Infant Allergies to Formula

Mothers choose to use infant formulas instead of breastfeeding for multiple reasons. They decide against breastfeeding because they may not produce enough milk or due to lack of time. Many mothers may supplement breastfeeding with infant formula. However, in the process, mothers discover that their babies have infant allergies to formula. Many of these allergies occur because the infant's body sees cow's milk proteins as foreign substances and its tries to get rid of it. Cow's milk allergies are particularly common in premature babies. Two general terms for infant allergies are slower-onset reactions and rapid-onset reactions.

Symptoms of Slower-Onset Reactions

• Kid's Health states that symptoms of this form of infant allergies to formulas occur seven to ten days after babies are introduced to cow's milk. Slower-onset reactions symptoms include loose bowels, vomiting, colic, refusing to eat, skin rashes, and irritability. Children recover from this form of infant allergy by two years old.

Symptoms of Rapid-Onset Reactions

• A sudden occurrence of infant allergies to formulas indicates that babies suffer from rapid-onset allergies. These symptoms are more severe and include irritability, vomiting, bloody diarrhea, wheezing, bumpy skin, swelling, and hives and affect a baby's blood pressure and breathing. This type of infant allergy can lead to anaphylaxis, a life-threatening allergic reaction.

Switching Formulas

• If babies experience allergies to infant formulas, doctors perform examinations to diagnose these conditions. The American Academy of Family Physicians states that doctors may recommend soy-based formulas instead of those containing cow's milk. Parents can reintroduce cow's milk after an infant's first birthday. At that time, their systems can better handle cow's milk. For babies who cannot digest soy milk, another option includes hypoallergenic formulas.

Extensively Hydrolyzed Formulas

• The American Academy of Pediatrics says that hypoallergenic formulas such as extensively hydrolyzed formulas should be used by babies with infant allergies to formulas. Extensively hydrolyzed formulas are made of broken down cow's milk proteins unlike regular formulas, which are composed of whole proteins.

Amino Acid-Based Infant Formulas

• The University of Washington study Gaining and Growing: Assuring Nutritional Care of Preterm Infants states that premature babies often suffer from allergies to infant formulas. Amino acid-based infant formulas break milk proteins down into their simplest forms.