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As a parent of a 13 year old anaphylactic to peanuts this is my worst fear! Â And we fly a lot. Â You can’t trust what the crew says at all.
Peanut Allergy Forces Emergency Landing (Video)
Finally I can introduce my peanut allergic child to Thai food! Â This is completely peanut and tree nut free! Â I can’t wait to make this!
Allergy-Friendly Pad Thai | Allergic Living
Interesting article about a possible connection with food allergies to autism. Â Will read more about this later.
Disordered Mast Cells, and the Clues to Food Allergy | Allergic Living
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/sue-scheff/be-aware-the-dangers-of-f_b_3689585.html
This is terrifying to think about. Â My daughter could turn her back for one instant and someone could sneak something into her food or drink and next thing you know she’ll be in anaphylactic shock. Â We need to bring more awareness to this life-threatening food allergy so that teens are aware that their “prank” could result in a trip to the emergency room ~~ or worse.
This story hits so close to home because my own is 13 years old and is also anaphylactic to peanuts and tree nuts. Â This could have easily been my precious daughter. Â My heart goes out to this family.
CARMICHAEL, Calif. – It was supposed to be the last day of a family vacation at a popular summer camp, but it ended in tragedy for one Sacramento-area family when a loved one had a fatal allergic reaction.
Relatives says 13-year-old Natalie Giorgi died from a severe allergic reaction to peanut butter while she was attending Camp Sacramento off Highway 50 in El Dorado County.
Now, the family says it really wants to get the message out about how dangerous and deadly food allergies can be.
Giorgi was very careful about what she ate and always made sure her food did not have nuts, according to family and friends.
But she had unknowingly eaten a Rice Krispies-type snack made with peanut butter.
On Friday night, the final night of camp, there was entertainment and refreshments. A dessert tray was put out in a dark area of the camp.
Giorgi reached for a treat and took a bite out of it. She knew something wasn’t right, spit it out and told her mother, who also tasted the treat.
They later realized it contained peanut butter. Natalie felt fine for about 20 minutes, but then began vomiting, had trouble breathing and went into cardiac arrest.
3 epinephrine pens were used but they could not help save the girl, according a family friend.
Giorgi was taken to the hospital by ambulance where she was pronounced dead.
Family and friends are coming to terms with Giorgi’s sudden death.
“She took every care. She knew the situation, that’s (connected to) the allergy she had. And they were really on it all the time,” said Pastor Michael Kiernan of Our Lady of the Assumption Church in Carmichael.
A special vigil was held at the church for Giorgi Sunday evening.
Some say they’ll remember her smile and laughter. Others will remember how much she loved to draw and how much she loved her friends.
Her family said Giorgi wanted to become a neonatologist, to care for premature babies like her and her twin sister.
Meanwhile, family members extended their gratitude to the paramedics, firefighters and everyone who tried to help save Natalie.
They offered the following written statement:
“While our hearts are breaking over the tragic loss of our beautiful daughter Natalie, it is our hope that others can learn from this and realize that nut and food allergies are life threatening. Caution and care for those inflicted should always be supported and taken.”
An allergist said food allergies and nut allergies have tripled in the past decade. He says more people need to understand the dangers of food allergies and that they can sometimes be fatal.
By Suzanne Phan, sphan@news10.net
Drs. Oz and Roizen: What you can do about food allergies
Food allergies are skyrocketing in North America and around the world. Rates in children and teens have gone up 50 percent in the past 15 years, to 1 in 20, one new report says. And today’s numbers could be even higher: A recent survey of 38,000 parents found that 1 in 13 kids have had mild to life-threatening reactions to everyday foods like milk, eggs, nuts, wheat and shellfish. And 30 percent of food-allergic kids have reactions to more than one food.
Scientists are racing to pin down the causes of this puzzling outbreak. Leading the list are the usual suspects: emulsifiers and additives used in processed foods, such as peanut butters that are made with more than just peanuts, lunch meats, margarine, mayonnaise, sauces, candy and bakery products. Interesting fact: Emulsifiers seem to make a protein (like peanuts) appear foreign, so the immune system attacks it. In China, where peanuts are boiled and peanut butter is made only with peanuts, the allergy is rare; when the nuts are fried or cooked in non-peanut oils and emulsifiers are added for quick spreading, the allergy pops up.
But another possible trigger is our too-clean environment; it makes our immune system overeager for work, so it turns on us and creates autoimmune diseases and allergies.
Here are five smart ways to prevent and deal with food allergies.
No. 1. Keep up with the latest info about allergy-causing foods. You can ban eggs, nuts, shellfish, wheat and soy from your home, but these foods are lurking in restaurant foods. Watch out for emulsifiers in mass-produced salad dressings and sauces, and for sulfites in seemingly safe packaged foods like trail mix or dried fruit. Get the inside info by connecting with groups like Food Allergy Research & Education at www.foodallergy.org. You can sign up for email alerts.
