Safe

Safe is a word that is used often in the FPIES community.  So is cross-contamination. In the most sensitive individuals, they can have an allergic reaction to something manufactured on shared equipment, or in the case of the kitchen a shared plate.  I have long searched to find safe products for Ellie. Safe soap, safe lotion, safe conditioner, safe laundry soap, safe everything.

You also may not know that Ellie's daddy and I have a special place in our hearts for adoption.  We used the word safe when referring to orphans well before our journey with Ellie started.  We were down a three year journey of infertility and adoption prior to having Ellie's older sister, and during that journey we researched, read, and attempted to fund-raise quite extensively. Adoption is EXPENSIVE.  An international adoption can easily cost over $20,000.  Many resources we found talked about the responsibility of society (more specifically the church) to support orphans and those who can give them a family.  We firmly believe that not everyone is called to adopt, but everyone is called to support those who can.  Following the advice of several major Christian organizations we sent out support letters many years ago, and were naively devastated to find that our plea to help fund an adoption actually offended many people.  Some were quite nasty.

At this point you may be wondering what in the world these two things have in common. WELL! Many months ago another mom found this blog, and one of her adopted kiddos has a severe condition on the same spectrum as FPIES (an EGID).  That mamma has been making lotions and chapsticks to riase money for another adoption.  And....

That mama made us a SAFE lotion!!! Not only did I not have to make it, but it supported her adoption fund.  Since our current adoption plans are on hold, I was so thrilled!

Ellie's Safe Lotion!

Are you searching for a safe lotion or chapstick?  Cross-contamination free? 100% organic? Unrefined? Completely safe???  This mama may be your answer!  (just email her for options)

They recently put an additional adoption on hold, and any funds received are going towards her kiddo's medical care.  I know first hand these expenses, and families dealing with a medical special need are in huge need of support - especially financial.

Like any other situation, if you are not called to give financially - then dont. And dont feel guilty. But if you...
-are in the allergy community and want an amazing, safe lotion
-are a fan of natural, lovely smelling, fantastic body products
-want to support an adoptive family
-want to support the medical expenses of a special need child
...or just have money to spend (hehe)....please take a minute to email this mama.

She can be found at:  http://andykiara.blogspot.com

A Quick Soap Revisit

I have been asked a lot about what soap we have found and use for Ellie. At this point I would love to say that I make her funk free soap at home, but really? Who has time for that?

We have actually been the most successful with Ivory Original bar soap. Its not great on her hair, and sometimes we fudge with a quick conditioner rinse using her sister's organic/natural conditioner and it does not seem to cause too much disruption. I have been told you can use the Ivory bars to even make laundry soap but we have not gotten there, yet, either!

For a break down on the Ivory soap story and ingredients here is a link to my previous post:
CLICK HERE!

Week by Week, Day by Day

The first week of January Elianna had symptoms of a reaction from a bath soap with wheat protein. By January 4th she was having a typical upper respiratory response to the reaction which looks a lot like a bacterial or viral infection. Off to the pediatrician we went for a nebulizer refill (nebulizer medications do not have corn, while all of the inhalers and asthma medications I have researched do). We ended the almond milk and went back to all formula in an effort to help her get better and eliminate any possible complications. And so ended the first week of January.

Here comes week two. I noticed that Elianna's eczema was the worst it has ever been, and that we truly needed to focus on getting her a safe lotion. That led me to the Eucerin, which she ate during week two. For details on this incident see my previous post here. I finally decided that anyone who ate lotion would not feel very good. I decided to put my energy into finding an oil that might work, and thus we trialled almond oil and it was a pass!! It has not completely fixed the problem, but so far we have seen some good improvement.

With the arrival of week three and no more 'prunus' foods to go with, I was feeling a little bit brave and purchased grape juice from the store. All of her safe foods are now out of season, and the choices are limited. I understood grapes to be one of the few fresh fruits you can buy in the store without the traditional corn, soy or dairy derived coating. Soooooo..... daring the issue of cross-contamination, I handed her a cup of grape juice on Monday morning. After two big gulps and about 10 minutes she began to have a glazed look and just sat in her highchair and stared. This prompted me to get her down, and enlist Jason is the observing. Then the reflux coughing, urping and vomiting started. Nothing projectile but she cried in pain. At about 25 minutes she began pointless running in circles around the kitchen island, which was very bizarre to watch. Around and around and around and around. This lasted for about 5 minutes at which case she stopped and we noticed that her face and around her eyes were getting puffy. We stood and watched her eyes swell within a matter of minutes. Another 20 minutes later it seemed to decrease and she was feeling better. Except her eczema was bright red and raised all over her body, almost like hives. Truly bizarre and unlike the reactions we have had prior.

