Food Allergy Advice for the Newly Diagnosed, plus Thanks for the Votes!

You might have been wondering what happened with that Top 25 Food Allergy Bloggers (at Circle of Moms on Facebook) contest I was asking you to vote for and I'm happy to say I'm in the top 25! Thanks to all of you who voted each day -- even more than inclusion in this group, your support and positive comments have meant the world to me.

As one of the Top 25 bloggers, I was asked to post my views on some aspects of parenting kids with food allergies and one of the questions was regarding my advice for parents new to food allergy diagnosis. Lately, I've been hearing from so many parents new to peanut and tree nut allergies and also from adults who have nut allergies themselves through this blog and my other social networks like Twitter and Facebook, that I decided to share a post about handling this new diagnosis.

Based on my experiences as a parent, here are some of the things that have been most important on my food allergy journey:

Be ready for your world to be rocked. Severe food allergies make you look at nearly everything you do with fresh eyes. Food is so ingrained in our traditions, social events and emotions that you may be surprised at how much food plays a role in your life. Things are going to change for your family, that's for sure. However, all of the changes won't necessarily be negative. As I said in my previous post, my whole family eats healthier now. However, knowing that common foods have the potential to harm your child can make the entire world seem unfriendly at times. Don't be surprised if you feel a lot of strong emotions that you need to discuss with family, spouse or friends. If you really feel overwhelmed and it's interfering with your life, seek professional counseling.

Give yourself time to adapt. You may feel apprehensive about certain situations once you know you are dealing with a severe food allergy, so don't push yourself. Knowledge on how to cope with restaurants, school, play dates and family members will not come to you overnight. It's OK to feel scared or confused. As you learn more about food allergies and manage situations successfully, you will gain confidence. But don't expect this to happen immediately. You need time to accept the situation and learn what works and what doesn't before you can begin educating others about it and advocating for your needs.

Always have safe food on hand--and bring it wherever you go.Food is pushed at kids almost constantly (many of you know this already) so don't get stressed, be prepared. If you are heading out with your child, be sure to bring safe alternatives so that you are not tempted to offer unsafe food simply out of hunger or desperation.

Don't forget the epinephrine autoinjector.If you're like me, you switch bags or purses, rush around in the morning or are simply human and sometimes forget stuff. Epinephrine is so important, however, that I've turned around and come home rather than go anywhere without my daughter's medication. Leave Post-It notes by your front door or on the dashboard of your car, get your child a special fanny pack or medicine carrier but find ways to remember the epinephrine. It won't help anyone if it's sitting at home in a cabinet; epinephrine autoinjectors can and do save lives.

Start teaching your child about their allergy in age-appropriate ways. Kids need to learn how become their own advocates. You can help them, even at young ages, by role-playing different situations (such as what to do when offered a food that isn't safe), discussing unsafe foods and activities, and if they are old enough, (discuss when is the right time with your allergist) teaching them to self-administer their epinephrine autoinjector.

Kids who can advocate for themselves are more confident and happy kids as well as a safer ones. For younger kids, Beyond a Peanut flashcards and books like Ally the Allergic Elephant and The Princess and the Peanut are non-scary ways to teach allergy safety to your kids. For older kids, FAAN has a section of their website devoted to kids ages 11 and up.

Embrace cooking and baking from scratch. Not everybody loves to cook but once you deal with food allergies it's actually more stressful not to cook. Why? Because when you frequently visit restaurants or pick up take-out you don't have control over what's going into your food--and that can mean risk of allergic reaction. Plus, cooking at home is healthier overall (and not just lower-risk for food allergies)and its more economical, too. If you don't have tons of time to cook on busy week nights, then cook what you can on your less busy days and freeze meals in advance. Also, be sure to have one or two quick go-to meals in your recipe arsenal and keep the main ingredients on hand at all times.

Be cautious but enjoy your life. This is what our first allergist told us and he was right. You can't stop living because you now deal with a severe food allergy. That's not to say you should take unnecessary chances on food or downplay the seriousness of the situation. However, if you go forward in a positive way, you will affect the outlook of your entire family. If you are the parent of an allergic child, you want them to be happy and live life to the fullest, even though you may worry about them. Adapting to food allergies can mean having to alter how you go about some things, but don't let it limit you (or your child, whoever has the allergy) too much.