No. 2: Turn off “allergy genes.” Cutting-edge thinking says something in the environment is switching genes on and off in ways that set the stage for allergies. Early evidence points to tobacco smoke, polluted air and fast food. The gene changes may even be passed down through several generations. Meanwhile, pregnant moms can help fortify their newborns against allergies by eating a healthy diet, and after birth, by breastfeeding their baby as long as possible.
No. 3: Take kids with food reactions to an allergist. Fewer than 25 percent of kids who end up in hospital emergency rooms are told to see an allergist, but that should be your next move. This specialist can determine which foods likely caused the allergic response and make sure you’re equipped with emergency medication that stops life-threatening reactions.
No. 4: Outfit kids (and yourself) with TWO EpiPens. Experts suggest that kids with food allergies carry two EpiPens, self-injectable epinephrine that stops severe reactions. One in eight kids who go to the ER with a bad reaction need a second shot, yet many leave the ER without a prescription. Talk with your doctor about getting the doses you need, and about when to replace EpiPens. Not all states allow or require schools to stock these life-saving devices — though more are considering this smart move. So make sure your kid’s classroom and school nurse have a supply of several pens (check their expiration dates).
No. 2: Turn off “allergy genes.” Cutting-edge thinking says something in the environment is switching genes on and off in ways that set the stage for allergies. Early evidence points to tobacco smoke, polluted air and fast food. The gene changes may even be passed down through several generations. Meanwhile, pregnant moms can help fortify their newborns against allergies by eating a healthy diet, and after birth, by breastfeeding their baby as long as possible.
No. 3: Take kids with food reactions to an allergist. Fewer than 25 percent of kids who end up in hospital emergency rooms are told to see an allergist, but that should be your next move. This specialist can determine which foods likely caused the allergic response and make sure you’re equipped with emergency medication that stops life-threatening reactions.
No. 4: Outfit kids (and yourself) with TWO EpiPens. Experts suggest that kids with food allergies carry two EpiPens, self-injectable epinephrine that stops severe reactions. One in eight kids who go to the ER with a bad reaction need a second shot, yet many leave the ER without a prescription. Talk with your doctor about getting the doses you need, and about when to replace EpiPens. Not all states allow or require schools to stock these life-saving devices — though more are considering this smart move. So make sure your kid’s classroom and school nurse have a supply of several pens (check their expiration dates).
No. 5: Talk with your pediatrician about introducing allergenic foods. Until recently, conventional wisdom said delaying “trouble foods,” such as peanuts, protected babies from developing allergies. But in 2013, an American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology committee suggested that early exposure actually might train a young immune system to react properly. Some experts even suspect that lowered exposure to common food allergens like peanuts and wheat could help explain the rise in food allergies.
WARNING:Â This advice is not for babies and young children who have already reacted negatively to a food, have a related allergic condition like eczema or atopic dermatitis or a sibling with a food allergy. Remember to talk this over with your doc before trying.
WARNING:Â This advice is not for babies and young children who have already reacted negatively to a food, have a related allergic condition like eczema or atopic dermatitis or a sibling with a food allergy. Remember to talk this over with your doc before trying.
Q. I’ve read differing views on whether it would be safe for a nut-allergic person to eat baked goods with coconut or coconut oil. What’s your view on coconut?
Dr. Scott Sicherer: Despite its name, coconut is not actually a nut, but a fruit. Regardless, the Food and Drug Administration considers it a tree nut, which is why it’s included in U.S. labeling laws.
It is difficult to assess the risk of coconut allergy among those with tree-nut allergies because allergic individuals may become wary of coconut and avoid it. Still, coconut allergy appears rare, and uncommon even among those with tree-nut allergies.
In a national registry of 5,149 people with peanut or tree-nut allergies, only four self-reported an allergy to coconut. And a more recent study of 40 children with positive tests or known allergy to peanuts or tree nuts showed no increased risks for having positive tests or allergy to coconut.
Your allergist would consider your personal allergy history in deciding whether to add coconut to your diet or to perform any testing. However, be aware that tests are often positive to coconut in people who could actually tolerate it, so a physician-supervised feeding test may be necessary for a conclusive answer.
When it comes to coconut oil, there is almost no medical literature on allergic reactions to it, which may reflect the likelihood that the processed forms of coconut oil contain little or no protein, although this has not been studied. Still, for those with verified coconut allergy, avoidance of coconut oil should be considered because it may have residual protein.
Finally, it’s important to note that people with peanut or tree-nut allergies who choose to eat coconut must be diligent to avoid cross-contact with avoided tree nuts or peanut.
Dr. Scott Sicherer is Chief of the Division of Allergy and Immunology of the Jaffe Food Allergy Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York. Together with Dr. Hemant Sharma, he writes “The Food Allergy Experts†column in the American Edition ofAllergic Living magazine. Questions submitted below will be considered for answer in the magazine.
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