• A whopping 6 million children suffer from food allergies (1 out of 13 kids!). 
• Nearly 40% of the food allergic children have severe reactions. 
• Their study showed top food allergies are to peanuts and milk  (25% have a Peanut Allergy and 21% have a Milk Allergy).  Other food allergies included Shellfish, Egg, Wheat and Soy. 
• Food allergy reactions often differ from environmental allergies.  Reactions can include trouble breathing or other life-theatening symptoms.
• Sensitivity can be caused by touch and does not always have to be through ingesting the food. 
• Scientists are studying causes of food allergies.  Some theories include additives in food causing sensitivity or even that we are too focused on cleanliness.  Without exposure to some healthy bacteria, our immune system can get out of whack and start fighting incorrect things like foods or particles in the environment.   

To watch this this informative video, click here:  Dr. Ruchi Gupta Discussing Food Alleriges 

Or watch for more information:   

Parents, if you have advice for handling food allergies in the classroom or at birthday parties, we’d love to hear your comments! 

The director of the Jaffe Food Allergy Institute at Mount Sinai, Hugh Sampson is a pediatric allergist/immunologist who has spent 30 years specializing in food allergies.

Who’s at risk

Childhood food allergy has been in the news lately, with a recent CDC study estimating that 1 in 13 American kids is affected.  ”Food allergy is an adverse reaction to a food brought about by an abnormal response of your immune system,” says Sampson. “As many as 6% to 8% of young kids may have food allergy, but most of them grow out of it by age 10.  In the general population of adults and kids, about 2.5% of Americans have a food allergy.  The most common childhood food allergies are to milk, eggs and peanuts, followed by tree nuts and soy.  ”Kids usually outgrow milk, egg and soy allergy, but the other allergies tend to persist to adulthood,” says Sampson. “Adults are most often allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish and fish.”  Doctors still don’t know exactly why some kids’ immune systems respond to food abnormally.   ”There appears to be a genetic predisposition because it does travel in families,” says Sampson.  ”A study of identical and nonidentical twins found that about 80% of heritability was due to genetics, which leaves the remaining 20% up to the environment – probably something to do with the Western lifestyle and the way our food is processed.”  Children with food allergies are also at increased risk of what doctors call atopic diseases – allergic rhinitis (aka, hay fever), asthma and eczema, an itchy skin rash.  ”We call it the ‘atopic march’ because kids with food allergy and eczema in early childhood tend to develop asthma and allergic rhinitis down the road,” says Sampson.

Signs and symptoms

The most common symptoms of food allergy manifest through the skin, gastrointestinal tract and respiratory system.  ”The classic reaction is an itching sensation of the mouth, swelling of the lips and tongue and tightness in the throat,” says Sampson.  ”There’s often an itchy red rash, like hives and some kids develop a runny nose, watery eyes and wheezing.”  Gastrointestinal symptoms, such as nausea, crampy abdominal pain and vomiting, frequently accompany other ðallergic symptoms.  If the allergic reaction is severe, it can cause a drop of blood pressure, hypotensive shock, loss of consciousness and even death. One thing that makes food allergy so hard to treat is that it’s impossible to predict how severe the next reaction will be.  ”You can have a mild reaction one time, like mild swelling in the tongue and mouth and then a very severe reaction the next time and go into shock,” says Sampson. “Typically, if a reaction involves more than the skin and upper respiratory tract, we consider that anaphylaxis, which is a severe reaction that threatens the whole body.”

Questions for your doctor
If you think your child has symptoms of food allergy, ask your pediatrician, “Can my child be tested?” Sampson warns that a blood test alone isn’t enough, so you may want to be referred to a specialist.  Another key question is, “When will my child outgrow this and how will I know?” Fortunately, most kids outgrow food allergy while they’re still in grade school.

For the full article, click here.

For a great guide on how to manage children’s allergies, please click here for a book by allergist, Dr. Paul Erlich et al.

So, these disgusting bugs thrive in pillows and mattresses and since you can’t easily wash a pillow or mattress all the time, I learned it is best to encase or trap the dust mites inside by using an allergy proof cover on the bed’s pillow, mattress and box spring. It is the most effective in reducing the exposure and the most cost-effective if you buy a good product. These products are usually either made of vinyl or a semi permeable fabric. But don’t worry, they don’t crinkle anymore like Grandma’s bed.

Now if I could only figure out a way to get them to keep their rooms clean!