Coping with Food Allergies - Part 2

Today’s blog posting is written by Kelly Harrington, MS, RD as a follow-up to her last posting, Coping with Food Allergies – Part 1. In addition to the biography posted earlier this month, