Category Archives: Food Allergy

Nearly 1 in 12 U.S. Kids Has a Food Allergy

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A new study from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago found that nearly 1 in 12, or 8 percent, of American children have food allergies. Further, of those children with food allergies, 1 in 5 of them will suffer an allergic reaction severe enough to wind up in the hospital. As food allergies become more common, they need to be taken more seriously to prevent children from visiting the emergency room.

The most common allergies are to peanuts, milk, shellfish, tree nuts, egg, fish, wheat, soy and sesame, said lead researcher Dr. Ruchi Gupta. Peanut is the most common food allergy, affecting about 2 million children, followed by milk (1 million), shellfish (1 million), tree nuts (1 million), eggs (nearly 1 million), fish (less than a half million), wheat and soy (.4 million) and sesame (.15 million), she said.

https://www.webmd.com/allergies/news/20181119/nearly-1-in-12-us-kids-has-a-food-allergy#1

Five Tips to Make Traveling with a Food Allergy Easier

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As the holiday season quickly approaches, you might be thinking about making some travel plans. Maybe you’re thinking about traveling to a place that’s familiar, or want to catch some sight-seeing at a place far away.  Either way, it’s not always easy to travel and manage your food allergy, while enjoying local cuisine, but these 5 tips can make it a little easier for you.

  1. Carry a food allergy card in multiple languages

If you’re traveling somewhere where people may not share the same language as you it can be beneficial to carry a card that lists your food allergies in the language or languages spoken at your destination. Make sure that your cards clearly list which foods you can’t eat, rather than just stating what you’re allergic to.

  1. Order with extreme caution

According to Dr. Alyson Pidich, the medical director of the Ash Center, in New York City, and a food allergy specialist, you shouldn’t assume that what you’re eating is safe. Just because your trigger food isn’t listed on an ingredient list, doesn’t mean you should just assume that its fine. Certain foods and drinks, in particular, including sauces, salad dressings, soups and cocktails hide common allergens such as wheat, nuts, dairy and shellfish. It’s always better to be extra cautious.

  1. Bring your own food stash

It’s a smart idea to pack plenty of snacks and a few meal replacement options on your trip, if you can. There’s nothing worse than going hungry on your trip because you can’t find enough safe food to eat. Good options to pack are nonperishable foods like protein shakes, jerky, dried fruits, or nuts (if you aren’t allergic to nuts).

  1. Consider booking a hotel room or a Airbnb with a kitchen

Having access to a kitchen means you can prepare some meals for yourself. This also cuts down on the stress of not being able to find allergy-safe food to eat.

  1. Don’t forget your allergy medicine

Even if your food allergy isn’t severe, you shouldn’t leave home without your allergy medicine. Don’t assume you can buy what you need locally, depending on where you go. It’s better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it. You should also make sure to familiarize yourself with your destination’s rules and regulations about prescription (and nonprescription) medication, so you’ll make it through customs with your medicine.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/28/travel/five-tips-to-make-traveling-with-a-food-allergy-easier.html

5 Steps to Help Make Dining Out with Allergies Easier

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Dining out can be very difficult for individuals with food allergies. A new study found that the more steps you take to protect yourself from exposure, the less likely you are to have an allergic reaction.

The researchers asked 39 people with allergies (or their parents) about 25 behaviors people might do before eating out. Nineteen of those surveyed had experienced a food allergy reaction while dining at a restaurant. After examining the results, the researchers observed a few common strategies that people used to successfully avoid an allergic reaction while eating at a restaurant.

The top 5 strategies included:

  • Speaking to the waiter on arrival
  • Ordering food with simple ingredients
  • Double-checking food before eating
  • Avoiding restaurants with higher likelihood of contamination
  • Reviewing ingredients on a restaurant website

https://consumer.healthday.com/respiratory-and-allergy-information-2/food-allergy-news-16/dining-out-with-allergies-is-tough-but-these-steps-can-help-739703.html

New Concerns About Sesame Allergies

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Sesame could become the newest allergen added to the list of foods required to be named on labels, US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb announced Monday. There are currently eight major food allergens that must be declared on US labeling using their common names: milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat and soybeans. These eight foods have accounted for over 90% of documented serious food allergies in the country when the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act was passed in 2004, which requires the clear labeling of ingredients.  Now the FDA is launching a formal request for information as it considers making sesame the ninth on the list.

“Unfortunately, we’re beginning to see evidence that sesame allergies may be a growing concern in the US,” Gottlieb said. “A handful of studies, for example, suggest that the prevalence of sesame allergies in the US is more than 0.1 percent, on par with allergies to soy and fish.” Over 300,000 Americans are currently affected by sesame allergies.

Sesame reactions vary from person to person and can be caused by as little as one or two sesame seeds.  Symptoms may vary but can include hives, dizziness, itching, stomach pain, nausea/vomiting, wheezing and breathing problems.  In severe cases, there is a risk of anaphylaxis or even death.  The possibility of such severe reactions is why the FDA believes that the labeling requirements for sesame need to change.

Currently, there are no food labeling requirements for sesame.  The issue for consumers is that sesame could be in an ingredient list under a word like tahini or a generic term like ‘natural flavor’.  Even the most careful consumer would have difficulty spotting the allergen under current labeling requirements.

The FDA is asking for information, specifically from epidemiologists, nutritionists, allergy researchers and physicians, “so we can learn more about the prevalence and severity of sesame allergies in the US, as well as the prevalence of sesame-containing foods sold in this country. These include foods that, under current regulations, may not be required to disclose sesame as an ingredient.”  The FDA is accepting comments from October 30 – December 31, 2018.

