6-12 months

Outgrow Egg Allergy with Baked Egg Muffin Introduction

Published on July 14, 2019May 13, 2020 by MamaKENG1 Comment

I didn’t expect baby A to have egg allergy as I have fed him hard boiled egg white at 7 months old and he was ok.

However when I fed again at 9 months old, this time hard boiled egg white and egg yolk, he had an allergy reaction. Almost immediately, his mouth area started to have rashes, which spread to the whole face and whole body.

I kept feeding him with water hopefully to flush the system while applying some mild steroid cream on the rashes. It was a Sunday and the nearby PD clinics were not opened. I monitored him closely while tying him with my baby carrier to prevent him from scratching himself. Thankfully the rashes subsided after 2 hours and he was back to his usual cheerful self.

My poor baby 😦 What unfortunate thing to happen on his 9th month.

During the routine polyclinic checkup, the nurse referred us to KK Hospital as she said baby might not be able to take the 1 year MMR vaccination as the vaccine is made from egg proteins.

We did some allergy prick test at KKH and he was found to be allergic to cow’s milk and egg. It is indeed very weird as he had formula milk derived from cow’s milk before! Anyway, KKH said that it is ok to take MMR as they are not made from egg’s proteins and even the doctor at KKH was puzzled why polyclinics always refer babies with egg allergy to them for the MMR despite telling them it is ok.

Prick test. Thank god he has no shell fish nor nuts allergy.

Sorry that I digress so much from the egg muffin. To cut the story short, 80% of babies outgrow egg allergy and if babies can tolerate baked eggs, they have higher chance to outgrow egg allergy. So as a kiasi and kiasu mum, I followed the nurse’s instructions and faithfully feed him baked egg products.

This is the baked egg muffin recipe I used, modified from the one given by KKH.

Ingredients:

80g self-raising flour
20g unsalted butter (if baby is allergic to milk, replace with Nuttelex)
80g banana or apple puree (apple sauce)
2 large eggs (about 65g each)
Muffin cups (60x44mm) or muffin baking tin

Steps:

Preheat oven to 180degrees C for 5 min
Combine apple sauce, butter and eggs in a mixing bowl
Fold in the flour (I used thermomix and combined step 2 and 3 into one step. Speed 5 for 10 seconds)
Divide the batter equally between 6 muffin cases and bake for 25 to 30 min. Bake immediately. Once ready, a metal skewer shoud come out clean when inserted into the muffin.
Leave to cool and keep in an airtight container. Can be stored for 3 months in freezer and 5 days in fridge.

To DIY apple sauce/ apple puree,

peel apple skin off and cut apple into chunks
steam apple for 10 min. Retain steaming water.
blend apple with steaming water and add more water if needed to achieve desired consistency.

Important Note!

Before the introduction of baked egg products,

ensure that the child is well
not on oral antihistamine for 1 week
choose a day where you have the time to observe the child for several hours in case of allergic attack
examine child for pre-existing rashes
do not introduce other new foods while introducing baked egg products.

The first time I fed him with baked egg muffin, I gave one small pinch and waited about 15 min before giving more spoons of muffins to ensure that he is not having allergic reaction. Once cleared, continue with baked egg products 3 times a week to maintain their tolerance to baked egg.

This muffin is also a very good baby led weaning recipe as baby A can self-feed pretty well with this!

Baby Fell From Bed :(

Published on June 15, 2019June 23, 2019 by MamaKENGLeave a comment

It is unfortunate that I am writing this post as baby fell from bed… again. 😦

The first time he fell, he was only 5 weeks old. I felt so terrible and lousy as this happened after the nanny left not long ago. I felt very unqualified as a mother and broke down crying with him. While waiting for the doctor, I kept googling on what happens when a baby falls as I fear for brain damage.

To summarise, babies are stronger than we think they are. Unless the fall is rather high, 1 metre and above, usually it is exterior injury. Most babies fall from sofa or bed, so it is not as bad as we think.

After baby falls, try not to be panic as babies react according to our expressions too.

First, quickly check for visible signs of injuries such as bleeding or bruises. If baby is unconscious, vomits or bleeding profusely, go to A&E immediately.

Next, try to calm baby down by hugging and carrying him.

Third, move baby’s limps to check for any fractures and the eyes to see if baby is sensitive to light. Again, if baby shows signs of distress, send to A&E immediately.

The signs to look out for, within 72 hours of fall, to determine if baby needs to see doctor:

1. Vomiting (this shows possible brain damage)

2. Unconsolable cries

3. Excessive drowsiness/sleepiness (refused to wake up and play)

4. Fever

If baby has any of the above signs, bring to A&E immediately.

After a few experiences of fall, the above are what different pediatrics told us.

As much as we try to prevent falls, accidents do happen so don’t be too hard on yourself! After the first fall, whenever I place baby on bed to change diapers, I never leave him unattended. This time, even though I was next to him, he flipped and dived head down to the floor. So fast that I couldn’t catch him even though I was just next to him.

I guess the best prevention is not to put on bed at all.

P.S. falls are considered as accidents so do claim from personal accident insurance if you decided to see a doctor!

P.P.S. I got so many stares when I brought baby out. As if he looks very ugly, I abuse him or I did a lousy job. Guess his bruise looked really bad. This random lady came to me and said “I will never let this happen to my grand daughter. She is so precious to me”. I gave a fake smile, in my heart thinking “you think my son is not precious to me? What is this is a birthmark?”

She successfully made me feel even more upset and guilty for not being able to prevent his fall. As much as I’d like to console myself that I’ve done my very best as a mother, it is hard to not self-blame. Motherhood is a job where I set extremely high expectations on myself, which I believe many mothers do so too. We just want the best for our children.

There are so many people who are too quick to assume, and too quick to judge. I hate to say this but many times, mothers are also the ones who judge fellow mothers the most. 😦

Yoga with Baby

Published on June 11, 2019May 13, 2020 by MamaKENGLeave a comment

I love yoga and it this is one simple exercise that I can do with baby. Yoga has a calming effect for babies who suffer with digestive issues or babies who have difficulties falling asleep. I find doing yoga with baby is also a good bonding session.

Place baby on his back on a play mat or bed and sit in front of his feet. Look into his eyes, smile and tell him what you are going to do.
Take one of baby’s feet in each of your hands. Gently push baby’s knees in towards her chest and apply gentle pressure. This is a wind relieving pose (some people believe that colic is due to excess wind in the stomach). Hold briefly and release. Repeat a few times.
Place the soles of his feet together so the knees fall out to the sides. This is reclining cobbler pose. Without moving his hips, circle his legs clockwise, then anti-clockwise.

While doing step 3, you may sing the song “wheels on the bus” as you are moving his legs in a circular motion.

4. Holding both baby’s legs, open and close his legs while singing “doors on the bus go open and shut”.

5. Stretch baby’s legs towards you, pulling and then dropping them gently. Repeat a few times.

6. Place the palm of one hand on the abdomen and move in clockwise direction (for constipation) and anti-clockwise (for diarrhea). Do this while singing lullaby.

Adapted from “Mindful Mama, Happy Baby” book by Maja Pitamic & Susannah Marriott.

If you are feeling fanciful and want a core workout with baby, this are some poses you can try.