Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

My nephew is almost 15 months old and will eat anything you offer him. So one of my aunt's came over one night and gave my nephew these little dessert thingys but it's like a rich dessert kind of thing hard to describe. Well needless to say my nephew ended up projectile vomitting the entire day after eating this. My SIL was not aware that he had eaten this and my brother doesn't know any better because they all thought it was cute that he was eating it. My family is old school Italian so they don't believe that giving this rich dessert to a one year old is bad.

SIL flipped out. They had to take him to the Ped and when he asked what he had eaten in the last 24 hours my SIL described the dessert to him. The Ped was like "who gave it to him" When she said my aunt did the Ped said "is she nuts". Can't they just give them healthy snacks. God my family is nuts. My aunt thinks he should be eating Canolis as well...

The doctor said that this thing he ate has been festering and sitting inside his stomach and it's a good thing he has been vomitting so at least it got out of his system right away. He ate about half of the dessert.

I better not catch anyone giving my son crappy junk food. It's either fruit or snacks that I have for him. If I see someone giving him some kind of rich dessert I am ripping it out of their hands and I don't give a flying fig how mad they get!

Thank God my nephew is ok now.

Message edited 11/22/2006 2:40:53 PM.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

I told DH last night that if I weren't a stay at home mom and my mom was watching our son during the day I could imagine what my mom and aunt would be giving my son to eat.

I gave my mom stern warning that when my son can eat regular food that he is not to be given any junk food.

They've got plenty of time to eat cookies, cake, ice cream and other desserts when they are older but not at 1. Maybe a tiny little taste but that's it. And definitely no rich desserts.

Message edited 11/22/2006 2:43:44 PM.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

What do you guys think?

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

Can't comment, I give my kid all kinds of crap to eat. For dinner he had some toast with marmite, followed by a hunk of cheese, with a strawberry yogurt in the middle, ended by some shepherds pie that he didn't want in the beginning.

I am all for good eating habits in this kid, so I believe he should try everything I eat.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

I worry about this as well. Both grandmas have been trying to push me to give Maddie cereal since she was only a few weeks old so who the heck knows what they will be trying to smuggle in her mouth when she is a year!

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

I'm the wrong person to ask.
Jack eats everything and anything given to him from super healthy to desserts. He actually just had 1/2 a chips a ahoy dipped in milk with me :)

I'm a firm believer that if he gets a little bit of everything early in life and learns that holidays involve sweets but a limited amount that he will learn how to eat sweets healthy and not learn to hide or stash treats.

My cousins never got to eat anything sweet (or so my aunt thought) but as soon as she put out cookies and turned her back the plate would be cleared by her own children within seconds even though to this day she doesn't believe us and my brother and I would ask for one cookie from our parents and be perfectly happy with one.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

I am ALL about healthy snacks, organic even.
but I also believe in trying everything, and everything in moderation.
I used to cringe when my Aunt would give Aidan a choco chip cookie, but now that he's over 2 and knows what everything is, its hard to say no, so he can have one of her famous homemade cookies, but just one.

I can't understand why he got so sick just from a dessert? Was it the quantity of it? no one else got sick?

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

There's nothing wrong with it per say so long as you monitor the intake. Too much can eventually hurt them.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

My DS will be 9 weeks on Friday...the other night my mom put a teeny tiny dab of olive oil on her finger and dabbed it on his lips..

I trust my mother enough that she wont give my son anything that will harm him..so I dont get crazy
IMO, my mother never fed us babyfood and we turned out ok...

maybe your aunt shouldnt of given your nephew the entire pastry but I am sure a little wouldnt of hurt him..

Needless to say..my son couldnt stop licking his lips

ETA: my parents and family are old school Italian as well and I dont think the nationalty has anything to do with what happened....IMO at 15 months they should be tasting differnet things..sweets included. Just not large amounts or on an everyday basis.

Message edited 11/21/2006 1:59:40 PM.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

As a mother of a baby with food allergies, I have to say, I absolutely agree with bedda that you need to watch what family members give your child. In Ava's case, if that happened, I don't even want to think of what could have been. Luckily, my family knows, but when I was a baby, I was VERY allergic to peanuts and every, single time my mother left me with someone, after telling them NO peanuts, they would give them to me. She stopped counting the visits to the ER. I give people very specific instructions on what she can and cannot eat, and I will try my best to monitor her food intake until she can do it herself. I have to. I have no choice. It's her health and that's the most important thing in the world to me.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

Posted by prncssrachel

As a mother of a baby with food allergies, I have to say, I absolutely agree with bedda that you need to watch what family members give your child. In Ava's case, if that happened, I don't even want to think of what could have been. Luckily, my family knows, but when I was a baby, I was VERY allergic to peanuts and every, single time my mother left me with someone, after telling them NO peanuts, they would give them to me. She stopped counting the visits to the ER. I give people very specific instructions on what she can and cannot eat, and I will try my best to monitor her food intake until she can do it herself. I have to. I have no choice. It's her health and that's the most important thing in the world to me.

Message edited 11/21/2006 2:08:08 PM.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

Posted by Sweets13

Posted by prncssrachel

As a mother of a baby with food allergies, I have to say, I absolutely agree with bedda that you need to watch what family members give your child. In Ava's case, if that happened, I don't even want to think of what could have been. Luckily, my family knows, but when I was a baby, I was VERY allergic to peanuts and every, single time my mother left me with someone, after telling them NO peanuts, they would give them to me. She stopped counting the visits to the ER. I give people very specific instructions on what she can and cannot eat, and I will try my best to monitor her food intake until she can do it herself. I have to. I have no choice. It's her health and that's the most important thing in the world to me.

