More Food Allergy Protection

Have you heard about Plane Sheets? These seat covers are perfect when flying with a food allergic passenger. Available in disposable or washable forms, Plane Sheets are the brainchild of husband and wife team, Leslie Danelian and Rick Berge. During their long distance courtship, they made themselves a plane seat cover when they realized how unsanitary plane seats can be. They realized that others may be interested in the product and created a company to sell them.

I think they're a great idea for movie theater seats and other public chairs where food residue may accumulate, causing the risk of a food allergy reaction.

Check out the great patterns and colors and pick up a few for the special food allergic person in your life. Hmmm...maybe a few child-friendly patterns may be in order for our food allergic kids...

Baked Milk and Egg Food Challenges

We met with the allergist last week. At the top of my list was to talk about food challenges for baked egg and milk. What I found out was quite encouraging.

She told me they've done many challenges for these foods over the past few months and nearly all have been successful. There are now dozens of children and adults in their practice who are successfully eating foods that contain milk and egg that has been heated to a high temperature. The most recent research, she said, is showing that those who eat baked milk and egg on a regular basis may get rid of all milk and egg allergy.

Woot!

We're going to give it a go this summer. She wants to start with egg first, using the angel food cake recipe used at Mt. Sinai for these type of challenges. It contains 12 eggs and will be baked at 350 degrees for 40 minutes. I'm a little nervous after a nerve-wracking and unsuccessful egg challenge a year ago, but I am feeling hopeful.

I'll keep you posted!

Food Allergy Blog Carnival

Hmmm...There was only one food allergy related post submitted for this edition of the Blog Carnival.

In that case, you're stuck with Rational Jenn and me.

• There's a lot of hype about the development of a hypoallergenic peanut. Many people seem to think that this is the scientific development we who live with peanut allergy have been waiting for. I respectfully disagree.
• Have you heard about apples and their role in decreasing egg allergy reaction? Check it out.

It's encouraging to see so much research and promising results in food allergy.

ADDENDUM:  Thanks Colette for re-submitting your post. I didn't get the first one, but it's a great post, so I want to make sure it's included. Take a look at Learning to Eat Allergy Free for some information on EE.

To submit a post to the next food allergy blog carnival, sign up here.

Have a great day!

Food Allergy Cure With an Apple a Day?

The Journal of the British Society for Allergy & Clinical Immunology reports on a promising study with implications for food allergy. Egg allergic mice were fed a polyphenol-enriched apple extract and then underwent a food challenge for egg. The results showed the apple extract reduced allergy symptoms. A polyphenol is an antioxidant that occurs naturally in some plants and tends to prevent or neutralize the damaging effects of free radicals.

The role of polyphenols is also being studied in peanut allergy.

I don't claim to understand it, but I like it. The hope is for human trials to be conducted after the positive results of the mice study.

Food Allergy Friendly Recipe

Just in time for grilling season, I'll share one of our favorite chicken marinade recipes. I throw the chicken breasts in a container or zip-top bag with these ingredients as soon as I buy them. After I add the other ingredients, I make sure I grill (baking works too) them that day or the next. If not, it all goes in the freezer for an easy yummy meal another time. Check out my site, foodallergyassistant.com, for more allergy friendly recipes.

Marinated Chicken
free of dairy, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat and soy
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 3 tablespoons mustard (the kind from a squeeze bottle)
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1 lime, juiced
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• ground black pepper to taste
• 6 tablespoons olive oil
• 6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

• In a gallon size reclosable bag, mix the cider vinegar, mustard, garlic, lime juice, lemon juice, brown sugar, salt, and pepper. Add the olive oil. Place chicken in the mixture and marinate 8 hours, or overnight.
• Preheat an outdoor grill for high heat or preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Place chicken on the prepared (lightly oiled) grill, and cook 6 to 8 minutes per side, until juices run clear or bake for approximately 40 minutes until internal temperature reaches 180 degrees. Discard marinade.

Low Allergy Peanut on the Way

US researchers have been able to remove some of the compounds in a peanut that cause allergic reactions. US Professor Soheila Maleki, from the Agricultural Research Service, presented preliminary findings at the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology last Monday. Professor Maleki says they hope eventually to breed a peanut that will "lessen the development and the severity of the allergic response to peanuts".

You can read a summary of the project. Two thumbs up on this one!

Food Allergy Lingo When Talking to School Administrators

Bookmark the Illinois State Board of Education's Nutrition information page for a thorough index of federal laws and food allergy resources. No matter where you live, it's important to know the laws that have been created to keep food allergic school children safe. The summer is a great time to educate yourself and to begin to meet with school administrators to discuss the needs of your child. Be prepared to request a 504 Plan or an IEP or an Individualized Healthcare Plan. There are many options, but only you and your allergist know the best fit for your child.

