If you have a child with a food allergy do you keep that food around for other kids?

[pinkmint]

My 7 yo has a peanut allergy. Not life threatening that we know of, but still hives and itchiness if he touches it.

 

My 6 yo dd is skinny and picky and has even caused pediatrician some concern with her small size. Peanut butter is probably the healthiest thing she's normally willing to eat. And she has no problems with it.

 

We do keep it around but take extra precautions with it so as not to have her brother come into contact with it. But I worry sometimes that one day DS could develop a worse reaction to peanut.

 

We do have an epi pen. And now the 2 yo is reacting to cashew and others in the house like those so same thing. I'm just wondering what others with food allergy kids do.

[Catalytic]

If I have to have an epi pen for an allergy, then no, it wouldn't be in my house.  My Epi kid is due to shellfish, DH and another kid LOVE shellfish.  Epi kid can't be around it in a restaurant, either.  So, the only time shrimp comes "into" our home is on days it's able to be eaten immediately, outside, and it's already cooked.  It does not stay in the house long term and it's never around where Epi kid can be affected.  Trash from it is triple bagged since trash is the Epi kid's chore, but we put the shellfish trash into the outside trash can, never dispose of it in the house.

 

Should Epi kid's peanut allergy become worse, then nuts will not be in our house, either.  BUT...his allergist told us to keep feeding him nuts to prevent the allergy from getting worse...so you might talk to your son's allergist about his/her thoughts on that.  His shellfish allergy became much worse with each exposure, but the peanut and other allergies have seemed to stay steady on the blood tests.  We don't limit anything on his expansive food allergy list except shellfish.  (His 2nd worst reaction is to corn)

Edited September 11, 2016 by Catalytic

[Daria]

I know of 2 serious allergic reactions that have happened due to siblings and nuts, which would make me very nervous about having it in the house. 

 

One was a student in my son's daycare class who came to school with a sandwich with brown stuff in it.  She showed it to her teacher and said "I don't think I'm allowed to send it."  The teacher replied "If your mom sent it, it must be soy nut butter or something like that."  So, the child bit the sandwich and her face starts to swell.  Turned out mom had packed lunch boxes for her and her sister, and dad had mixed them up.  

 

The other the little brother of one of my students.  The two boys were playing in their "nut free home" when the older kid started screaming that something is wrong.  Mom came running and found little brother unconscious, and no sign of food anywhere.  She epi penned him, which worked a little, and called an ambulance. At the hospital they rolled up his shirt sleeve to put in an IV and there are teeth marks on his arm.  Older brother had eaten a nut containing cookie on a playdate hours earlier and then, in a moment of frustration, bitten his brother through his clothes, which was still enough to cause the life threatening reaction. 

[Janeway]

I am allergic to pork, but I would never expect anyone to not eat pork because I am allergic. I think it is best to not restrict the entire family's diet over one person's restrictions. Just imagine how far that would go...child #1 is allergic to pork so no one can have pork, child #2 has lazy eye so cannot see 3D movies so no one is allowed to see 3d movies, child #3 sprained her ankle so now no one is allowed to run and play, child #4 is allergic to tomatoes.....and now..one of the kids has grown up and gotten married to someone with an allergy, etc etc etc. Oh, and then a parent goes on a diet and now everyone is eating that diet, and so on. I had a parent who would always diet and then announce to all of us "we are all going on a diet now" even though she was the only overweight one. I was actually underweight.

 

Plus, I have read many times that withholding something will cause someone to eventually develop an intolerance to it.  I do not think it sets up healthy expectations when an entire family abstains over one person's allergy. If there were a life threatening allergy, my view might be different, but otherwise, no, I would not restrict. 

Edited September 10, 2016 by Janeway

[Daria]

I am allergic to pork, but I would never expect anyone to not eat pork because I am allergic. I think it is best to not restrict the entire family's diet over one person's restrictions. Just imagine how far that would go...child #1 is allergic to pork so no one can have pork, child #2 has lazy eye so cannot see 3D movies so no one is allowed to see 3d movies, child #3 sprained her ankle so now no one is allowed to run and play, child #4 is allergic to tomatoes.....and now..one of the kids has grown up and gotten married to someone with an allergy, etc etc etc. Oh, and then a parent goes on a diet and now everyone is eating that diet, and so on. I had a parent who would always diet and then announce to all of us "we are all going on a diet now" even though she was the only overweight one. I was actually underweight.

 

Plus, I have read many times that withholding something will cause someone to eventually develop an intolerance to it.  I do not think it sets up healthy expectations when an entire family abstains over one person's allergy. If there were a life threatening allergy, my view might be different, but otherwise, no, I would not restrict. 

