peanut

Landon (1 years old)

October 17, 2022 / , , ,

I learned about my son’s food allergies when he was only 6 months old. What was supposed to be a fun milestone (baby’s first food!) turned into a very scary situation, where he had an anaphylactic reaction to pureed peas. After he saw an allergist, they ran some blood work and he tested positive to eggs, peas, peanuts, and a handful of tree nuts. Since then, while slowly introducing new foods, we have unfortunately discovered more allergens.

We used FARE. Also a lot of blogs from other food allergy moms, Facebook groups, and social media.

Daveigh Bea (1 year old)

October 14, 2022 / , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

When we first started introducing solids to little miss we noticed small hives and redness with eggs and milk products as well as an increase in her eczema. At first we did not think much about it and I kept exposing her to milk and eggs thinking she would get use to it but instead she kept getting redness, hives and runny noses. All this would improve with a bath and dose of zyrtec. I had bought some peanut butter banana food pouches and we had given them to her with what I thought was no reactions but one afternoon I came home to my husband freaking out and showed me the baby and she was covered head to toe in welts and hives, he told me all he gave her was the banana peanut butter about 10 minutes prior. She then proceeded to vomit multiple times, now at this point I am still not educated on food allergies or reactions but knew something was wrong so we took her to urgent care by the time we got there the benedryl had kicked in and she was doing better so urgent care pretty much dismissed us. Looking back I realized that she had been having small delayed reactions to peanut butter as she had been vomiting randomly but each time I had given her peanut butter I just did not correlate the two. Currently I am waiting to get into see an allergist as I have had to educate and advocate for ourselves. Our pediatrician did the blood allergy test and gave us an EpiPen and said she was too young for an allergist. Right now her allergies are peanut, eggs, dairy, wheat, oats and peas. We have excluded those foods and have had no reactions and her eczema is gone. We are hoping to try some food challenges once speaking to an allergist. She is now 15 months old still breastfeeding and we have found many safe foods and she is happy and thriving!

I found the websites FARE, The Food Allergy Counselor, and joined some food allergy groups on Facebook. I took it up on myself to learn about food allergies and symptoms of anaphylaxis. I am a mental health therapist and realized I was having increased anxiety around feeding her which let me to the Food Allergy Counselor social media and website where I educated myself on how to help others parents with the same anxious feelings I was having. I educated myself enough to become one of the therapist on their directory for my state I knew if I as a therapist was having these anxious thoughts and feelings there had to be more parents out there that may need an allergy informed therapist!

Abby (18+ years old)

October 13, 2022 / , , , , , , , , , , ,

There were many food allergies and they progressed over time. It began with just peanuts (discovered at 2 years of age after eating peanut butter cup) and soybeans (discovered after consuming veggie burger).
Later on, around 7 years of age, pistachios, cashews,(age 17) pomegranate, (age 10) cantaloupe (13), mangos,(13) mushrooms(18) and paprika (20).
None of these food allergies were overcome, but the allergic reaction was controlled after either a combination of Benadryl and water, or in other extreme cases Epinephrine from an Epipen and Benadryl at the ER.
When the item was cooked and became airborne, difficulty breathing and throat closing happened. Upon consumption of the allergy, throat closing, nausea, and vomiting happened.

No websites were used, just trial and error upon consumption as well as healthcare professional mother who recognized the signs of severe allergies.

@peanotforme – 18+ years old

October 5, 2022 / , , , , , , ,

When I was ~1.5 years old, my mom gave me a slice of toast with a thin layer of peanut butter. My whole face turned red immediately and I was given antihistamines. It took hours for the redness to dissipate! We visited my pediatrician and allergist to have me tested. I had huge topical reactions to each nut on the skin prick test. With every reaction to peanuts / tree nuts I have had since then, my allergy became more sensitive and severe to the point where I can’t even be in the same room as nuts without reacting. I cannot eat anything made in a facility or on the same equipment as nuts because I risk anaphylaxis. 

I have never been able to overcome my allergy and was instructed by multiple allergists to not pursue oral immunotherapy (OIT) since it was too risky. But, I like to look on the bright side of living with a severe food allergy! I’ve gained great life skills such as awareness of my surroundings, attention to detail, and compassion. And… as someone with a sweet tooth… it’s a good reason to not eat every piece of candy / baked good in sight!

Growing up, I was the only child in my class with a severe food allergy. The awareness for severe food allergies was not very widespread and protocols were not really developed. My mom referred to my doctors’ advice and saw forums online regarding other parent’s advice on having a child with nut allergies. 

I have suffered a myriad of reactions from itchy throat / redness all the way to an almost deadly anaphylaxis event. As scary as each reaction is, you learn more about your allergy and develop a routine regarding medication. Recently, I redid a skin prick and blood test to specify which nuts I am allergic to now. It has helped me to quantify and understand my allergy more—though I will still be staying FAR away from nuts.

