I asked a question about hives awhile back and got fabulous responses. My daughter has had hives on and off for about a month. The doctors can't figure it out. The endocrinologist is running some tests for us (my daughter also has diabetes) and my next step is to take her to a kinesiologist(sp?) to test for allergies.
The only common denominator in all the foods that she eats has been honey. Has anyone ever experienced an allergy to honey?
***Edited to add... my daughter definitely did not have honey prior to being 18 months of age. She is 2 now and had never had hives before. I suspect honey because it is the only common ingredient in the wide variety of foods that she eats.
Thank you Ladies! My daughter's test for Celiac came back negative and so did her thyroid tests. We will be testing her for intolerances and allergies next week.
As a child, my mother broke out in hives from honey. Honey was a regular part of her diet as her mother kept bees. She can eat honey, but only in small quantities and infrequently.
Hi Anne-Marie,
I am a med student that worked with an Integrative Physician (like Ann C talked about) before coming to med school. Food intolerances are much more common than people realize, and most physicians aren't very aware of them, as our training in nutrition and subclinical illness is less than it should be.
Anyone can be allergic to honey, especially if they have other allergies. Some people have an anaphylactic response to bee stings, this allergy can be a variant of this, so be careful about bees (maybe get an Epi pen to have just in case). Also, it can be a reaction to the pollen that the honey is made from, like wildflower or the like, so she might have allergies too. Honey also is a concentrated source of sugar, both glucose and fructose, and some folks don't process either or both well at all. The top food intolerances are wheat(gluten), soy, egg, dairy, corn, and sugar. The symptoms can be wide ranging, from foggy headed to GI problems. However, the hives situation indicates to me that it is not a subclinical, low level issue, and that you are right in demanding that it be addressed. Find an Integrative Physician to work with, they are an MD trained in Western and alternative medicine. You can find someone in your area at http://www.holisticmedicine.org, and find a board certified physician to work with.
Best of luck!
You might want to ask the doctors about celiac disease. This can occur in children who are also diabetic. It is a gluten and wheat intolerance. So it may be possible that it was what the honey was put on and not the honey itself. Our son is not diabetic, but has been tested a couple of times. He is however, wheat and gluten intolerant.
Good luck!
She could be allergic to what the honey is made from...clover...what ever.
S.
Hi!
I turned 40 this year, and found out I have a lot of food intolerances/sensitivities. Never knew or even suspected, and would never have guessed that they were playing a role in my chronic conditions (asthma, allergies, high blood pressure, acne rosacea, Seasonal Affective Disorder). I had a saliva test taken to test for intolerance to dairy (casein), soy, wheat (gliadin), and egg. The only one I wasn't sensitive to was egg.
Then I suffered a huge outbreak on my face, the worse I've ever had, and went back to see my MD, ND (She's an Integration Medicine doctor, a medical doctor who is also certified in alternative medicine). She took a blood serum test called the ALCAT FOOD test, which tests for intolerance/sensitivity in 100 different foods, molds, food additives/colorings, environmental chemicals, pharmacoactive agents, etc. I ended up severely intolerant in 3 foods, moderately intolerant in 9 foods, and slightly intolerant in 10 foods, and mildly intolerant to one mold.
I'm intolerant to some foods that I don't like and don't even eat! And I'm intolerant to some foods that I love and eat all the time.
After I go on an elimination diet for a few months, I can try to reintroduce those foods I am intolerant too. However, that doesn't mean that I will be able to eat all of the foods again, and I won't be able to eat them whenever and how ever much I want; they'll need to go on a rotation diet.
What I wanted to tell you is, the ALCAT Food test does test for honey.
Like I said, you will need to find an alternative medicine doctor who is familiar with the test (it's like the ELISA test, only the ELISA test is a lot more expensive). It cost me $199 to have it taken.
My 16 year old daughter had a few instances of hives all over her face and neck and beyond a few years ago. We (her and I) narrowed it down to honey. She was tested at the doctor's office with a blood test which came back negative. We have avoided the honey anyhow and she has not had a problem with hives ever since. It isn't very hard to avoid honey so try it and see what happens. Good luck!
I haven't experienced it, but have read several times over that honey shouldn't be given until a child is well over a year old...
Do you think it is like peanut butter and shouldn't be given until closer to age 2 or more?
It's not an answer to your question, just more of a thought in my mind....hmmmm.....
Honey "can" be very dangerous for small children. It is the one food that many pediatricians agree should be kept out of babies diets (at least until 12 months) as it can cause a form of infant botulism. Honey is an amazing medicinal source for people, but if introduced too early it can cause many health concerns.
The reason that it is recommended to not give honey to a child under 1 or 2 years is that they are very vulnerable to possible botulism spores living in the honey.
I've always been told by health professionals to NEVER give honey (in any form, even in baked goods!) to any child under age 3. One of the reasons mentioned was the risk for botulism but I know that weird food allergies also develop at an early age. You might want to seek a second opinion and definitely stop giving any foods with honey in them to your 2 year old.
It could be an allergy to pollen, but it is delivered in the honey.
I have never heard of anyone being allergic to honey. Like someone else said, it could be the pollen or whatever the honey was placed on (or in). Good luck in finding out what is causing the hives!
My child's nurse and Dr. both advised against giving honey until she was at least 1-1/2 years old. According to them, people can be allergic to it and the earlier a child is exposed to it, the better the chances that they'll have problems with it. Our nurse suggested staying away from honey until at least 2 years old and then to go with local honey rather than buying it at the store.
My husband is a bee keeper, so we deal a lot in the honey world. One thing I do know is that it wouldn't be the actual honey. It would be related to the pollen that is in the honey. And that is very rare - since store bought honeys are pasteurized. It is interesting though, honey is actually supposed to help "cure" allergies, since it helps the body become immune to the pollen. Good luck.
