Questions for Moms of Older Babies

[Happy Bunny]

I folks, I've got some questions for moms that have already been through some of the developmental stages.

1) Our doctor told us to withhold certain foods like things containing tree nut butter, cow milk, strawberries until one year to avoid allergies. However, I see there is infant yogurt blends available in Brooke's foods now. The yogurt contains cow milk - have you also avoided this?

2) Brooke is in the standing stage but she's physically small (6 months). She wants to stand and pull herself along things but there's nothing really appropriate for her to do it on so she's pulling up on things and places that aren't the best. I don't want to keep discouraging her by not allowing her to pull herself up but I need something right for her. We don't have a coffee table, she's too short to pull up in her pack-n-play, she's too short for the sofa. I allow her to pull up on me but wish that I had something she could do when ever she wants. What was a good and safe item for your kids to pull up and stand with? Is there something specifically made for this?

3) What age did your child get their first tooth?

[MamaBoo]

Happey Bunny: in answer to your questions, I share my personal experiences with you and let you know what research I came across with my oldest son.
1) As for allergies, cow's milk is used in most formulas unless you pick one that specifically excludes it. I use soy based because the milk based tends to give my newborn gas (older son had issue too). However, by about 6-9 months my older son had outgrown this issue and was put back on milk based until he was a year old at which we were told to give him regular milk and feed him regular food. According to the research I did, you shouldn't give them just milk before that because it causes their intestines to bleed a little and it causes anemia. Formula contains iron which eliminates the anemia. As for things such as strawberries, my peditrician just told me to closely watch my son after eating them because it is one of the most common allergins. Therefore, if my son were to have an allergic reaction, it is more likely to come from strawberries or certain other foods which are common allergins. Also, I saw a study that was published recently that contradicted the belief that exposure to common allergins in the first year made the incidence of food allergies higher. I wouldn't give them nuts during the first year though because they are hard to digest and are easy to choke on. You need to decide what to give your child based on what you feel is best based by research and dr's advice.
2)We got a padded ottoman instead of a coffee table. That may help her pull up better.
3)Our oldest son got his first tooth at about 7 months. There is great variation in that. Some get them earlier, some later. Once our son started cutting teeth, he got one or two about ever 2 weeks, and had all of his shortly after turning a year old. That is unusual. Most one tooth ever month or two. He stopped sleeping through the night once he started cutting teeth and didn't get back into the habit until after he had all of his teeth!

[Happy Bunny]

Thanks MamaBoo!

Ya know... I have been giving her milk-based formula and it didn't even dawn on me. When the doctor said to withhold milk, I took it as no milk and nothing containing milk. Thank you!

We're going to withhold the strawberries for as long as possible because I have a severe asphyxiating allergy to them. While I understand that allergies may or may not be passed down, I'm just too scared.

The padded ottoman is a good idea - we looked at one that also opens up for storage inside which would be great for all the toys in our living room. Thanks again for a great idea!

[Warren Dew]

1. We were told to avoid an almost completely different set of foods - nuts, peanuts, and eggs. Our first child was breast fed to almost a year, but started to get solids around 9 months including yobaby simply plain yogurt. Note that many yogurts have added sugar, which you may want to avoid. She got milk based formula after she was no longer breast fed for about a year, then we started giving her cow's milk and cream. Second child was breast fed to 2 years, then dairy.

2. The ottoman sounds like a good idea. We got one of these, but an ottoman might be useful for longer:

<http://www.amazon.com/LeapFrog-Learn-Gr ... B003NX72D4>

3. Both our children got their first teeth after 1 year, though that is later than most children.

[kerpupples]

Hey Barbara!

1) We withheld dairy (with the exception of supplemental formula) until a year based on things that I read saying to do so to try to avoid eczema, which runs in my husband's family. Of course, Morgan ended up getting eczema anyway. We withheld whole nuts but not peanut butter (no allergy history there). And her pediatrician called the baby yogurt "junk" (probably due to the added sugar that Warren mentions) so we never really gave her those even after a year. She eats Greek yogurt now and loves it.

2) We also have a padded ottoman. It's the best alternative out there to a coffee table.

3) Her first tooth came in between 7-8 months (she was a month preemie so age adjusted would be 6-7 months). But all babies progress so differently. At Brooke's age Morgan wasn't even crawling yet, much less pulling up.