Food Allergies Blog

Next Monday, May 11, marks the beginning of the 11th Annual Food Allergy Awareness Week. Awareness is kind of a tricky beast; virtually everyone would, when asked if they'd heard of food allergies, say yes. But at the same time, most people are (understandably) not clear on the potential effects of an allergic reaction and what it takes to stay on top of maintaining a diet completely free of any food, whether it's something ubiquitous or something not-so-common, until someone very close to them is diagnosed with an allergy. Well-intentioned people are sometimes hurt when someone with an allergy won't taste their home-baked foods ("I'm sure everything I used to make this is safe, really!") or when a parent won't blithely leave an allergic child in their care for a special outing ("I'll be sure not to feed her any peanuts at the ballpark, really!").

This is not to say that these sorts of precautions aren't worth it; quite the contrary. It's simply to point out that, at least to my mind, the gap in public awareness is largely in the area of understanding day-to-day management of allergies. And if that gap were filled -- if most people understood the intricacies of keeping away from allergens, and if most people realized that an imperceptibly tiny amount of food can cause a life-threatening reaction in a susceptible person -- it might make some aspects of living with food allergies easier. At the very least, it might help eliminate some of the more common social pressures ("Just let him try a little; a little won't hurt, really!") and reduce resistance to better accommodations in schools and other public places.

The Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network has a Food Allergy Awareness Week resource guide with everything from a calendar of simple daily activities to templates for presentations about allergies. I'd also like to suggest a couple of ideas: one very simple, and one that may take a little more chutzpah.

The simple idea: do you have a friend or acquaintance who's interested in cooking? Especially if you're allergic to something that's in a lot of common ingredients, it might be illuminating to invite a friend over to share in meal preparation and eating with you. All sorts of questions often flow from these kinds of gatherings, and it's a friendly, fun way to pull back the curtain a bit and share information.

Another idea for those with a lot of chutzpah is to challenge people in your life to live "how the other half lives" for a week, or even a few days. If you have a blog, this might be an interesting thought experiment. The filmmakers of King Corn took this approach with their Corn-Free Challenge and quickly learned from the corn allergy community just how pervasive corn is in the American diet. And in turn, they raised awareness about just how difficult most people would find it to live without corn for even a short period of time. (You can read more about the challenge and find a link to a list of ingredients that contain corn here.)

I've seen variations of this challenge by Type 1 diabetics and by others who are living with chronic conditions. And I always find people's reactions fascinating -- there's so often an element of "Wow, I could never do that" and a new respect for the lifestyle they've tried out. As the old saying goes, "before you judge someone, walk a mile in his shoes" -- or, in this case, spend a few days in his pantry.

Read your fill at the sixteenth installment of the Living with Food Allergies blog carnival. I particularly enjoyed the thought-provoking Peabutter Dilemma post at Casein Point, but you'll find lots of good reading no matter your particular food allergy interests.

And if you've got your own food allergy writing to share, you can submit it to the next edition of the Carnival, scheduled for Food Allergy Awareness Week at Check My Tag Community.

In or around the St. Louis metro area? Make plans to attend the Food Allergy Fair on May 17th. The Fair, jointly sponsored by Gateway FEAST and the St. Louis Chapter of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America as part of National Food Allergy Awareness Week, will feature a Kid's Concert by musician Kyle Dine and vendors like AwareAbouts ID Tags, Check My Tag, Divvies, Allergaroo, DEY, and Whey Out Chocolate. The event will also feature an "Ask the Allergist" table.

Within striking distance of St. Louis and interested in attending? You can preregister by calling 314-645-2422 or by e-mailing FEAST (at) aafastl.org.

More about Kyle Dine:

• Kyle Dine: Music About Food Allergies
• Allergic Living: Spotlight, Kyle Dine, Allergy Minstrel

More about AAFA and Gateway FEAST

• Gateway FEAST
• Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America

Tonight, April 19, is the first evening of Pesach. If you're hosting a seder you've certainly begun preparing, but just in case, you should be aware of the many recipe resources for restricted diets that exist for tonight and the rest of Passover:

• Allergy-Safe Alternatives For Your Seder Plate
• About.com Kosher Food: Special Diets and Passover
• About.com Parenting Special Needs: Gluten-Free Passover Recipes and Nut-Free Charoset
• Gluten-Free Bay: Gluten-Free Passover Recipe Roundup
• Kids Food Allergies Blog: Preparing For Passover (Includes Several Vegan Passover Recipes)
• Beyond Allergy: Allergy-Free Passover Recipes

Because of the religious restrictions on the use of certain grains -- especially wheat and corn -- Passover can be an especially useful time to stock up on certain staples if you have a wheat allergy, if you're a celiac, or if you have a corn allergy or intolerance. Our family is particularly fond of pesach crumbs (a potato starch-based shelf-stable bread crumb substitute), which we've found at larger supermarkets leading up to Passover for years.