 

I don't follow your logic at all.  Keeping a young child safe by restricting allergens from the home is nothing like avoiding 3D movies because another child doesn't get as much out of them, or restricting one's diet in solidarity to an adult in law.  

[KungFuPanda]

I do (keep allergens in the house), but my daughter is only mildly reactive to raw tomatoes and kiwis. She's also allergic to grass. If we were dealing with epi pens and nut allergies I wouldn't take the risk. Have you tried sun butter? I'd steer the picky eater to, well, ALL of the other foods in the world. I also ask if your skinny Minnie is healthy. My daughter didn't hit 30 pounds until she was six. She ate like a bird but was healthy and energetic. She just ended up being a small adult. At 19 she's only 5'2" and still hasn't hit 100lbs.

 

Unless your doctor can give you a reason aside from her weight to be concerned, I wouldn't let an imagined health problem create a risk for your kid with a real, serious problem.

Edited September 10, 2016 by KungFuPanda

[Julie Smith]

I am allergic to pork, but I would never expect anyone to not eat pork because I am allergic. I think it is best to not restrict the entire family's diet over one person's restrictions. Just imagine how far that would go...child #1 is allergic to pork so no one can have pork, child #2 has lazy eye so cannot see 3D movies so no one is allowed to see 3d movies, child #3 sprained her ankle so now no one is allowed to run and play, child #4 is allergic to tomatoes.....and now..one of the kids has grown up and gotten married to someone with an allergy, etc etc etc. Oh, and then a parent goes on a diet and now everyone is eating that diet, and so on. I had a parent who would always diet and then announce to all of us "we are all going on a diet now" even though she was the only overweight one. I was actually underweight.

 

Plus, I have read many times that withholding something will cause someone to eventually develop an intolerance to it.  I do not think it sets up healthy expectations when an entire family abstains over one person's allergy. If there were a life threatening allergy, my view might be different, but otherwise, no, I would not restrict. 

 

To me the difference between child #1 and 4, and child #2 and 3 is that in the first case an accident or mistake with pork or tomatoes could put someone in hospital. A accident or mistake with 3D movie or running and playing does not require an epi pen, a trip to the hospital, and possibly death. 

 

Dh is the only one in the house who eats meat. We do keep it in the house and he cooks with it, I even sometime cook him meat things. The difference is if the kids and I eat meat we would need to eat a bunch before feeling sick - and we would never need a hospital trip over it.

 

If anyone had a severe allergy to something it would not be in the house. A child deserves to have a safe place. One where they can let their guard down. The few times we have had a person with a serious allergy come to spend the night we tidy, wipe things down, ... and then put all the allergy things away in a cupboard or spot out of the way.  I don't want to ever know I accidentally hospitalized or killed someone because of my chocolate bar in the fridge. 

 

I would worry about any type of food allergy because they can change from not quite life threatening to life threatening without you knowing. What my allergic to chocolate friend would do is whenever she had a business trip out of town the kids would pig out on all the chocolaty food then brush, change, shower ... before mom came home. Just because something isn't in the house doesn't mean you have to abstain from it. 

[Catalytic]

I am allergic to pork, but I would never expect anyone to not eat pork because I am allergic. I think it is best to not restrict the entire family's diet over one person's restrictions. Just imagine how far that would go...child #1 is allergic to pork so no one can have pork, child #2 has lazy eye so cannot see 3D movies so no one is allowed to see 3d movies, child #3 sprained her ankle so now no one is allowed to run and play, child #4 is allergic to tomatoes.....and now..one of the kids has grown up and gotten married to someone with an allergy, etc etc etc. Oh, and then a parent goes on a diet and now everyone is eating that diet, and so on. I had a parent who would always diet and then announce to all of us "we are all going on a diet now" even though she was the only overweight one. I was actually underweight.

 

Plus, I have read many times that withholding something will cause someone to eventually develop an intolerance to it.  I do not think it sets up healthy expectations when an entire family abstains over one person's allergy. If there were a life threatening allergy, my view might be different, but otherwise, no, I would not restrict. 

 

Does the scent of pork trigger an anaphylactic reaction in you?  If not, you're probably not even coming from the same place the rest of us are about this.  There are lots of food allergies in my house, I am allergic to tomatoes, chocolate, dairy, and my son is allergic to shellfish (shrimp and lobster, he isn't allergic to crab, go figure), wheat, rye, corn, soy, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, and I can't even remember what else.  We keep all of the allergens in the house, except the shellfish, because they aren't life threatening.  Shellfish, however, trigger anaphylaxis....why on Earth would I keep something in my home that the scent of it could kill my child????

[Spryte]

No.

 

Our allergist said, and I agree, that all children need at least one safe space. Our home is our safe space. If the allergy is severe enough to warrant an epipen, we do not keep the allergen in our home.

