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So I made another post on feeding a vegetarian child and now I have one that is allergic to dairy. Will this be difficult with 3 different meal plans??? regular, vegetarian and now dairy??? I am so stressed out now about this. Is there any almond milk that is qualifiable on the food program?
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You would need a special diet statement signed by a DR for almond milk. Mine looks like this: https://www.providerschoice.com/pdfs/DIET_STATEMENT.pdf
You can do Lactaid without a statement. Many of my allergy kids drink that and it's a good lactose free substitute. You can even buy it at Aldi.
I would find it rather time consuming to do 3 different meals. If it were me, I would consider having them bring their own meals for vegetarian and dairy free. -
I'm not on the food program, but I don't accommodate any special diets. But, I also live in a very tiny town and the only dairy free options offered at our store is butter and milk and they are both very expensive. I would have to drive almost an hour to get anything else dairy-free. No thank you!
I send out my menu, and if there is something on there that a parent didn't want their child to have, then I would expect them to bring in a substitute food for that day.Comment
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I’m new here. I’ve been a childcare provider for 4 years now. My own child is allergic to dairy. It was quite a challenge in the beginning but once we figured out how it works, it’s not so bad.
Have the parents described what component of milk the child is allergic to? And how severe the allergy is? Sometimes it is more than just a lactose intolerance but an actual severe allergy that requires EpiPen, etc. My child’s allergy is so severe, even contact causes a reaction. For example, if I have residue from any milk product (cheese, yogurt, cheese dust from Cheetos) on my hand and I touch her, she will break out in hives. Actual ingestion is even scarier.
I would find out from the parents more details and ask what they use for substitutes. Hopefully it’s a mild allergy that the child will grow out of.
My biggest challenge has been not in finding what to feed but in making sure what the other kids eat/have contact with don’t contact her or what she eats.
If it’s a true dairy allergy, you will not be able to feed cheese, yogurt, butter or anything with milk derivatives, which is a lot. Those substitutes are more expensive. If you’re on a food program, check with them to see how they handle it. It may be something that the parents need to provide food for instead.Comment
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I really do not have a hard time with those as long as I don't serve casserole type dishes. I cook meats separate from veggies and pastas/breads and serve it the same way. By component.
Lunch is one protein, one veggie, one fruit and one bread/cereal. For those who can't have cows milk, I am allowed to serve almond milk with a simple form the parents have their pediatrician sign.
Many kids who have a true allergy to milk (not intolerance) are often also allergic to soy and tree nuts so I skip soy, altogether. 
Butter has been replaced with olive oil for years here due to my own health needs.
Almost every kid here has a parent who claims they can't drink milk, only one in 10 years actually brought back the signed allergy form from a doctor.
The majority were intolerance or dislike.
- Unless otherwise stated, all my posts are personal opinion and worth what you paid for them.
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Thank you very much. I called this morning and they sent me the form for the almond milk substitution. They are actually not positive he has any dairy allergy. The mother and older son does but nothing to the extent of needing an epi pen. She said the only thing is he will get some congestion and it gets worse the more he eats, so since the other 2 have an allergy they just decided to not do dairy. So she said it isn't life or death and that IF something had dairy it's not the end of the world.
Is milk listed in any other name on the labels? sorry new at this, seriously in 20 years of doing daycare I have never had an allergy child. Thanks for your helpComment
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Milk is in a lot of processed foods but should be on the product labels. It is rare that someone with an intolerance will have an issue eating a cupcake, though. Many people who can't drink 4 ounces of milk without stomach upset, minor sinus drainage and a runny nose can happily chomp away on hard cheese, ice cream, etc.
When presented with the options of yogurt or kale to meet their dietary calcium needs, most will quickly decide their intolerance isn't that bad and go with the strawberry Yoplait. Even most of those with true milk allergy outgrow it by 16. It is rare for an adult to still be allergic to milk.
Peanut allergies are the ones that require extreme precautions.- Unless otherwise stated, all my posts are personal opinion and worth what you paid for them.Comment
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What about cheese is non dairy cheese claimable like daiya? I think that's how you spell it. And where and how do they get the protein if they can't eat cheese or yogurt. Does their doctor need to fill out the same form as the almond milk substitute?Comment
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They do not need a form for substitutions. They don't have to get proteins from cheese. Beans, fish, eggs and meats do that just fine. Calcium will have to be replaced, but there are many foods full of calcium like spinach, kale, collards, poppy seeds, celery seeds, and chia seeds that are easy to mix in to pastas/breads.
- Unless otherwise stated, all my posts are personal opinion and worth what you paid for them.Comment
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Ingredients such as whey, sodium caseinate, potassium lactate and sodium lactate are milk products or derivatives. Sodium and potassium lactates are in deli meats and hot dogs which I rarely serve in my food program but you can find those products without those ingredients.
It sounds as if the allergy may not be an actual allergy, which is good. 🙂Comment
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So what if your other kids were having mac and cheese for lunch, what would you give the boy who can't have milk products? just something completely different? sorry this is confusing.Comment
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I have a child in care that has a dairy allergy along with a long list of other allergies. I no longer serve mac and cheese or I serve it on a day that he isn't here. However, we do have pasta once a week here. It just doesn't have any dairy products in it. If the kids want parmasean cheese on it, I just sprinkle it on top of their individual servings.
Also, the child with the allergy (2 1/2 yo) sits next to the older kids at the table. I have am continually teaching and reminding the kids that we do not share food or touch other people's plates, bowls or cups.Comment
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What is the protein in that meal? for instance if you served cheese as the protein, what would the protein be for the non dairy child?Comment
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I would mix his plain macaroni noodles (bonus points for whole grain pasta) with 3 tbs olive oil (omegas), 1 tsp chicken bouillon powder (flavor), 1 tbsp poppy seeds (calcium) and about 1/2 cup of diced baked chicken (protein). Then I'd serve him the same veggies and fruits that everyone else is having with water.
This menu would be a little more complicated because you are replacing both the dairy and protein components, not just one. Mac-n-cheese is already a protein substitute for kids who can't eat things like pork.
- Unless otherwise stated, all my posts are personal opinion and worth what you paid for them.Comment
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Oh wow, that is something I never would have thought of, and all of that is claimable on the food program?Comment
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