In your case since you know that your baby has food allergies, I agree.
If I knew that my son was allergic to certain foods I would make it a point that other know as well..But until then I wouldnt mind him tasting, especially if he is over 1 years old.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

At 15 months I wouldn't freak out. If someone were disregarding specific instructions regarding food allergies then I would be PO'd but I'm sure there intentions were good. No adult would purposely want to make a child sick.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

At 15 mos, moderation is the key I would think. That said I still won't be giving Liam peanut butter and any shellfish until he's 2 or 3, and I have read about not giving egg whites until after 2 years of age. That one I have to talk to his ped about, never heard of that before. But other things, like ice cream or cake, small amounts on special occasions cannot hurt. I don't think I'd be giving him much chocolate until age 3 either - a little but but I wnat to push that off as far as I can.

Of course then you have my DH. Who is from Ireland and can't wait to give Liam things like black and white pudding, rashers, sausages, all that gross, salty crap that he eats. Mind you I like sausages and rashers too, but not the puddings (GROSS). We're going to Ireland in September, at least Liam will be 13 months by then. But I will be giving him a little bit of each before we go (like 2 weeks prior) to make sure he's not allergic, because first off, I *know* someone is going ot give it to him when I'm not around, I just know it, and secondly, if I give it to him here and he has a reaction, I'd rather him go to a US hospital/doctor than an Irish hospital/doctor (their hospitals leave much to be desired, esp. where my FIL lives over there).

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

I seem to be in the minority but if I were your SIL and if some family member gave my son junk food, and got him so sick that he was projectile vomitting and I had to take him to the ped - yes I would flip out.

No you can't watch every little thing that goes into their mouths but I can and will ask my family not to give him anything to eat without checking with me first. I would NEVER give food one of my cousins' or SIL's kids without asking their parents if it is okay first so I can't imagine why anyone would think it's okay to give a 15 month old that is not their child any food you feel like without letting the parents know. You don't know their allergies...

I realize that older people think it's ok. I've had a couple of battles with my Dad over this one...mostly because he was giving him things he could CHOKE on without my permission and way too soon. Not to mention peanuts. No, this is not ok in my book.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

I agree with the girls above in that I want my son to try everything I eat and he does for the most part (in moderation of course). He just turned one a week ago. However, as a mom, I would like to be ASKED (esp. if I'm right there) whether my son can eat something before someone gives it him esp. if it's a new food. For example, my ped said we could give my son fish, shrimp, lobster, etc. We haven't yet only because we eat that stuff at night and I would rather not have my son try fish for the first time at night, God forbid something happened.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

Ava is allergic to milk, soy and rice, and I worry that people will give her things that they think do not have those products in them. But that's besides the point.......
Even if it is something that she is not allergic to, it is not anyone else's choice if my daughter tries different foods or not. It's mine. And while I think moderation is important, I do not think that it's important at 15 months old. I think what's important is what my husband and I want for our daughter, so yes, I would be furious if what happened with bedda's nephew happened to Ava. ESPECIALLY if she was projectile vomitting! That's horrible.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

As long as I knew my children did not have ANY food allergies, I wouldn't stop anyone from letting them try a certain food.

My family is Italian. My mother believes that if you don't let a child try all different foods, they will grow up to be a very picky eater. (Which backfired on her completely, because I am the world's fussiest eater ).

My boys had some ice cream by the time they were 5 months old. And she HAD to mash up meatballs (practically into powder) and let the boys eat it. Whatever. SHe raised 2 children, she has some common sense.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

I am kind of strict on what I let me child eat and I don't mind if someone asks me if they can give them a certain food or not. I would like to make the decision.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

ooooh than I am in trouble!!! Bella gets a little spoiled from Aunt Kristi when she is with me.. Lets just say she has grown to like chocolate Ralphs Ice from over the summer!!!

I understand moderation and all that but a kid is a kid.. She saw me eating my ice with that look. How could I NOT have given her a taste???

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

Posted by kdelace

ooooh than I am in trouble!!! Bella gets a little spoiled from Aunt Kristi when she is with me.. Lets just say she has grown to like chocolate Ralphs Ice from over the summer!!!

I understand moderation and all that but a kid is a kid.. She saw me eating my ice with that look. How could I NOT have given her a taste???

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

I'm from the old school of letting children taste everything. However, moderation and common sense must prevail. If your nephew had been given just a small taste, that would not have done any harm. Giving him as much as she did was absurd. I think children need to have a variety of tastes and become acquainted with all foods. It just needs to be done within certain boundaries. However, if a parent objects to certain foods, then that must be adhered to at all times.

Re: Gotta be careful of what the family gives your DC...

Posted by mommy2bellabean

Posted by kdelace

ooooh than I am in trouble!!! Bella gets a little spoiled from Aunt Kristi when she is with me.. Lets just say she has grown to like chocolate Ralphs Ice from over the summer!!!

I understand moderation and all that but a kid is a kid.. She saw me eating my ice with that look. How could I NOT have given her a taste???

BAAAAAAAAAAAAD Aunt Kristi