 

Peanut allergy can worsen quickly, it's one of the leading causes of food allergy deaths. Past reactions do not predict severity of future reactions. I tried to tell my cousin that, over and over, and felt like such a jerk because her kid only ever had eczema as a reaction. Until the day she had anaphylaxis and almost died. So, yeh, even those "mild" allergies aren't anything to sneeze at.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Absolutely not.  I would get sunbutter (made of sunflower seeds) instead. 

Edited September 10, 2016 by Jean in Newcastle

[Spryte]

Adding that we have other allergies in our home. We don't treat all of them this seriously. But the ones with potential for anaphylactic reactions - we are dead serious about keeping those out of the home.

[pinkmint]

My peanut allergic child eats almond butter almost every day. We tried sunbutter and did not care for it at all.

 

Would you all not have almond butter around? I will do what I have to do but not having almond butter would make things difficult for what seems like no apparent reason.

 

That said I'm willing to ban peanuts. The peanuts in particular are the most serious concern. He reacts very clearly to them and they've shown positive for significant allergy on a blood test as well.

 

As far as DD, I personally am not worried about her smallness. She is healthy and if she can't have peanuts it's going to be an adjustment but I'll keep giving her chances to eat lots of other foods like I always do.

[Catalytic]

So you have 2 kids with allergies, 7 yo is allergic to peanuts, but not anaphylactic and 2yo is allergic to cashews (and probably almonds by extension, since tree nuts tend to travel as a group allergen).  Who is the EpiPen prescribed for?  What is 2yo's reaction to cashews?

[Spryte]

If no one is anaphylactic to almonds, I'd keep those around.

[pinkmint]

So you have 2 kids with allergies, 7 yo is allergic to peanuts, but not anaphylactic and 2yo is allergic to cashews (and probably almonds by extension, since tree nuts tend to travel as a group allergen). Who is the EpiPen prescribed for? What is 2yo's reaction to cashews?

Yes 7 yo is allergic to peanuts but not anaphylactic that we know of (considering he avoids peanuts pretty successfully). The allergy clinic gave him an epi pen and I forget exactly what they said honestly.

 

He has like 20 different inhaled allergies (grasses, molds, animals etc) and between that and the blood test that confirmed the peanut allergy and having my toddler thrashing around the dr room my head was kind of spinning when they were talking to me, so I just keep an epi pen in my purse and at home just in case he shows severe reaction to anything.

 

The 2 year old we are currently figuring out. His skin test did not show cashew allergy but he found one in our home and got hives. He also got itchy eyes when he had a bite of a protein bar with cashew in it... this just happened today actually that's why I'm thinking over all this.

 

Thankfully my kids' medicaid covers the allergy clinic visits and even immunotherapy shots which 2 out of 3 kids are currently getting.

[wapiti]

When my ds was young, we had a peanut free house. We had sunbutter for the other kids. (As it turned out, peanut allergy kid is also allergic to sunflower and sesame and all tree nuts. Anyway, no sunbutter for him.) In recent years, we now have PB in the house again. Ds13 knows where it is, what it might be on, what few other nut products we have, etc. He passed an inhalation challenge at the allergist office. He is well trained to keep an eye out for his allergens. But at 7, I would not do it.

[Guest]

Well, we did when I was growing up.  We were just super careful.  I was scary-allergic to eggs and nuts, but the rest of my family ate both.  However, mom never did anything that made it airborne (like cooking with peanut oil--and that is good, because that *has* been a problem for me). 

 

I'm still scary-allergic to peanut butter (among other things) but my dh eats it all the time.  If he leaves the lid off, though, ewww....I can't stand the smell, probably because it makes me sick to eat it.  But I don't wash up after he eats peanut butter.  He does.  

 

ANNNNND all that to say, you do what is right for you and your family.  I was of a good temperament to be super careful; not all kids are.  And I would never ever say "We did thus and so and that means it is the right way to do it."  I'm just piping up to let you know that in MY case, it worked out OK.  :0)

 

 

[pinkmint]

Thanks everyone. DS (allergic 7 yo) is a very conscientious person. If someone offers him something he asks if it has peanuts even if I already pre approved it.

 

But I think we will at least go peanut free in our house.

[Catalytic]

Yes 7 yo is allergic to peanuts but not anaphylactic that we know of (considering he avoids peanuts pretty successfully). The allergy clinic gave him an epi pen and I forget exactly what they said honestly.

 

He has like 20 different inhaled allergies (grasses, molds, animals etc) and between that and the blood test that confirmed the peanut allergy and having my toddler thrashing around the dr room my head was kind of spinning when they were talking to me, so I just keep an epi pen in my purse and at home just in case he shows severe reaction to anything.

 

The 2 year old we are currently figuring out. His skin test did not show cashew allergy but he found one in our home and got hives. He also got itchy eyes when he had a bite of a protein bar with cashew in it... this just happened today actually that's why I'm thinking over all this.

 

Thankfully my kids' medicaid covers the allergy clinic visits and even immunotherapy shots which 2 out of 3 kids are currently getting.

 

You may have read my story in the other thread, but I'll give a synopsis here, just in case.  That cashew allergy concerns me.  Also, I imagine 7yo's peanut allergy is bad enough that the Epi is warranted and I would not have peanuts in my home at all.  Given the 2 yo, I wouldn't have ANY tree nuts or peanuts in my home.  I might have sunflower, but I'm not sure how that correlates to tree nuts or peanuts, so I would have to check into it first.

 

About 13 years ago, we had a neighbor whose 4 yo developed a peanut allergy fairly quickly.  Allergist refused to give an Epipen and Alabama ambulances do not carry epinephrine.  One day he had an anaphylactic reaction, Mom ran outside and screamed for another neighbor, whose homeschooled 8 or so year old wore an EpiPen at all times.  The EpiPen saved the 4 yo's life, he's 17 now.

 

His allergy went from nothing to anaphylaxis all in the space of a few months.  I'm not trying to scare you, and at least you have Epipens on hand should either of them need it, but I would be very cautious with the 2 yo in particular right now.  My own DS was...7ish...when we figured out he was allergic to shrimp.  At the beginning, he just threw up whenever he ate them.  Within a few months he was getting swollen lips and an itchy throat if he accidentally got a bite.  Just a very short time after that, the scent of shrimp was enough to require multiple doses of Benadryl.  We have avoided them like the plague ever since.  Anytime we go out to eat to a place that serves seafood at all (Chili's, Fridays, etc), he gets a dose of Benadryl before we ever go in the restaurant.  We do not take him to seafood restaurants at all.  Thankfully we have never had to use his EpiPen, but he just got a job in a food court, so at 17 he is now carrying his own EpiPens at all times.  (Prior to now, Dad and I carried them)

[Bluegoat]

I would, unless  the allergy got to the point where it atually required use of an epipen, then I wouldn't.

 

But as long as it's a "just in case" I would not restrict any food based on allergies that only affect some.

[zoobie]

One DC has an oral allergy to pineapple, but it's never been an issue for her to eat fruit in fruit salad that has touched pineapple. Her mouth feels itchy if she eats it specifically. Another has a banana sensitivity. It may or may not be an actual allergy. She had issues with many foods and proteins as a baby. We are waiting until she's a little older for testing. I occasionally have pineapple or bananas around, but we would not if they were anaphylactic allergies. Nuts especially are scary allergens. It goes from itchy to full blown anaphylaxis without warning.

[Bluegoat]

About removing things just in case the allergy worsens - it seems to me that if it does, at some point it is almost certain that there will be a reaction, be it at home or elsewhere.  It seems to me that at home with a parent and access to an epipen is going to be as good or better than having it happen in another place.

[3 ladybugs]

Depends on how strong the allergy is.

 

My son is allergic to white potato and dairy. He can't eat either in large quantities but he is starting to outgrow both. Dairy is down to eating it a VERY small piece of cheese pizza every so often now. White potato he can have a bit of every now and then. 

 

I, on the other hand, have a peanut allergy. In an effort to cut the cost of things in my house, I purchased peanut butter recently for my sons to eat. Sadly I discovered that I was symptomatic when I made the sandwiches for the boys and then made my lunch without sanitizing my hands. Or if I got peanut butter on a surface (we are talking I can't see the peanut butter but it is there) like a cutting board, then put another food there that I ate. Because of this, I am now making my house a peanut free zone. The only form of peanuts that will be in my house are in granola bars that my DH eats. No other form will be allowed. 

 

I also have a cashew and pistachio allergy. Thankfully I haven't seen that I am as symptomatic with those so they are still in my house. :)

[Loowit]

When my DS was first diagnosed with a peanut allergy we tried keeping peanut butter in the house for siblings, but it ended up being a really bad idea.  DS had a reaction and after that we banned peanuts and peanut products from the house.  Peanut and nut allergies tend to get worse with each exposure/reaction, so even if it is not "too bad" right now the next time could be much worse.

 

My DS was also allergic to eggs, soy, dairy, and cocoa at one point.  We kept it in the house but I learned to do most of my cooking without those ingredients.  He was not allergic to the point that it was life threatening if he was around those foods, so we could eat them and still keep him safe.  He eventually outgrew all of those allergies by the time he was 4, except peanut which he had outgrown when we retested a few months ago.

