What do Banana's and Latex have in common?

About a month ago we pinpointed our 18 month battle with major tummy trouble. Aiden is allergic to banana's. As in we lived with explosive diapers for 18 months, had allergy testing, went dairy free...all with no luck. It wasn't until several weeks ago when we shockingly ran out of banana's that the pieces fell together. When I say shocking think ran out of toilet paper, because in this house banana's were just as important. It was totally a God thing that we ran out, and it was a miracle cure. We tested our suspicion after a week free of banana's and received clear confirmation.

This week we actually treated him to a banana on a grocery trip knowing they are his favorite and figuring an occasional one wouldn't hurt. THREE days of paying for our mistake made it clear that after the allergen is out of your system the reaction is later magnified with exposure. We are officially a banana free home.

We knew that banana and latex allergies often came together so we were watching him for reactions. Yet I was still surprised by the giant red whelps on my poor babies arm. Yup, latex allergy confirmed.



A day later there is still clear evidence of his reaction. The picture does not do it justice, and it is much better today, but still very present. He didn't truly notice the missing Lighting McQueen bandaid until 5am this morning. After a sad and teary battle we gave up all hope of going back to sleep. As evidenced by the new Cookie Monster latex free bandaid he sports, a trip to the store occurred first thing this morning. We didn't make it out of the store without putting one on!

So what do Banana's and Latex have in common?

Well did you know latex was made from the sap of a Hevea Brasiliensis tree? Yeah, neither did I . Apparently some pollens, fruits, and latex share the same "proteins" and well apparently our sweet man is allergic to them!

So we will continue our Zyrtec, avoid banana's, and stick with latex free bandaids! Oh, and watch him when consuming chestnut, avocado, and kiwi!!!!! Or maybe we will just avoid those altogether ;)