Currents News Staff
Three-month-old Adelina’s doing much better than she was just over a week ago.On May 15, her mom, Natalya Renteria, was up in the middle of the night looking for Enfamil Gentlease.
She says it was impossible to find, so she settled on a brand she hadn’t used before.
“It was liquid form,” said Natalya. “And I had already kind of been skeptical about some like just because I hadn’t.”
She says Adelina started to get a rash after the first bottle.
“It wasn’t just her face was half of her body,” said Jessica Reyes, the grandmother. “And that’s when we decided that that we needed to get her into the doctor immediately.”
Jessica says they rushed the baby to the hospital.
“It was heart wrenching,” said Jessica, “because her face just turned blue and she just was so limp and my arms.”
Jessica says doctors gave Adelina an allergy medicine right away.
“I didn’t know what to do,” Natalya said. “I didn’t know how to help her. I really couldn’t help her. There’s nothing really I could do.”
Turns out – Baby Adelina is allergic to safflower and eggs.
The primary care medical director for Chi Health says formula changes can cause a range of reactions.
“It can be mild from just a rash on the baby to severe to the point of anaphylaxis,” said Dr. Michael Schooff, “where the throat swells up and the baby can potentially stop breathing.”
Chi Health says fortunately this reaction is rare. Adelina’s is the first case they’ve seen so far since the shortage began. Her family just hopes store shelves are full again soon.
“Hopefully that we bounce back and real soon because the babies are in need,” Jessica said.