 

DS is now very allergic to almonds.  This allergy developed in the last couple of years.  He has to have an epi with him at all times.  We do not keep almonds or almond products in the house and also avoid tree nuts since there is a likelihood of cross-contamination. 

 

For those that think that having an epi around is enough, it isn't always.  Epis are a good thing, but they are not 100%.  People have died even with using an epi, so for those with very serious allergies total avoidance when at all possible is the best practice.

[Carrie12345]

My non-allergic family doesn't take peanut products *out* of the house as a precaution for those with allergies.  There's no way I would keep it in my home if one of my kids were at risk.

[Spryte]

One DC has an oral allergy to pineapple, but it's never been an issue for her to eat fruit in fruit salad that has touched pineapple. Her mouth feels itchy if she eats it specifically. Another has a banana sensitivity. It may or may not be an actual allergy. She had issues with many foods and proteins as a baby. We are waiting until she's a little older for testing. I occasionally have pineapple or bananas around, but we would not if they were anaphylactic allergies. Nuts especially are scary allergens. It goes from itchy to full blown anaphylaxis without warning.

 

Not meaning to hijack, but banana caught my attention.  DS is anaphylactic to bananas.  But we do occasionally have those in the house.  So, I guess we do keep an allergen around.  But bananas don't go airborne - they are not dried, or dusty, you know?

 

On banana, though, my mom and brother are both the type to get itchy throats and ears with banana, but never anaphylaxis.  Hopefully your DD will be the same.  You might consider latex allergy, though, with that banana reaction.  I hope it's just OAS.  

[Spryte]

My non-allergic family doesn't take peanut products *out* of the house as a precaution for those with allergies.  There's no way I would keep it in my home if one of my kids were at risk.

 

You are full of awesomeness.  Thank you.  :)

[Guest]

My peanut allergic child eats almond butter almost every day. We tried sunbutter and did not care for it at all.

 

Would you all not have almond butter around? I will do what I have to do but not having almond butter would make things difficult for what seems like no apparent reason.

 

That said I'm willing to ban peanuts. The peanuts in particular are the most serious concern. He reacts very clearly to them and they've shown positive for significant allergy on a blood test as well.

 

As far as DD, I personally am not worried about her smallness. She is healthy and if she can't have peanuts it's going to be an adjustment but I'll keep giving her chances to eat lots of other foods like I always do.

I'm the one with allergies and we do ban the substances in the house to prevent cross contact. That said, I am anaphylactic. The things I haven't had that severe of a reaction to are allowed but we are careful. With nuts, the allergy can grow more severe with time, so I wouldn't risk it with a child. I'd use mascarpone and pumpkin seeds and buttered veggies and anything else I could to get more calories in the kiddo except peanut butter.

[ikslo]

You are full of awesomeness. Thank you. :)

I agree. :)

[Butter]

For the most part, no.  My husband is allergic to bananas mildly.  We do get bananas for everyone else.  He can be around them no problem.  Three of us have Celiac and my husband is mildly allergic to wheat.  We do not have gluten in the house ever.  Too much risk of cross contamination for me.  I get extremely sick from the tiniest amount of cross contamination (I am worse than my two Celiac kids).  The two that are not Celiac can eat whatever they want out of the house even if we are around them.  My youngest is also very allergic to oranges.  We can't have oranges in the house because he will react.  One my oldest had an orange at church, didn't wash her hands, and apparently touched my youngest.  He reacted.  If people are sick, however, we can have orange juice and he just stays away and it's not a problem.  That's the only time we have orange juice, though, when people are sick.

 

So my answer is it depends on how severe the allergy and whether I can safely *always* prevent the allergic one from getting ill if the allergen is in the house.

[Butter]

dp

Edited September 10, 2016 by Butter

[LEK]

My youngest is anaphylactic to egg and dairy. We keep both in the house and they are used all the time and I really mean all the time. We are fanatical about preparing, cooking and storing all his food separate and making sure everything is cleaned up asap. Having said that, he could sit right next to you as you eat a huge bowl of egg and cheese with no reaction, if he was to touch it or you touch him with some on your hands then he will react mildy but he is only anaphylactic when he actually eats the food. We have epi pens at the ready at all times but have not had to use one yet.

He was allergic to tree nuts when he was younger, I banned them from the house at that stage as they are easy to remove and have a greater chance of causing issues without him actually consuming them. Fortunately he has since grown out of that allergy.

I am allergic to several fruits. Banana, pineapple and peach I still allow into the house as long as people are careful about preparation and cleanup. Kiwi I will not allow into the house, if I so much as touch a drop of kiwi juice it could be serious trouble, it is just not worth that risk.

