Food Allergies Take a Toll on Families and Finances

Just read an article in the NY Times that talks about food allergies and how it affects families. I can relate! I've never added up all of the extra money we spend on organic and specialty foods, Rowan's formula (EleCare), epi-pens, asthma inhalers, doctors visits, and trips to urgent care...but I know we spend a lot. And these are things we have to do. It's not a lifestyle choice. And while I wouldn't wish this on anyone, it's nice to know that there are other families out there dealing with these stresses.

Peanut allergies aren't the only ones that are life-threatening

Saw this post on The Food Allergy Mama. Like our girls, her son has a life threatening allergy to dairy, along with peanuts. How nice that her son's classroom celebrates birthdays in a food-free manner, and precautions are being taken to make his environment as safe as possible.

Severe food allergies are extremely stressful. I can't say this enough. I constantly have to be on guard, and there are so many challenging situations that make my heart race. Having a safe classroom would be such a relief. Rylie will be in kindergarten in the fall, and thankfully they don't have snacks. Elementary school will be a whole different story...with lunches, snacks and treats. How does your child's school handle food allergies?

Bring on the peas!

My friend Sarah found this awesome food face dinner plate at perpetual kid. It cracks me up!

Everybody remembers Dapper Dan The Magnetic Man - that bald little fellow with all the iron filings that you could drag into really bad hairdos!

Well we've given Dan a new home on our Food Face Dinner Plate, made from hotel-quality, food-safe, high-fire ceramics. So now you can play with your food and give Dan a whole new look. Bring on the mashed potatoes and peas... the possibilities are endless!

Boxed with lots of inspirational food art. Wouldn't YOU have loved this when you were a kid? Plate measures 8.5 inches in diameter. Ceramic.

One plate is $11.99

Cincinnati Reds respond to peanut-free request

The Reds responded to my inquiry regarding a peanut-free (or peanut-controlled) section during one of their games. They basically said no...but they did send the girls a really cool package! They were so excited when it came in the mail. It contained kid-sized Reds Snuggies, baseball cards, book covers, magnets, and stuffed monkeys with Reds and Chiquita banana logos. I really appreciated that they took the time to send us something.

Here is the response I received:

Ms. H,
As you already know, we do not have a peanut free zone at Great American Ball Park. We have previously looked into this idea, but even if we are able to create a peanut free suite, we cannot guarantee a peanut free path to the suite, nor could we guarantee that our ventilation system was free of any peanut dust. The same issues would arise if we established a seating area as peanut free. Even if we could guarantee a path into the ballpark, we could not keep a breeze from off the river from blowing peanut dust into the established peanut free zone. I know other teams have established “Peanut Free” areas, but in talking with some of these teams, I would consider them “peanut sensitive” areas. I would consider the Padres a “peanut sensitive” area.

It is unfortunate we are unable to accommodate those with a peanut allergy. I know that this can be a very sensitive allergy for many and we do not want to put anyone in harms way. If we do decide we are able to offer a peanut free or peanut sensitive zone in the future, I will keep your information on file and will be sure to contact you directly. I can assure you that you are not alone. If you could let me know your address, I would like to send your child a care package to keep him a Reds fan until we can find a solution to our peanut allergy dilemma.

Thanks,
Sean Brown - Director of Ballpark Operations

Sean and I have continued to exchange emails about this, and I hope we can eventually come up with a 'peanut-controlled' area for one or two games.

Peanut-Free Baseball

It's opening day here in Cincinnati! Our kids are 5 and 2 and still haven't been to a Reds game. Both girls are severely allergic to peanuts, and we'd have to wipe down the seats and worry about them touching or stepping on peanuts and peanut shells. Their skin would react to the residue, so we wouldn't want to drag it home on our shoes. Rowan is still at the age where she'll pick food up from the ground and put it in her mouth, and most games have been past their bedtimes anyway. At this point it's just not worth the stress.

I think it's really exciting that more and more Major League teams are starting to offer peanut-free sections on certain nights. The San Diego Padres are offering 1 game, the St. Louis Cardinals are offering 3 games, the Seattle Mariners are offering 4 games, and the Red Sox have 2 games. For more info, visit peanutfreebaseball.com

To prepare for the event, the Padres will power wash the seating section, have trained emergency responders aware of the sections needs, remove peanut items from the vendors in the immediate concourse area above the section, post "No Peanut Zone" signs around the section, and staff the section with ushers to help insure compliance.

As far as I know, the Cincinnati Reds do not offer peanut-free sections for games. I contacted them today to see how we could make this happen. I would love to take our girls to a game without worrying about a reaction! I'll post more info here if we actually work something out.

Peanut Allergy Makes Asthma Worse

If your child has a peanut allergy in addition to asthma, it’s likely that their asthma attacks are worse, according to a new study.

In a study of 160 children between the ages of 5 and 18, children with peanut allergies had both more hospitalizations for asthma and a higher rate of corticosteroid usage.

However, when treating children with asthma, most doctors want to avoid both hospitalization and corticosteroid use. Corticosteroids can have side effects that are detrimental to growing bodies.

The lead researcher on the study, Dr Alyson Simpson, recommends that parents with children who have both peanut allergies and asthma work carefully with their child’s doctors to ensure that asthma is well-controlled. This will mean careful avoidance of asthma triggers as well as allergy triggers.

Source: Reuters

Will Peanut Allergies Soon Be Treatable?

Two studies presented at the 2010 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI) examine the use of oral immunotherapy in peanut allergic children and continue to add hope that a treatment may be on the horizon. See the news release here. This gives me some hope for my girls - even if we can just eliminate one allergy.