We went for Cohen's third allergy test the other day. Our allergy doctor recommends we go every year, and we were keen to do it before the holidays/bad weather since we have to drive a few hours to the specialist.
This test was way harder this time in that Cohen definitely knew what was going on, and was fighting me and crying the whole time they were doing the testing. Jon and I had to restrain his arms so he wouldn't move and mess up the test and at the same time try to distract him with videos from my phone. I think Jon and I are really used to dealing with upset kids at work, so it really didn't bother us, but still, we were all exhausted after. The nurse was awesome and gave him lots of bandaids after, which he loves.
His little back after the test. There were four major positive spots, though the doctor pointed out that he does just have really sensitive skin, because pretty much every single dot was red after.
We were not surprised to see that he is still severely allergic to wheat and peanuts. And we knew avoid all nuts, so almonds are no biggie for us. But the coconut. That one really surprised me. I use a ton of coconut. I let Cohen eat coconut oil straight out of the jar. I probably go through a big jar of coconut oil every other week. We also use a ton of coconut cream and milk in our cooking, and our smoothies, baking, etc. And we eat coconut chips. And drink coconut water. Not to mention coconut butter that I smother Cohen's gluten-free toast with lots of mornings.
The doctor was like, one of you guys must also be allergic to something. And Jon and I both are sure we are not allergic to anything. The doctor said that still he would like to test us sometime because allergies are almost always genetic. He also said again that Cohen's red cheeks are definitely allergies. We are curious what eliminating coconut will do for the cheeks.
Also, the doctor surprised us by saying that when Cohen is older (maybe eight years old or so), we will be able to totally get rid of his allergies permanently. It will be costly and take time, but I guess they have these new therapies that eradicate allergies. That seems so far away. We are just happy to know what his allergies are right now.
PS: The beginning of our allergy saga here. Our second trip to the ER here. His first allergy test here. His second allergy test here. And more about it all here.
Also, I read all about some other toddler's allergies here. Interesting only to parents of allergic toddlers.