 

So, it really depends on the severity of the allergy and what will cause a serious reaction. As my youngest needs to eat the food to have an anaphylactic reaction we are vigilant about his food but the rest of the household still eats those foods daily. As I cannot even touch a kiwi or a drop of juice without a serious reaction that stays out of the house, you never know when someone will let one little drop escape.

[blue daisy]

I would make the home peanut free and switch to almond butter. My 9 year old is anaphylactic to peanuts and we have been a peanut free home since we found out when he was 1. We use almond butter or cashew butter since we have no other nut allergies. It's just not worth the risk when it's such a serious risk.

[Carrie12345]

You are full of awesomeness.  Thank you.   :)

 

 

I agree. :)

 

You can thank our co-op and other homeschool groups, lol.  Once we got used to packing nut-free for certain activities, I started thinking about how we could run into any of these or other allergic kids "in the wild".  And having a blanket rule (especially for my youngest ones, who still ask what our plans for the day are before they'll eat nut stuff at home) was SO much easier than worrying!

[eternalsummer]

I think skinny and healthy is perfectly fine.  If she is also particularly sickly, or weak/tired, or something, I might worry.  

 

I would not keep peanuts in the house with a 7 year old who is allergic.  I don't know about your 7 year old but mine is just not reliable enough to count on not to somehow come upon a crust of peanut buttered bread sometime and accidentally eat it while I am in the shower.  I dunno, I just wouldn't want the risk with something as easy to avoid as peanuts.

 

I also loathe sunbutter and love almond butter.  I don't even like almonds!  But that almond butter is tasty.  

 

For the skinny kid, if you want to add calories, I just put a little bit of healthy oil in almost everything, esp. olive, and/or mushed up avocado (depending on how much avocados cost at the time).  

[bettyandbob]

At first I was thinking I'd go with no peanut products at home, but with the 2 year old having cashew issues I'd be peanut and nut free. It's not hard to do and makes home a safe zone. I would not restrict eating by unaffected family outside home--just at home.

[Runningmom80]

We only keep his highest IgE reactive food out. We are very careful with the allergens we do have. He's very allergic to milk, but we do allow the other kids to have cheese.

 

I think it's unreasonable to imply that no allergens should enter the house. I would be making a decision that left the rest of us nutritionally deficient. My son is allergic to so many foods that he drinks a nutritional shake (a very expensive! Neocate jr Shake) every night. In theory, we'd all be on the shakes if we ate only the food he could have.

 

No nuts is easy and we don't have them in the house. Potatoes for some reason are also very risky for my ds so we only have them on thanksgiving. No dairy, egg, wheat, soy, most fish, all legumes, celery, ( I could go on.) would be nearly impossible without all of us suffering nutritionally. Bottom line, it's not in anyone's best interest to live like that so we are just incredibly cautious.

Edited September 11, 2016 by Runningmom80

[J-rap]

If it were a life threatening allergy, then absolutely I'd keep all food culprits out of my house!  I do have a dd who has allergies to many fresh fruits and veggies.  She gets itchy, swollen lips and tongue, and sometimes her asthma kicks in as well.  But she's old enough to leave those foods alone, and fumes of those foods don't affect her.   So, we do keep those foods in the house and serve them at meals.

[DawnM]

Depends on the severity of the allergy, but in your case, I would have it around.

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

My 7 yo has a peanut allergy. Not life threatening that we know of, but still hives and itchiness if he touches it.

 

My 6 yo dd is skinny and picky and has even caused pediatrician some concern with her small size. Peanut butter is probably the healthiest thing she's normally willing to eat. And she has no problems with it.

 

We do keep it around but take extra precautions with it so as not to have her brother come into contact with it. But I worry sometimes that one day DS could develop a worse reaction to peanut.

 

We do have an epi pen. And now the 2 yo is reacting to cashew and others in the house like those so same thing. I'm just wondering what others with food allergy kids do.

According to our allergist, all peanut/nut allergies are serious and that you cannot predict whether a reaction will be mild or fatal. So I would not have other little kids eating peanuts/nuts around your child especially since little kids tend to drop and smear food all over.

 

That being said, I would try to go to John Hopkins to get an evaluation since we were told prior to John Hopkins that our kid would never be able to eat peanuts/nuts by 2 different allergists. John Hopkins gave the RAST blood test and based on that gave a food challenge which is the gold standard. They said he could eat nuts/peanuts. He did have very mild itch or a hive or two the first 40 or so times and then it went away.

 

There is also a facebook page on oral immunotherapy (OIT) that I would look into on doctors who actually desensitize those with food allergies.

 

As for general allergy info foodallergy.org is the best.

