What No One Tells You About Becoming a Food Allergy Mom

When my son Dawson was born, I pictured first foods as a milestone to celebrate, complete with messy highchair photos, funny faces, the works. I never imagined that introducing solids would land us in the emergency room.

Dawson was a rashy baby from the start. Severe eczema covered his little body and routinely spiraled into staph and yeast infections. I was breastfeeding, and our pediatrician recommended I cut dairy and soy from my diet. We tried every cream, ointment and oil I could find on the internet. I switched laundry detergents, double-rinsed his clothes, bought air purifiers and new sheets. Most of it barely helped.

Research shows Dawson’s story isn’t unusual. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, food allergies affect roughly one in 20 children in the United States. And studies have shown that infants with moderate to severe eczema are at significantly higher risk for developing food allergies. For parents like me, who had no personal experience with food allergies, the learning curve is steep and the guilt can be overwhelming.

The Moment Everything Changed

We started solids at 6 months using baby-led weaning and introduced scrambled egg at seven months. The moment Dawson touched a strip of egg, his body erupted in full-body hives and big, angry welts that sent us rushing to the emergency room at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. He left with an EpiPen Jr. prescription that, thankfully, we have never had to use.

Soon after, we found ourselves in an allergist’s office. Scratch tests and bloodwork measuring allergen-specific immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies revealed an extensive list of triggers: egg, peanut, dairy and tree nuts.

This was a whole new world for me. I didn’t have food allergies growing up, and no one close to me did either. Suddenly I was scouring every food label, and I felt crushing guilt when I realized I had been eating eggs and nuts while nursing. I just didn’t know.

I remember scrambling to figure out how to make an egg- and dairy-free first-birthday cake, standing in the grocery store aisle reading labels with tears in my eyes, wondering how something as simple as cake had suddenly become so complicated.

Crushing Challenges, One Food at a Time

Because Dawson’s immune response to dairy was comparatively lower, his allergist recommended an oral food challenge for milk at 16 months old. I sat in that office for hours, heart pounding, while he consumed increasing amounts of yogurt. To our shock and relief, he passed. No reaction. My boy could finally have macaroni and cheese with his Pop and try a grilled cheese sandwich for the first time.

His allergist explained that IgE levels can decrease as children grow, a process the medical community often calls outgrowing a food allergy. When we repeated bloodwork over the summer, his levels had dropped significantly, especially for peanut and egg. He passed a peanut challenge in August 2025 and just passed baked egg last week.

Watching my son crush challenge after challenge has been incredible. The truly mind-blowing part? He doesn’t even bat an eye. Despite being chronically inflamed for the first year of his life, not being able to enjoy the same snacks as his friends at school, and being routinely poked and prodded, Dawson is the happiest, goofiest, most loving boy.

Five Tips From One Allergy Mom to Another

1. Let go of the guilt: If you ate allergens while breastfeeding before you knew, that is not your fault. Current data from the National Institutes of Health emphasize that maternal diet during lactation is not a proven cause of food allergies in infants. You were nourishing your baby. Full stop.

2. Find an allergist you trust and ask all the questions: A good allergist will walk you through every test result and cocreate a management plan with you. If you leave an appointment confused, speak up. You are your child’s best advocate.

3. Learn to read labels like a detective: The FDA requires major allergens to be declared on packaged food labels. Get comfortable checking every single item, including ones you’ve bought before, because formulations can change. It feels tedious at first, but it quickly becomes second nature.

4. Connect with other food allergy families: Whether it’s an online community or a local support group, talking to parents who understand the daily reality of safe snack lists and emergency action plans is a game changer. Organizations like FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) offer resources and community connections.

5. Celebrate every win: A passed food challenge. A birthday party your child can fully enjoy. A new safe food added to the rotation. These moments are huge. Let yourself feel the joy.

The Road Ahead

Our journey isn’t over. Dawson still has allergies we’re monitoring, and we take nothing for granted. But every cleared challenge reminds me that progress is possible and that the fear and uncertainty of those early days don’t have to define the story.

To every parent reading labels at midnight, grilling the waitress for an allergen list at restaurants, Googling allergy-safe recipes, carrying an EpiPen in your diaper bag or explaining your child’s allergies for the hundredth time: I see you. You are doing an amazing job, and you are not alone.

Allie Karas, M.A., is the senior vice president of content at MJH Life Sciences, parent company of The Educated Patient. She writes a regular LinkedIn newsletter on leadership and the life sciences industry (subscribe here).