An allergic reaction in a baby can be frightening, since your baby can't express how he's feeling or what's bothering him. Allergic babies tend to have allergic parents, so if you have allergies, your infant may also. Apple allergies aren't common, although a cross reaction to pollen can cause a rash after eating apples. Other substances in commercial applesauce, such as artificial coloring or other fruits mixed in with the apples, could also account for an allergic reaction in a baby.
Possible Causes
Allergies to apples themselves occur in only around 2 percent of people with food allergies, making them an uncommon allergenic source, according to the 1999 Internet Symposium on Food Allergens. However, apples are a common trigger of oral allergy syndrome. A baby with oral allergy syndrome actually has a pollen allergy. In the case of an apple reaction, the allergen is pollen from the birch tree, according to the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. Similar proteins in both substances set off an immune reaction. Cooked apples are less likely than raw to cause this reaction. Applesauce is generally cooked to soften the apples.
Symptoms
In the case of oral allergy syndrome, a reaction to applesauce causes itching and swelling around the mouth, lips, tongue and throat. Swelling can also occur around the eyes. A true allergy to apples or other substances in the applesauce causes a more severe reaction, with hives and facial swelling, rash, stomach pain, difficulty breathing, runny nose, reddened eyes or eczema, diarrhea or vomiting. Allergic reactions normally occur within a few minutes to a few hours after eating the offending substance.
Treatment
Most allergic reactions are mild and subside within a day or two, requiring no treatment. If your baby has an itchy, uncomfortable rash, he may need antihistamines to reduce the immune system response. In severe cases, steroids by mouth may help. Avoiding the offending allergen is the best way to treat allergies; skin testing can pinpoint the exact substance that your baby has an allergy to. If your baby has severe food reactions, you may need to carry injectable epinephrine at all times in case a severe reaction occurs.
Considerations
If one parent has an allergy, a baby has a 50 percent chance of having some type of allergy. If both parents have allergies, the probability rises to 75 percent, according to BabyCenter. Allergic reactions normally do not occur on the first exposure to a food, so the fact that your baby has eaten applesauce before without any problem does not mean he hasn't developed an allergy to it. When choosing baby food, look for brands that contain no additives, to make it easier to identify the offending substance if a reaction occurs.