[Soror]

Absolutely not for nuts, with a kid who has an Epi-pen required allergy. As mentioned peanut allergies are notorious for getting worse rather quickly and can be deadly. We had friends w/ a peanut allergy and I was super paranoid about even having it in my house. It just isn't worth the stress, especially not for a kid that lives there. Now, allergies that were just from ingesting I'd not really worry about too much unless it was a baby that had a tendency to grab things out of another siblings hand or such but I'd add those foods back in as soon as the kid was old enough to understand not to eat anybody else's food.

[kewb]

Potentially life threatening allergy for one child, then that item is banned from the home. Other family members can eat it at someone else's home or at a restaurant without allergic child in attendance.

Someone is allergic to tomato then I would teach the allergic one not to eat tomato.

[pinkmint]

Banning peanuts aside (we will do that), looks like it's very mixed views/ experiences on whether or not a person with a peanut (or any nut) allergy will get better or worse with exposure/ avoidance. 

 

I certainly don't want to run the risk of causing a life threatening reaction. At the same time I am interested in knowing if there's a way for DS to overcome his peanut allergy through exposure. I definitely would not try this myself without serious medical supervision. I'm just not sure it's even possible with the kind of care that is available to us. But I do wonder. 

[zoobie]

Not meaning to hijack, but banana caught my attention. DS is anaphylactic to bananas. But we do occasionally have those in the house. So, I guess we do keep an allergen around. But bananas don't go airborne - they are not dried, or dusty, you know?

 

On banana, though, my mom and brother are both the type to get itchy throats and ears with banana, but never anaphylaxis. Hopefully your DD will be the same. You might consider latex allergy, though, with that banana reaction. I hope it's just OAS.

It seems to be an intolerance rather than an allergy. She vomits several hours later. It happened twice, and we were being careful about introducing new foods because of her early history (MSPI to where I ate a very restricted diet and EBF for a while). No hives or itching. She doesn't react to avocados. The possibility of it being a true allergy is scary especially with latex overlap. A friend of ours is an ER nurse with an airborne anaphylactic latex allergy. Yikes.

 

Thank you though. :)

[bettyandbob]

Banning peanuts aside (we will do that), looks like it's very mixed views/ experiences on whether or not a person with a peanut (or any nut) allergy will get better or worse with exposure/ avoidance.

 

I certainly don't want to run the risk of causing a life threatening reaction. At the same time I am interested in knowing if there's a way for DS to overcome his peanut allergy through exposure. I definitely would not try this myself without serious medical supervision. I'm just not sure it's even possible with the kind of care that is available to us. But I do wonder.

We stayed clear of any actual peanut product, but not things that listed "may contain..." or "processed in a factory that..." We had testing about 10 years later and none of the kids were positive for peanut allergy. So it is possible to grow out of it. I'm told it's unlikely though.

 

The thing that gives me pause I'd the two year old with cashew allergy. Most plants that process nuts or peanuts do not clean runs between different nuts. There's a chance of exposure from any nut or peanut product. That's why I suggested get all nuts and peanuts out if the house. It's just not worth having around.

[wintermom]

I think it would be wiser to try and broaden the "picky" eater's repetoire of foods rather than bring nuts into the house with known allergies. There are a multitude of other healthy foods to offer a child. I'd never settle on one food as being a go-to for nutrition, even if allergies weren't an issue. The picky eater could suddenly decide, as many people do, that they don't want to eat that food anymore. And one single food isn't going to provide all the nutrients and vitamins a growing body needs. 

[Starr]

i go next door when I want a peanut butter sandwich. We keep the house clear of nuts, nut products when dd is living at home.

[wapiti]

Banning peanuts aside (we will do that), looks like it's very mixed views/ experiences on whether or not a person with a peanut (or any nut) allergy will get better or worse with exposure/ avoidance. 

 

I certainly don't want to run the risk of causing a life threatening reaction. At the same time I am interested in knowing if there's a way for DS to overcome his peanut allergy through exposure. I definitely would not try this myself without serious medical supervision. I'm just not sure it's even possible with the kind of care that is available to us. But I do wonder. 

 

See this thread regarding overcoming peanut allergy through exposure:  http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/623852-oit-to-cure-food-allergies/  (and yes, clearly only under medical supervision, as peanut allergy is the most common cause of fatal anaphylaxis)

 

I agree w/Diana about the kid with the cashew allergy.  Be aware that not only is there a risk of cross-contamination between nuts and peanuts, but a significant percentage of people are allergic to both peanut and tree nuts, something like 40%.  Peanut-allergic people are usually advised to avoid tree nuts and vice-versa.  (With a young child, keep in mind that allergies can develop over time.  IIRC, our peanut-allergic ds didn't show the tree nut allergies until around 7-9 y.o. even though his peanut allergy was known since he was 1 y.o.)  This is a separate question from whether to have them in the house.

