PRE-LECTURE ASSIGNMENT

Medical Nutrition Module

1 year / 2nd Semester / 2020 / FMUI 2019
st

Shuffa Chilla Mayhana

1906421921 – PBL Group F

Food Labelling
How To Choose Dairy-Free Snacks

Cow Milk Allergy or CMA is a common problem experienced by infants in their

first year of life. It occurs when the body’s immune system reacts to certain proteins
that are found in cow milk. As a result, allergic reactions might appear either
immediately, within minutes to hours, or delayed, showing a response after 2 hours
to 2 days following the consumption of cow’s milk. Clinical manifestations of CMA
vary, from mild to severe, including diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal bloating, blood
and mucus in stool, the appearance of skin rashes, swelling of faces, eyes, and lips,
or even breathing difficulties present in some cases. 1,2

CMA is overcome by withdrawing cow’s milk from one’s diet while maintaining
a balanced and nutritious diet both for infants and mothers. Thus, breastfeeding is
the most suitable source of nutrition for babies with CMA. However, if the breastfed
baby reacts to the breastmilk, it is advised for the mother to limit and even avoid
their intake of dairy products whilst breastfeeding. Moreover, calcium deficiency may
be a concern to breastfeeding mothers; this could be overcome by consuming a
vitamin D supplement daily. Eventually, babies will develop an immunity towards the
proteins in the cow milk and outgrew their allergy in 1 to 2 years of age; allowing
them to consume cow milk products without showing any clinical symptoms. 1,2

In implementing a dairy-free diet, mothers must be able to carefully and

accurately identify certain products that should be avoided; thus, this is when food
labelling plays a pivotal role in providing information about the ingredient in a food
product. Additionally, there are many ways on how cow’s milk can be labelled in a
food ingredient, consequently, mothers should avoid food products that contain
fresh or UHT cow’s milk, evaporated milk, butter milk, milk powder, milk protein,
milk solids, milk sugar, condensed milk, skimmed milk powder, cheese, butter,
casein, lactoglobulin, lactalbumin, yogurt, ice cream, butter, and more. On top of
that, mothers should also avoid all bovine protein, which is a combination of milk
and meat.2,3

Some food labels may state an allergy box that states certain ingredients that
are usually allergy-inducing such as nuts, milks, and eggs. Nevertheless, if such
labels are not present, mothers should not blindly assume that the product is safe
for consumption. In buying packed foods such as bread from a bakery, absent in
their food labels, mothers should ask the shop assistant on duty. Lastly,
breastfeeding mothers may consult with nutritionists or dietitians the most suitable
diet to be implemented to prevent unnecessary avoidance of food as well as the plan
to re-introduce cow’s milk for their baby safely and slowly.1,4

References
1. Adeli M. Cow’s milk allergy. Qatar: Paediatrics Department of Hamad Medical
Corporation;2017. p2-19.
2. Brill H. Approach to milk protein allergy in infants. Can Fam Physician. 2008
Sep;54(9):1258-1264.
3. Spiric D, et al. Allergen labelling in meat, dairy, and cereal products from the
Serbian market. J of Eart and Environ Sci. 2017;85.
4. Unknown. Allergy: what to consider when labelling food. England:
Crown;2015.