Food Allergy Holiday News: Nut-Free Advent Calendars and Holiday Resources

This past Thanksgiving weekend (and I hope everyone had a safe and happy one!), I came across an item I'd like to share since it's something that many of you have been asking: Advent calendars.

Many of us remember these fun calendars from our childhood--the calendars begin with the date December 1st and offer a different door to open until Christmas on the 25th. Usually these calendars offer a little piece of Christmas chocolate behind each door.

Since chocolate is one of the most common candies with nut allergen warnings, most of us have had to give these up for our own kids. One source is Amanda's Own Advent calendar available at Peanut-Free Planet, the candy is nut-free, egg-free and dairy-free. You have to order these early, though!

New as of November 2013: Vermont Nut Free Chocolates now has Advent Calendars! Visit their web site and look under their "Christmas" section for details!

The crafty and artistic parents among us can make their own calendars--one of my readers made a beautiful one using felt pockets for each day; she then placed treats in the pockets. I'm very unskilled in crafts--my thing is cooking/baking--so if you are good at crafts, this is a great idea.

For the rest of us (or for those of us with a love of unique Christmas decor) I may have found a solution: wooden Advent calendars. (Two styles are pictured above). I came across these beautiful heirloom quality calendars while at a local store this past Saturday--check your local stores that sell Christmas decor. You can also buy them online at Byer's Choice.

At $85 a pop, these are not cheap. However, they are a beautiful Christmas decoration that is reusable and can become a family favorite that you can pass down to future generations. And best of all--they don't come with unsafe candy-it's up to you to supply the treat behind each door. In person, these really are gorgeous.

Let me wrap up with two sources for chocolate Hanukkah coins: Vermont Nut-Free Chocolate and Divvies. Vermont Nut-Free is free of peanuts and tree nuts only; Divvies is nut-free, egg-free, dairy-free and gluten-free. Visit their web sites to find out more.

In the coming weeks, I'll have lots more holiday tips, resources and special recipes. Please share yours by commenting below!


Thanksgiving and Food Allergies: Some Helpful Links!

Turkey Day is fast approaching and I know a lot of you have questions about having a safe meal with the family, dining out while you travel, finding safe foods and more.

Click this link to get some answers -- my annual blog post round-up for Thanksgiving.

Stumped for some quick nut-free recipes? Here are three of my Thanksgiving faves:

Nut-Free Pumpkin Muffins

Speedy Sweet Potatoes

Pumpkin Cheesecake Ice Cream (for when you just need to overindulge)

Food Allergy News: Bill Would Permit Epinephrine to be Stocked in Schools

Pictured: Sen. Kirk with Brianna and Rhonda Adkins, and FAAN CEO Maria Acebal on Capitol Hill Tuesday, Nov. 15.
I want to ask you all for your help and advocacy as a new bill paves the way for a law that would permit Epinephrine to be stocked in schools.

I received the following notice from FAAN: The Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN™) has been working with U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Mark Kirk (R-IL) on federal legislation that would encourage states to adopt laws requiring schools to have on hand “stock” epinephrine auto-injectors – meaning epinephrine that is not prescribed specifically to a single student but can be used for any student and staff member in an anaphylactic emergency.

A few days ago, this bill (S. 1884), the School Access to Emergency Epinephrine Act, was introduced in the Senate.

Earlier this week, FAAN CEO Maria L. Acebal, joined by Rhonda Adkins, wife of country music superstar and Celebrity Ambassador Who Cares Trace Adkins, and Adkins’s young daughter Brianna, visited lawmakers on Capitol Hill to urge them to support this lifesaving legislation.

Now we need your help to get your senators’ support! Please download our sample letter of support, personalize it, and send it to their senators.

You can look up your local senators at www.senate.gov.

In addition to protecting those whose epinephrine auto-injector isn’t immediately accessible during a reaction, this legislation will help save the lives of those who experience an anaphylactic reaction and don’t have a prescribed epinephrine auto-injector. Data shows that up to 25% of all epinephrine administrations that occur in the school setting involve students and adult staffers whose allergy was unknown at the time of the event.

