DH made huge peanut butter cookies last night because DS had been asking for them.
DS had had a peanut butter sandwich already and them ate two cookies. Immediately after ,his nose started to run clear.Well we had a terrible night, waking up every hour to crying and congestion. Now that he's awake he's in a happy mood but the nose is running a marathon and he wouldn't eat his breakfast.He feels a little warm, maybe a low fever.I also got some toys back that my neighbors kids borrowed and DS was playing with them right before the cookies, maybe he picked something up from them, but it wouldn't come on that quickly,would it?They have a dog , so maybe it was a reaction to that.He has never had a reaction to peanut butter but he has never eaten that much at once either. I have a homeopathic cold medicine but if it's an allergy I won't use it.
We we're supposed to go to the in-laws for a Mother's Day celebration today ,should I take him?

By Karen~moderator on Saturday, May 7, 2005 - 08:55 am:

I've always gone by this: Clear and running = allergy. Another symptom of allergy is purplish or darkish circles underneath eyes. If the discharge is yellowish, with a headache and/or cough it's probably a cold. Green indicates bacterial infection.

It's possible he is developing a cold if he has a low fever. I'd go anyway at this point, unless he truly develops a fever or other symptoms.

By Karen~moderator on Saturday, May 7, 2005 - 08:58 am:

OH - cookies mean flour - and many people have wheat allergies. It's also possible he has a nut allergy. That is very common also.

I have always been a bread lover, and I noticed in the past number of years I have a reaction to wheat IF I eat it every day, or eat too much. Same symptoms - congestion, running nose, *feels* like a fever, but really is not.

Has this happened before? You might talk to his ped about allergies and allergy testing.

By Clarabel on Saturday, May 7, 2005 - 09:35 am:

No,Karen it hasn't happened before.He never really gets sick at all.He eats bread and crackers everyday and loves it. He does have shadows under his eyes all the time, but the ped says it is probably just fair skin.
Hmmmm..Could be a wheat allergy.

By Ginny~moderator on Saturday, May 7, 2005 - 10:55 am:

Clarabel, if your insurance will cover it, I would definitely talk to the ped about allergy testing. I have fair skin and bags under my eyes (age 66) but they rae not dark or shadows unless I am sick or overtired. Same with one of my bosses, who is a very fairskinned redhead. I can always tell if he is not feeling well or hasn't had enough sleep because of shadows under his eyes; otherwise, none. My oldest has frequent allergy issues (fortuntely, all nasal, non food related) and I can always tell when his allergies are acting up because of shadows under his eyes, and he is almost as fairskinned as I.

Especially with this coming after eating peanut butter cookies, I would be really anxious to have allergy testing. Allergies aren't always there from birth, some develop as people grow. Nut allergies can be really dangerous, and wheat allergies can make a person constantly low-level uncomfortable.

By Trina~moderator on Saturday, May 7, 2005 - 11:38 am:

I don't have time to type right now, but both my kids have severe food allergies. DS to tree nuts and DD to both tree nuts and peanuts. A good resource is FoodAllergy.org

By Tink on Saturday, May 7, 2005 - 04:20 pm:

I know that food allergies can come on very quickly, with no symptoms other times the item has been eaten. I think it sounds more like an allergic reaction than a cold. I believe some foods have an affect that builds up over time until your body reaches its tolerance level. Then you have an allergic reaction.

I, and both of my girls, have dark circles under our eyes ALL the time. I have no allergies whatsoever and the girls have slight seasonal allergies. I don't think dark circles are necessarily allergies or just from being tired or sick. We have them all the time. They make me nuts (no pun intended )!

By Clarabel on Saturday, May 7, 2005 - 11:38 pm:

Well there is definately a strong argument there for allergy.At this point, though, I'm leaning toward cold and I'm treating it as a cold.
When I thought about it, he did seem a little too sleepy the last couple of days and Thurs. night he was snoring, which he's never done and then woke up with a night terror(which I would like to have a whole seperate discussion about).
Today we did take him to the visiting relatives and he just got worse through the day, very warm with fever. I got some tylenol into him and he is propped up on a pillow sleeping now.Lots of congestion, poor thing. This is only the second time we've ever given tylenol, but he was so uncomfortable. We will see what the rest of the night is like.I have to work tommorow(my last day).Hope I can get some sleep.

By Karen~moderator on Sunday, May 8, 2005 - 10:16 am:

Based on that, it sounds like it could be a cold - you don't normally run a fever with allergies. Do his ears hurt? Or possibly his face or neck around his ears? I was thinking possibly ear infection too.

BTW, I checked your profile and your DS has the same b'day as my DH!!

By Clarabel on Sunday, May 8, 2005 - 11:15 pm:

It does seem to be a cold and he is feeling so much better today.Slept much better last night.Still really upset about the runny nose but the fever was down all afternoon.He felt a little warm when I put him to bed but I don't think he needs tylenol tonight.
Lucky you Karen, Sagitarius boy.Mine is a quadruple Sag.They certainly keep you on your toes.Always onto something new...very busy, but so much fun