More about corn-free and wheat- and gluten-free Passover products:

• Kids with Food Allergies: Kosher For Passover and Food Allergies
• Gluten-Free Bay: Why Passover Is A Gluten-Free Goldmine (includes some content on corn-free Passover products)

...head to Gina Clowes' Allergy Moms blog and read her interview with Pamela Smith, whose eight-year-old son Andrew died in February due to peanut anaphylaxis complicated by an asthma attack.

Tragic stories like this are a potent reminder of why raising awareness about food allergies is such a priority in this community, and why parents' vigilance for their children is so vital.

Not too long ago, I crossed a restaurant that shall remain nameless off my list after I got sick there for the third time. It's the sort of place that should be perfect --- they're willing to make substitutions, they make most of their dishes from scratch, and the staff is quite friendly.

But it seems like every time I go there something happens. I've asked about ingredients and been assured they were fine, only to have the waitress inform me midway through my meal that the chef had "double-checked" and there was a problem after all. And despite reassurances that my meals would be cooked in clean pans, I've gotten sick from simple meals that shouldn't have had any issues.

It's not uncommon for restaurants to be, shall we say, less than clear about what it takes to keep customers with food allergies and sensitivities safe. A 2007 study in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, based on a survey of a cross-section of cooks, servers, and managers from a variety of restaurants, found that a significant percentage of restaurant personnel held beliefs that could be dangerous to your health. Nearly one-quarter of the personnel surveyed believed that small amounts of allergens were acceptable for allergic individuals, while 35% believed fryer heat destroyed allergens.

There are three subtle things that make me a little nervous whenever I hear them at a restaurant:

Recently in the Food Allergy Forums....

....a forumgoer is puzzled about odd allergy test results and wonders if anyone's had experience with food challenges.

....a mother of a sesame-allergic daughter shares resources about FALCPA and non-"big eight" allergies.

....a parent whose child has experienced potential food allergy symptoms wonders about allergy testing for nuts.

Share your experiences or start your own thread!

Knowing how to perform CPR is one of those "musts" that you might not think of when you're dealing with a severe food allergy. Yes, it's unlikely that you'll ever need to use it. But in the event of an anaphylactic reaction or a severe asthma attack, you may need to assist a friend or family member before emergency services can reach you. Learning CPR techniques now and reviewing them periodically can mean they'll be second nature when you need them.

The American Heart Association's new guidelines for performing adult CPR are simpler than ever: no more rescue breathing. Take a few minutes to check out the brand-new revised guidelines for Hands-Only CPR for adults and review (or learn) how to provide Child CPR.

Happy Thursday! A few quick hits:

• Carol Cochran, the national School Nurse of the Year, wants to call attention to the issue of school nurse shortages in public schools nationwide. According to the article, only thirteen states met the recommended ratio of one nurse per 750 students in a public school setting. And as Cochran points out in the interview, leaving school nurses overworked may mean that kids with food allergies and asthma will only have access to nurses in emergency situations. Read the article, then share your thoughts: what's the situation in your kid's school?
• Epicurious, the web portal of Gourmet and Bon Appétit magazines, has posted an extensive guide to gluten-free baking, including decadent-looking recipes and a guide to a gluten-free pantry. Looking for a more general allergy cooking guide? Check out my new food allergy cooking primer.
• And last but certainly not least, thanks to Leslea Harmon of Allergyware for including me on the latest edition of the Allergy News Podcast. Leslea's blog and podcast are a terrific resource for parents living with food allergies, and it was a real pleasure to talk with her. Go check it out!

First of all, thanks to all of you who have responded to the "Your Family's Allergies" survey, below. I appreciate your help!

Country singer and FAAN spokesman Trace Adkins --- himself a food allergy father --- has made the final two of NBC's Celebrity Apprentice, to air Thursday evening. Should he win, $250,000 will be donated to the food allergy nonprofit. Adkins will also be donating proceeds from the single to be performed on the show to FAAN --- if you like it, it's a win-win!