Jenny: I can speak to this. My daughter's allergy was discovered a preschool. She had one bite of a peanut butter sandwich and went into anaphylactic shock. That's how we found out she had an allergy. Unfortunately, this is a common way for parents to find out their child has a food allergy. Every second counts--even if an ambulance gets there quickly you've lossed precious time without epinephrine on hand.

Only a handful of states have laws related to stock epinephrine. S. 1884, however, will provide an incentive for states to enact their own laws allowing school personnel to keep and administer a non-student specific epinephrine auto-injector in case of an emergency. (The state laws would be similar to the ones enacted in Illinois and Georgia in 2011.)

Thank you for your help gathering support for S. 1884. We will keep you posted as FAAN continues to work to secure passage of this important legislation. Together, we can save the lives of those with potentially life-threatening food allergies.

Food Allergy News: Allergic Living Magazine: Get the Winter Issue and Meet the New Associate Editor!

Allergic Living’s Winter Issue – Get It While You Still Can!
Many of you know that I have accepted a position as Associate Editor of Allergic Living magazine. I'm so excited to be a part of this great team and publication and look forward to collaborating with them. I will still be writing this blog as well as my other freelance articles while working with AL, but now I get to be part of an amazing team who cares about the issues that we do.

This magazine has been so helpful to me and my family over the years. They really get it--they know what it's like to live with not only food allergies but also environmental allergies, pet allergies, celiac disease, asthma, eczema, you name it. It's a great resource and I hope you will join me in subscribing.

I've been a subscriber of the magazine for several years, and was very happy to see them launch a U.S. edition last spring. I think you will find the info and columnists as helpful and supportive as I have!

So that you don't miss out on the winter issue, I hope you'll take the time to subscribe! Allergic Living has just about wrapped up our Winter issue and we’re really excited. The issue, if we do say so ourselves, rocks. It's one of our strongest food allergy and celiac lifestyle issues to date.

Just FYI, Allergic Living is available by subscription and the cutoff to subscribe and get the new issue is this Thurs. Nov. 17. It’s quick and easy to subscribe at Allergic Living's site.

Inside the Winter Allergic Living:
- Our cover (see photo above) is: “Throwing the Ultimate Party”. Why risk mystery foods at someone’s else’s place – let AL be your guide to hosting your own fabulous free-from party. Chef Simon has sensational recipes: From crispy duck breast to sweet and sour chicken balls, beef skewers, vegetable terrine and more – all AL’s recipes are free of top allergens and gluten.

- And now for dessert … Nut-free, dairy-free and gluten-free chocolate layer cake, plus elegant holiday cookie recipes, courtesy of the Gluten-Free Goddess.

- Sprucing up your home? Don’t miss our feature “The Home That Breathes”. Get out the bad toxins, while AL introduces you to the stylish furnishings that won’t off-gas VOCs.

- Gina Clowes, allergy life coach and creator of allergymoms.com, offers great advice for helping your family to “get” your food restrictions; speaking of Gina--please click the link to subscribe to her newsletter. The latest issue contains food allergy holiday tips from advocates and experts--including me! Thanks, Gina. :) Other columns delve into how to keep safe at celebrations, and a look at how far we’ve come in food allergy research and awareness over the last 20 years.

- Food Allergy Features: We explore whether there could ever be a “safe level” of peanut in food and what your teen isn’t telling you about how he manages his food allergy.

- Allergy-Friendly Gift Guide: Perfect presents for your allergic child, courtesy of Jenny Kales, aka the Nut-Free Mom I also wrote a food page for Allergy Shots. Check it out!

- The Scoop: Our journalists bring you the latest, such as how scientists have figured out how to “turn off” peanut allergy in mice; the controversy over pets and the allergic on planes; and the wrenching story of a child tossed out of daycare – because of allergies.

I also want to thank everyone who voted for me in the Facebook Circle of Moms Top 25 Food Allergy Bloggers. Today, November 16 is the last day to cast your votes, so I hope you will visit now (see the button at the top right of my blog) or click here to vote. It's a tight race so every vote counts. Thanks for your support! It's been an honor to be on the board with so many of my favorite food allergy friends and advocates!