therefore it is current advice to introduce egg as part of the weaning diet. If you would like professional help and guidance into managing your baby or child's egg allergy, or weaning please speak to our dietitians.
Previous reactions will determine how the allergy needs to be diagnosed. Diagnosis is usually sufficient using an oral food challenge or elimination diet but if there is some uncertainty it may be necessary for a skin prick test or blood test to confirm the diagnosis. It's important that your baby or child egg is diagnosed by your GP with egg allergy because your baby may need to carry an epinephrine auto injector incase of a severe anaphylaxis reaction.
Treatment of egg allergy is complete avoidance of egg and egg products. If your baby is being exclusively breastfed and they are highly sensitive to the egg protein, they may experience symptoms from the protein being past from the mother's milk if she is having egg in her diet. If the baby is well and not experiencing symptoms from the mother having egg it will not be necessary for them to remove it from their diet. Our dietitians can help you manage your maternal diet and the babies diet. In most cases the baby will grow out of the egg allergy by school age and the reintroduction of egg is therefore important so they can have a wider variety and choice of food. Our dietitians can ensure your baby or child is getting the right amount of energy and nutrients to ensure they grow and develop properly. To book an appointment please contact us.