Hooray for January. And, oh, yeah.....that was just the start.

Proctor and Gamble follow up

So I heard back from good 'ole P&G today regarding my questions about Ivory soap. Here is their very polite and unhelpful response, which I am sure is their attempt to keep their formula a secret:

Thanks for contacting Ivory, Nichole.

I understand how frustrating it is to have allergies! It may help to know that here in our Consumer Relations office, we're provided with the same ingredient listing you see on the product package. If this doesn’t provide the information you need, we ask that you have your physician get in touch with us listing the ingredients you’re allergic to and the product you use that might contain them. Be sure to clearly indicate the full product name, fragrance, and color/shade as written on the package. Also, please include your complete name and this reference number: XXXXXXXXX

Your doctor may fax a written request on office letterhead to: (513) 983-2881. If faxing isn't an option, please have him/her mail the request to:

US:
P&G Consumer Relations
2 P&G Plaza
TN-3
Ingredient Inquiry
Cincinnati, OH 45202

Canada:
Consumer Relations
P.O. Box 355, Station A,
Toronto, ON M5W 1C5

Once we receive your doctor's request, we'll research your inquiry and hope to provide a response in approximately four weeks.

Please understand we have your best interest at heart by following a strict process for ingredient information requests.

We appreciate your patience.

(deleted name)
P&G Team

Yeah....they want a list of her allergies. That should help move the process along, and if I don't give her a bath for four weeks while waiting for their response I should be 'good to go'.

Should I bother to respond? or just move on in search of a new option? *sigh*

What does 99 44/100% pure mean?

Ivory Soap:

The famous Ivory slogan originated in the 1800's when samples of Ivory were sent to college chemistry professors and independent laboratories for analysis. Comparison tests were made with castile soaps - the standard of excellence at that time. One chemist's analysis was in table form with the ingredients listed by percentage. Harley Procter totaled the ingredients which did not fall into the category of pure soap - they equaled 56/100%. He subtracted from 100, and wrote the slogan "99-44/100% Pure®: It Floats." This became a pledge of quality to Ivory consumers. This phrase is so identified with Ivory, it's registered as a trademark with the United States Trademark office. "It Floats" was added to Ivory's slogan in 1891.

Last night Ellie was up vomiting mucous and in need of a bath. In times like these baking soda doesn't do the job. I had recently purchased ivory soap because someone recommended it as the soap ingredient for homemade laundry detergent because it is 99.44% pure. I used it growing up all the time, and have no idea why I stopped buying it. We had no other options that did not knowingly contain corn or soy so we gave her a shower using Ivory. Today? No increased eczema, no reflux, no inflammation.....hmmm. That led me to look at the Ivory website and what P&G says are the ingredients. This is what I found:

Ingredients for the Original Ivory Bar Soap are listed on the Simply Ivory package. We upgraded our packaging Fall of 2007, but there was no formula change.

The Original Ivory Bar is made of both vegetable oils and animal fats. Two different kinds of vegetable oils are used in Ivory - coconut oil and palm kernel oil. We add a preservative (magnesium sulfate and sodium silicate) to keep the bar as white as its name.

Ivory contains no heavy perfumes, creams, or dyes. A light fragrance is added to provide that Ivory clean smell.

Other research said that the animal fat is beef tallow, but the website did not confirm that. I have emailed the manufacturer to confirm, as well as get any other ingredients they are willing to provide. I specifically asked about the masking fragrance. Fingers crossed!

On another note, the original Ivory soap was compared to Castile soap in the 1800's, which is completely pure and why Ivory did not get the 100% rating. I can not find a castile soap today that does not have citric acid (corn) in the ingredients, so we have not been able to use it.

By the way, Ivory soap was originally sold as a great bath AND laundry soap!