How to Diagnose a Child's Food Allergies

Food allergies are a child's most common reason for visiting a doctor. Experts believe that up to 20 percent of American children suffer from some kind of food allergy, although some cases are so minor that they may go undiagnosed for years. In some instances, however, food allergies can be quite dangerous, so it is important to diagnose the problem as early as possible.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. Do not diagnose without professional help. While it is okay to pay attention to your child's reaction to certain foods, only a doctor can make the final determination of whether your child has food allergies.

2. Be careful when introducing new foods into a child's diet. Feed him only a small quantity at first and see whether there is any reaction, such as a rash, gastrointestinal discomfort or diarrhea. These symptoms can also indicate intolerance or the inability to process certain foods (such as dairy products).

3. Pay attention to the most common signs of allergies: hives, itchiness, wheezing and diarrhea. If any of these symptoms happen within 1 hour of eating a specific food, it is likely that the reaction is connected to food allergies.

4. Talk to your doctor if you have any reason to believe your child is suffering from food allergies. Note the symptoms and make a list of all possible foods that can be blamed for them. Note how much of the food was consumed and whether this was the first time the reaction occurred.

5. Insist on a skin-scratch test rather than a blood test. Not only is the procedure less invasive, but it is also the most effective method used to diagnose a child's allergies. Most skin-scratch tests are painless (although they may be uncomfortable) and can be performed at your doctor's office in a matter of minutes.

6. Get a radioallergosorbent test (RAST) test if the skin-scratch test does not yield clear results. A RAST test is basically a blood test that measures the level of antibodies present in a child's body. The more antibodies present, the more likely a child is to suffer from any type of allergy associated with that particular substance.

Tips & Warnings

• Watch out for inherited allergies. Some food allergies run in the family. This is often the case with peanut and fish allergies. If either the parents or the siblings suffer from food allergies, there is even more reason to be careful when introducing new foods.