It’s great to see your baby’s facial expressions while they eat rice cereals. But, you must take care and consult your doctor before shifting to your baby’s diet. Else, the ingredients residing in the new food may trigger an allergic reaction.
As wheat tops eight top food allergies for babies, doctors often recommend rice cereals as first solid food for babies. However, in few babies rice cereal can trigger allergic reaction. According to official reports of America, 2-4% of children experience food allergy.
Rice Cereal Allergy
An allergic reaction triggers when your baby’s immune system mistaken food as foreign substance and create antibodies namely Immunoglobulin E, which releases chemical reaction to fight these external substances. As a result allergic reactions occurs.
Symptoms of rice cereal allergy
The symptoms of rice cereal allergy includes the following
- Skin rash
- Facial swelling
- Red eyes
- Hives
- Dermatitis and a red rash around anus.
Apart from these mild symptoms you child may also undergo certain severe allergic reactions like
- Respiratory issues
- Wheezing
- Respiratory illness and coughing.
- Vomiting
- Diarrhea
This reaction is not triggered on first eating, when you serve your baby for second time the antibodies released due to first exposure now stimulates allergic reaction.Surprisingly, adults are more affected by rice allergy than children. In Japan about 10% population has rice allergy, states gulfMD.Experts recommend feeding solid food to babies between 4 to 6 months of age. Children who’re allergic to rice are sensitive to peaches, apples and other grains. So consult your doctor before feeding rice cereals.
Aspiration
Before starting with solid diet like rice cereal to your baby always consult your child’s pediatrician in order to know the right way to mix the formula for achieving the right consistency of cereal. Some of you mix the rice cereal and give it in the feeding bottle to the baby, this may cause lungs problem. Many babies lack co ordination in feeding which means they eat too quickly which may result in food returning back from stomach and entering lungs.
Constipation
Many babies suffer from constipation when they have just shifted to solids like rice cereal. The digestive system is used to having liquid like breast milk or formula, when given rice cereal the babies may not digest it easily which result in hardened stool followed by stomach pain. If this happens then immediately stop giving rice cereal and shift to pureed peaches, prunes and green vegetables.
Note: Read the ingredients mentioned on the back before serving it to your baby.