Apples...a big problem

Apples, apples, apples....they are a big problem in our household. We started Addison off with Applesauce - something simple for a 4 month old. We soon realized she was breaking out in a horrible rash all over her back. Being a new mom, it just didn't register with me that it would be the applesauce causing this...until my mom tried to go through the things it could be. New lotion? No. Bath soap? No. Laundry detergent? No. Food? Uhhh...maybe. But apples? Really? Yes.

When I told the doctor about this, he said to gradually keep trying the apples again. Wait about 3-4 weeks and then introduce them again to see if she still has the same allergic reaction. And we did...tried them again about a month later and still a slight rash - but a rash none the less. Next time, I thought I would wait a little longer. So about 2 months later, I purchased some more apples to put away in the cabinet for when I was ready to try again. Only this time, I forgot to separate them out from the other food. I instead mistook them for pears. When I set out the food in the morning for my grandma, I accidently set out apples. Now, I wanted to try them again; however, I would have tried them on a weekend when I was home with her to see if she had a reaction.

My grandma fed her the apples like no big deal. She said she noticed they were apples and was going to call me but figured I must have set them out for a reason. Later in the day, Addison had a doctor's appointment. My grandma met me at the doctor's office to give me Addison so I could take her to her appointment. We are in the doctor's office and I quickly undressed her so she could get weighed and this is what I saw....

Now, I'm not sure how well you can tell from this picture...but her entire body was covered in red spots...I mean covered. I was utterly shocked and embarrassed...especially not knowing my daughter's body had broken out in a terrible rash. I felt like a horrible mother. The nurse just looked at me and I swear she wanted to say, "How the hell didn't you know that was there." I quickly weighed her so I could hide in the exam room. I frantically got out my cell phone to call my grandma and ask how long this was on her body. All I kept thinking was "how did you not tell me about this?" When I spoke with her, she swears up and down, back and forth that the rash was not on her body. She had just changed her clothes about 30 minutes before the doctor's appointment. And at this time, I didn't know I put out the wrong food. I called my husband and asked him to go home and look through the trash to see what she ate for breakfast. My only thought was...this had to be apples.

The weird thing about this rash was there were no spots above skin. All the red blotching spots were under the skin. She didn't seem to be in any pain from the rash either. I just kept looking at her wanting to cry and feeling so bad for making a mistake. I just knew it had to be those apples.

Donnie did get home and found an empty container of apples. At the same time, my grandma called and said she remembered feeding her apples but just thought I wanted her to. I felt so bad too because my grandma was so upset she was crying. She said she knew she should have called me first before giving them to her and felt like it was all her fault she had the rash. I explained it wasn't her fault at all...I made the mistake by not separating the food. I would have eventually given them to her just not on a doctor's visit day.

Needless to say....we are not giving her apples any longer.

And PS...do you know how hard it is to find baby food that does not contain apples or apple juice concentrate?Hard...very hard. My poor baby is very limited on her food selections.