moms of toddlers with a milk or soy allergy...

are there any brands of foods that you avoid ?

What brands do you recommend for snacks, finger foods or really anything?

what do u do for dairy intake?


I am still in shock to find out that gerber baby foods have traces of soy and it doesnt say it on the jar

meanwhile my daughter has been reacting to it all along... and today i get from the dr .." OH yea it has soy"
anyway are there other products that doesnt list it but have it?

thanks so much :)

Re: moms of toddlers with a milk or soy allergy...

My ped told me that Beech Nut doesn't have it in their cereals, so maybe the rest of their food doesn't have it either? When I gave Gerber to DD#2, she would vomit it up immediately!!

Re: moms of toddlers with a milk or soy allergy...

Hi...My DS is only 8 months old and we are just starting with puffs. So far I found BRU brand Organic Puffs with no soy or dairy. Multigrain cheerios are a good option too...
You can google dairy and soy free foods. I have gotten use to checking labels. There are more words for soy then I ever knew...How old is your child?

Re: moms of toddlers with a milk or soy allergy...

Message edited 7/14/2010 9:05:40 PM.

Re: moms of toddlers with a milk or soy allergy...

Posted by twinkletoes807

My ped told me that Beech Nut doesn't have it in their cereals, so maybe the rest of their food doesn't have it either? When I gave Gerber to DD#2, she would vomit it up immediately!!

Re: moms of toddlers with a milk or soy allergy...

Unfortunately you have to read the label on the product every time. Different manufacturing plants might lead to cross contamination in some bags of cereal that the last time you bought them were safe. Also the food labeling laws in the US are terrible, there are loopholes where they don't have to declare the allergen in bold print as long as it's in the list of ingredients, and if they change the product to include a common allergen they don't have to note it on the label anywhere other than the ingredient list. It's incredibly frustrating.

We have DS on a complete dairy elimination diet, so I bring FAAN's How to Read A Label card with me when I shop. It used to be really overwhelming, but it's second nature now and I rarely have to look at the card, I pretty much have all the ingredients my DS needs to avoid memorized.

link to Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network how to read a label info

I found a lot of good information and support at Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network and Kids With Food Allergies

It will get easier.

ETA: I forgot to mention that when you are going out to eat you should check the restaurant's website for allergen information. A lot of chains (off the top of my head I've found it at Friendlys, Outback, Moes, fast food places) have the info on there, which is helpful in deciding if I need to bring food from home with me. Some of them are really surprising, like the fries at McDonalds and Wendy's contain dairy, the ones at Burger King do not.

Message edited 7/14/2010 9:23:23 PM.

Re: moms of toddlers with a milk or soy allergy...

Posted by CathyB

Unfortunately you have to read the label on the product every time. Different manufacturing plants might lead to cross contamination in some bags of cereal that the last time you bought them were safe. Also the food labeling laws in the US are terrible, there are loopholes where they don't have to declare the allergen in bold print as long as it's in the list of ingredients, and if they change the product to include a common allergen they don't have to note it on the label anywhere other than the ingredient list. It's incredibly frustrating.

We have DS on a complete dairy elimination diet, so I bring FAAN's How to Read A Label card with me when I shop. It used to be really overwhelming, but it's second nature now and I rarely have to look at the card, I pretty much have all the ingredients my DS needs to avoid memorized.

link to Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network how to read a label info

I found a lot of good information and support at Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network and Kids With Food Allergies

It will get easier.

ETA: I forgot to mention that when you are going out to eat you should check the restaurant's website for allergen information. A lot of chains (off the top of my head I've found it at Friendlys, Outback, Moes, fast food places) have the info on there, which is helpful in deciding if I need to bring food from home with me. Some of them are really surprising, like the fries at McDonalds and Wendy's contain dairy, the ones at Burger King do not.

Re: moms of toddlers with a milk or soy allergy...

My son is not allergic to soy-I buy a LOT of stuff at Whole Foods-Earths Best, 365 brand animal crackers occasionally, organic greens puffs. I also buy some stuff at Trader Joes-organic corn chips, veggies sticks, etc