Soy allergy invades our dairy-free home

I went to the allergist last week and found out that I have developed a soy allergy. It was a 3+ on the skin prick test (the same size as the histamine test). I suspected it because my throat got a lump in it after eating soy yogurt and started tightening. I felt the same thing after drinking a cup of soymilk...lump in throat, tight chest, difficulty swallowing. I know that adults developing allergies was possible, however, I never thought it would happen to me, especially since we suffer with so many dairy allergies in our home. I found myself angry, bitter, and then devastated this past week. That said, I am determined to make lemonade. There are many people out there who suffer from both a dairy and a soy allergy, and if they can do it, then so can I! Since soy has been a major source of protein for me since I currently can't have dairy (it upsets my nursing baby), I will begin by finding ways to get my protein needs met. Although the cookbook that I wrote contains soy in many of the recipes, most are easily adaptable to be both dairy-free and soy-free. I will list the adaptations on my website as soon as I can. One success we had was a Lemon Barbecue Grilled Chicken dish (delicious!!!). I will post the recipe on my website www.milkallergycompanion.com under the "Free Recipes" section.

I did a little bit of research on www.calorieking.com to find out the nutritional content of various milk substitutes. It looks like almond milk can vary immensely depending upon brand. I included goat's milk, but since I don't know if goat's milk is safe for children with a dairy allergy, I am going to do more research before introducing it into their diet. I don't want to introduce something that will hurt my anaphylactic son.

Here's the list:

*Food Item:* Serving Size: Protein (g): Carbohydrate (g): Calories: Fat (g): Dietary Fiber (g):

*Almond Milk (West Soy)* 1 c; 9; 5; 90; 4.5; 4

*Almond Milk (Blue Diamond)* 1 c; 1; 8; 60; 2.5; 1

*Almond Dream* 1 c; 1; 6; 50; 2.5; 0.5

*Hemp Bliss, Manitoba Harvest* 1 c; 5; 7; 110; 7; 1

*Oat Milk, Pacific Foods* 1 c; 4; 24; 130; 2.5; 2

*Goat’s Milk, whole* 1 c; 8.7; 11; 169; 10; 0

*Goat’s Milk, Low-fat* 1 c; 7.4; 9.4; 89; 2.4; 0

*Rice Milk* 1 c; 1; 23; 120; 2.5; 0

Almond milk by West Soy and Low-fat Goat's Milk seem to have the best nutrients and highest protein sources, however, if they taste bad then it's back to square one! I do love Rice Milk, just wish it had more protein:) I'll continue to blog more as I gain more experience with a soy allergy. From what I've read so far, there's a good chance that I can still have Soy Lecithin and Soy Oil, although I still need to do a little bit more research:)