 Cameron (10 years old)

October 5, 2022 / , , , , , , , , ,

Our son was 13 months when he was diagnosed with his first allergy. I fed him mashed peas and he started coughing, then choking a bit and developing hives. His coughing was persistent and he started vomiting as well. It was really scary and I remember feeling helpless. I called 911 and was alone at the time. Before that incident, our son had vomited regularly after eating some foods and we attributed it to reflux. He also had terrible eczema and we just thought he had overly sensitive skin. After an upper GI and swallow study, a few different medications and other specialists evaluating his immunology responses, we finally looked at food allergies as a test. It felt like the most non-linear maze until we got to the pea reaction…and then we followed up with blood work and a skin scratch test. The tests confirmed that our son was anaphylactic to peanuts, most tree nuts, eggs, most legumes (including peas), mustard, sesame and soy protein. He is currently 10.5 years old as of 2022 and has not outgrown any of his food allergens yet.

Once diagnosed, we found FARE, Kids with Food Allergies and FAACT to be the most informative and helpful for creating allergy plans, what to include in an allergy bag and how to understand the basics (reading labels, understanding and preventing cross-contact, and understanding emergency signs and symptoms of a reaction). For every day living, I found several blogs with tips and tricks, recipes and people steps ahead on the journey who could detail tools for navigating this forward-facing health condition! Each meal requires careful planning and we had to reorient our thinking to anchor our plans in safety while also having fun. I was also finding that the Facebook groups brought together families out of trauma (after reactions) and fears (of future reactions) and as a caregiver I didn’t want to raise my kids with extra anxiety. I ended up creating Feedyourcan.com (when some foods you just can’t) as an empowering way to use the struggle as the teacher to help our kids build lasting life skills that will serve them well in food AND non-food challenging situations.

Emily (@allergyandwe – 18+ years old)

August 24, 2022 / , , , , , , , , , ,

I was born with extreme eczema especially in the face. After getting breast milk I always reacted. My parents took me immediately to our doc and special allergist. They figured out during my first weeks and months that I have many allergies. I did overcome a lot while growing up. Now I’m still allergic to peanut, egg, soy, peas, lentils, beans and kiwi. I’m also lactose and histamine intolerant but I manage to have it on a normal basis in discussion with my natural practitioner.

My parents mostly reached out to the best docs and allergists in Germany. Since two years I go to a natural practitioner who works on a scientific basis and starts with the roots (gut health and immune system). I really do recommend looking for one working scientifically and visiting on a regular basis.

@ollie.eats.food (1 year old)

October 5, 2022 / , , ,

We first realized Ollie had an allergy when he reacted to a new formula. Large white welts spread across his face wherever it had touched his skin. After a hospital trip, blood tests and skin prick tests, we found out he had Cows Milk Protein Allergy along with peanut and egg allergy. We avoid all of these foods and he’s thriving and happy. I found the Instagram allergy community so helpful and supportive. We follow lots of fellow parents/children who also suffer allergies. They’re always full of great tips and meal inspiration.

@theallergyteen – 14 years old

August 11, 2021 / , , , , , , , ,

My sister had a dairy allergy, so I was invited to the LEAP food allergy study – this is where I was diagnosed with a dairy, egg, peanut, and sesame allergy. When I was younger, allergies were very much in the dark ages and eating out or buying allergy safe alternatives were simply not options! Because of this my mum (@lucysfriendlyfoods) decided to start baking and creating allergy friendly recipes. This really transformed my life and made me feel as though I was ‘normal’ and the same as all of my friends, who also enjoyed these baked goodies, and even said they were better then dairy and egg containing bakes!

Medications Taken: salbutamol (inhaler) for asthma and i carry antihistamine and epipens around as a precaution

@theallergybadge – 6 years old

August 11, 2021 / , , , , , ,

As a baby Ella was very unhappy. Always crying, covered in eczema and her face would swell. She then went on to have an anaphylactic reaction to dairy at the age of 1. This was a very frightening experience. She now carries Epipens for dairy and peanut allergies and although it’s sometimes tough checking everything she eats, she is a very happy little girl.

Medication taken : She carries Epipens. Also, she has asthma so she uses inhalers daily.

@theallergymumdiaries – 3 years old

July 31, 2021 / , ,

Florence started reacted to egg when weaned onto solids at 6 months, it all spiraled out of control from there and she is allergic to peanuts and most tree nuts.

Joseph when he was born he wouldn’t feed or grow. He was diagnosed at 3 weeks with CMPA and at a year we discovered he was allergic to soy. He has failed milk and soy ladders several time.

Medicine: Citirizine

Resources Recommended: Allergy UK, Anaphylaxis campaign