Thanks Nut-Free Mom for the head's up on this information.

Food Allergy Tips

After 10 years of dealing with food allergies, even I find some great tips. Onespot Allergy founder, Elizabeth Goldenberg, shares some spot-on techniques for living safely with food allergy.

Did you learn some new tips, too?

Enjoy Life Helps Food Allergic Consumers

"Don't Worry, Eat Happy" is Enjoy Life's slogan. I love it and wish I could feel that free most of the time. It's hard to find safe food for someone with food allergies. Enjoy Life has created a Survival Guide to help anyone who follows a special diet.

Check out their great information on a variety of food allergy topics.

While I'm at it, I'll plug their great dairy-free chocolate chips, available in the specialty section of my local grocery store. Now that makes me happy!

Peanut Allergies and Airplanes

The US Department of Transportation is seeking restrictions on the serving of peanuts on board airplanes due to the increasing number of people with peanut allergies. The peanut industry is not happy with the recommendations. They (correctly) point out that people are allergic to tree nuts, milk, wheat, soy and other foods and no one is calling on a ban of those items.

Okay, can we all just play nice here?

Peanut dust causes an allergic reaction in some who are highly sensitive. Could the airline industry just be accommodating in special cases? People and families who deal with food allergies know what they need. For example, when we fly with peanut, tree nut, milk and egg allergies, I ask to pre-board to wipe down the seating area. I've also had no trouble when requesting that peanuts not be the in-flight snack served aboard our flight. Others may require other accommodations and my hope would be that airlines could meet all reasonable requests.

Here's what the DOT is asking, followed by the peanut industry response.

Food Allergy Guest Post

Thank you to Jacob Maslow of Allergy Be Gone for this guest post linking food allergy to toxins in our environment.

Toxins and the Rise in Food Allergies

When asked why food allergies are on the rise, New York State Licensed Acupuncturist, Henry Zhen-Hong Lee, stated, “It’s because of all the antibiotics that animals have been given for so many years, and because of the harmful effects of pesticides and a large number of other chemicals that find their way into our food sources.”

Some may ask what these chemicals have to do with the rise in food allergies. To get a better understanding of the severity of the environmental toxin problem and food allergies, here is an excerpt from an article posted at Mercola.com:

Laboratory tests commissioned by the Environmental Working Group have detected bisphenol A (BPA), a plastic component and synthetic estrogen, in umbilical cord blood of American infants.

Nine of 10 randomly selected samples of cord blood tested positive for BPA, an industrial petrochemical.

It should be noted that BPA has been connected to an ongoing list of serious chronic disorders, including asthma, cancer, and many other illnesses creating life-long consequences.

To further emphasize this point, the article explained that the results of the testing found 232 chemicals in the 10 newborns. The evidence is overwhelming and alarming: our children are exposed to dangerous substances that can affect the immune system before birth.

The Connection Between Toxins in our Food and Food Allergies

The body is an amazing and complex organism. It is actually designed to detoxify itself under normal conditions. But, with environmental toxins bombarding us in addition to our natural detoxification processes, the liver is overworked and overloaded. This, though, is just a piece of the puzzle connecting toxins to the rise in food allergies.

Add to this, the digestive problems that are created with the unavoidable toxins, in sources such as fast foods and genetically modified foods, and you have another wrench in the works. The digestive system is what makes the body function. This wrench interferes with the breakdown, absorption and metabolism of nutrients creating a drop in the nutritional properties that support the immune system.

Since the immune system is part of the body’s detoxification system, the lack of proper nutrition and the invading toxins reduce the immune system’s ability to function efficiently . . . or normally.

With a weakened immune system working overtime to sort out and destroy so many dangerous toxins is it any wonder that it malfunctions and begins to attack foods that are mistaken for dangerous substances, thereby contributing to the rise in food allergies.

Sources:
The Daily Green
Immune SystemEtc.com

Submitted by Jacob Maslow, http://www.allergybegone.com

More Allergy Meds Recalled

The net has widened for the original medication recall of several prominent McNeil Consumer products. The original recall included Benadryl® and Zyrtec®. Now add PediaCare Allergy and Cold® to the list of medicines that shouldn't be used. Check out the additional PediaCare products on the list and clean out the medicine cabinet.

I received a check in the mail from McNeil Consumer Care for $41.00 after I reported five recalled medicines from our medicine cabinet. I'll be filling out another report as the school nurse informed me that the Benadryl® I'd sent into school is also on the list.

I'll add it to my to-do list. I hope that McNeil Consumer and other pharmaceutical companies are being super vigilant about what is in their products. As consumers, we place our trust and our lives, as well as the lives of our children, in their hands. Recalls like this shake my trust to the core.