Casein, gluten and gastric pH

In a very interesting paper from Bloggeier on rheumatoid disease and multiple food allergies (worth a post on its own) there was this snippet:

"Thus infants are prone to develop cow’s milk allergy while their gastric acidity is pH 3–4 (compared with pH 2 in adults); at pH 4 the degradation of a-lactalbumin, BSA, and bovine IgG is markedly reduced in contrast to b lactoglobulin".

Following the ref gave this abstract. Just a pity that they didn't look at casein too. It brought to mind the idea that taking gastric acidity suppressing drugs is possibly the best technique we've developed to get ourselves a food allergy, obviously excluding wheat consumption. Of course the combination is probably a cracker.

Now, what does the cow's milk get poured over when weaning a child, who's gastric pH is 3-4?

Well, in this house the wheat is notably absent! Actually so is the cow's milk pretty well and weaning, what there is of it, seems to be going fine on beef and pork purees with some root veggies (plus a little vitamin C to be on the safe side) thrown in.

Peter