7 Allergy-Free Halloween Candies

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One in every 13 children has a food allergy, so this Halloween consider passing out some allergy-free candy. The following treats are all free of the eight most common food allergens: milk, egg, peanut, tree nuts, soy, wheat, fish and shellfish.

  1. Sour Patch Kids
  2. Swedish Fish
  3. Dum Dum’s Lollipops
  4. Dum Dum’s Gummies
  5. Skittles
  6. Starbursts
  7. Lifesavers

 

Source: https://community.kidswithfoodallergies.org/blog/2018-allergy-friendly-halloween-candy-guide

Southwest Airlines Will Stop Serving Peanuts

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Starting August 1, Southwest Airlines will stop serving peanuts aboard their flights.  “To ensure the best on-board experience for everyone, especially for customers with peanut-related allergies, we’ve made the difficult decision to discontinue serving peanuts on all flights beginning Aug. 1”, the airline stated. The airline said it will continue to serve complementary pretzels and other snacks on longer routes, which it hopes “will please customers who might be nostalgic or sad to see peanuts go.” The Food and Drug Administration reports that severe allergic reactions to food are the cause of 150 deaths a year in the United States and 2,000 hospitalizations. Southwest is joining American and United Airlines to not serve peanuts on their flights.

 

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/07/09/southwest-airlines-is-getting-rid-of-peanuts.html

An App to Help Find Allergens in School Lunches

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Working for a company that treats food allergies, I’m always on the lookoutfor Facebook posts, allergy blogs, or practically anything related to allergies.

Nutrislice App

Today, I ran across a really cool app while reading my son’s school monthly newsletter.  Our school district has adopted the use of an app called Nutrislice.  I can digitally find the school menu for the month, and with a few clicks I’m able see a real picture of the food with a description, nutrition information, and allergen information.

For example, on Monday, my son will have the choice of a Classic Chicken Sandwich or a PB & Grape Jelly Uncrustable as a main item.  Good for him to be able to see the options, along with pictures.  Great for a mom who may be dealing with a child with food allergies.  I can tell that the chicken sandwich contains both wheat and soy, and the pb&j contains wheat, soy, and peanuts.  We can also see  the nutrition information for all of the sides, milk choices, and condiments.

For our family, this is a great tool to plan lunches for the week, and for my son to determine if school lunch really looks gross or not.  (OK- the turkey nachos don’t look appetizing, so I can’t blame him for not liking that choice!)

For food allergy families, this app could literally be a lifesaver!  Kudos to our school district for providing this app!

Research for alternative testing method for food allergies looks positive

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According to a new study published in the journal Scientific Reports, researchers have developed an alternate method to more accurately detect and identify the presence and severity of peanut allergies, without directly exposing patients to the allergen.

A team of chemical and biomolecular engineers at the University of Notre Dame designed nanoparticles, or “nanoallergens”, that mimic natural allergens by displaying each allergic component one at a time on their surfaces.  These nanoallergens are used to dissect the critical components of major peanut allergy proteins and evaluate the potency of the allergic response using the antibodies present in a blood sample from a patient.

Basar Bilgicer

“The goal of this study was to show how nanoallergen technology could be used to provide a clearer and more accurate assessment of the severity of an allergic condition,” said Basar Bilgicer, associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering and a member of the Advanced Diagnostics and Therapeutics initiative at Notre Dame.  The goal of this new testing procedure is to replace the oral food challenge; which requires a patient to ingest small amounts of the offending food to the point of intolerance or anaphylaxis; and skin prick testing, which may have false-positive test results.

“We are currently working with allergy specialist clinicians for further testing and verification of the diagnostic tool using a larger patient population. Ultimately, our vision is to take this technology and make it available to all people who suffer from food allergies.”

 

Source: Novel platform uses nanoparticles to detect peanut allergies

 

 

Food Allergy Awareness

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I read a great blog post a few days ago, written by a guest blogger for FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education).  The blog post was written to encourage others to participate in Fare’s Food Allergy Heroes Walk.  The take-home message for me was simple- Create Awareness.

My first profession was that of an elementary school teacher.  I was young and single, with no children of my own.  My ‘awareness’ of food allergies was very limited.  I knew of food allergies, I’d heard of people being allergic to peanuts, but had no real understanding what that meant for a child with food allergies or a parent with a food-allergic child.  Due to my inexperience, I didn’t have any understanding that being in contact with a peanut, or peanut butter, or a child who just ate a peanut butter sandwich for lunch could produce such disastrous outcomes- anaphylaxis, emergency rooms, feeling like nobody understands.  I didn’t ‘get it’ when parents and organizations had wars with the airline industry about banning peanuts as snacks.  I just thought, “Well, don’t eat the peanuts then.”  I didn’t understand that there are people so allergic to peanuts that by simply breathing in the cabin air on an airplane could make them sick, or that by touching a seat-back someone touched who had recently eaten peanuts and then wiping their eyes, nose, or mouth could have a severe allergic reaction.  I also was not aware that there were treatments for food allergies, such as allergy drops/sublingual immunotherapy.

Many years have gone by since I was a teacher, and I’m now a mother of three children, who thankfully do not have food allergies.  However, I have become more ‘aware’.  Aware of the needs of individuals with food allergies, aware of the needs of individuals as a whole- the need for sympathy and understanding from others, no matter what their ‘cause’ may be.

If you’re looking for a FARE walk, please follow the link to find a location near you.

http://fare.foodallergy.org/site/PageServer?pagename=heroes_walk_active_events