 

Lots to discuss with an allergist, not that they necessarily have all the answers but they will give the best advice they currently have.  The immune system is a funny thing, more is unknown that is known, quite the medical frontier.

Edited September 11, 2016 by wapiti

[Serenade]

One of my sons (he's now 13) is allergic to tree nuts, and we keep them in the house. I don't have to worry about him trying to eat them or anything. He is very cautious with his allergy and always has been. However, he would not have an allergic reaction from simply being around a nut. He would have to eat one or a part of one to have a reaction. If being around nuts could cause him to have a reaction, I would not keep them in the house.

 

ETA: When my son was 3-ish, we started him on peanuts under the direction of an allergist. (He had had a milk allergy since infancy.) He was fine with peanuts, and after a month or two, the allergist told us to try another nut, so we tried pecans, and that is when my son had his first and only truly systemic allergic reaction. The allergist told us to stop giving him peanut products as well, but we never did. It seemed kind of dumb to me since he was eating peanut butter just fine for several months already. Ten years later he is still eating peanuts, never a problem. I'm really glad that we allowed him to continue eating them.

Edited September 11, 2016 by Serenade

[Catalytic]

We only keep his highest IgE reactive food out. We are very careful with the allergens we do have. He's very allergic to milk, but we do allow the other kids to have cheese.

 

I think it's unreasonable to imply that no allergens should enter the house. I would be making a decision that left the rest of us nutritionally deficient. My son is allergic to so many foods that he drinks a nutritional shake (a very expensive! Neocate jr Shake) every night. In theory, we'd all be on the shakes if we ate only the food he could have.

 

No nuts is easy and we don't have them in the house. Potatoes for some reason are also very risky for my ds so we only have them on thanksgiving. No dairy, egg, wheat, soy, most fish, all legumes, celery, ( I could go on.) would be nearly impossible without all of us suffering nutritionally. Bottom line, it's not in anyone's best interest to live like that so we are just incredibly cautious.

 

Most food allergies, even life-threatening, aren't airborne.  I've not heard of airborne milk, egg, grain, etc.  But peanuts are a known airborne allergen and so are shellfish.  I think if you know a child has airborne reactions, then it's probably best to keep the food out of the home.  I know that steaming shrimp in my kitchen would cause an anaphylactic reaction in my 17 year old.  How do I know?  Because he's reacted in grocery stores with seafood departments, and his allergist explained the airborne issue.  There is zero reason I need to cook shrimp in my house.  No one is going to die because I did not cook shrimp, but DS *could* die if i did...sorry, not happening.  Now, like I said upthread, I don't completely avoid shrimp for the others in the house...I sometimes buy a shrimp cocktail plate on nice days, and DH and DS18 can sit outside and enjoy shrimp.  I've twice bought shrimp for DH to cook on our outdoor stove, but we were camping and the smell kinda lingered afterwards, so I'm not sure if I would do that again.

 

With my allergy kid, shellfish is the only thing we have to avoid.  If he had reactions to peanuts, we'd avoid that, too.  But his other allergens, even if he couldn't eat them, we'd have in the house.8

 

Banning peanuts aside (we will do that), looks like it's very mixed views/ experiences on whether or not a person with a peanut (or any nut) allergy will get better or worse with exposure/ avoidance. 

 

I certainly don't want to run the risk of causing a life threatening reaction. At the same time I am interested in knowing if there's a way for DS to overcome his peanut allergy through exposure. I definitely would not try this myself without serious medical supervision. I'm just not sure it's even possible with the kind of care that is available to us. But I do wonder. 

 

My DS is definitely still allergic to peanuts, but he doesn't like them as a general rule.  The reason I had a new IgE test done last year was because he thought he was reacting to the peanuts on a Drumstick.  According to the screening, his peanut levels haven't changed, his shrimp had gotten worse, and they also screened for lobster and crab this time...he reacted to lobster but not crab.  (Those weren't tested before) 

 

It seems to be an intolerance rather than an allergy. She vomits several hours later. It happened twice, and we were being careful about introducing new foods because of her early history (MSPI to where I ate a very restricted diet and EBF for a while). No hives or itching. She doesn't react to avocados. The possibility of it being a true allergy is scary especially with latex overlap. A friend of ours is an ER nurse with an airborne anaphylactic latex allergy. Yikes.

 

Thank you though. :)

 

My son's shrimp allergy started as vomiting, but a lot sooner than 2 hours.  At the time, we pretty much only ate shrimp at a Japanese steakhouse, about every 6 months.  Every time, he would vomit in the car on the way home.  He's a grazer, so we thought it was because he was eating too much when we went.  I can't remember how we finally figured out it was shrimp, though.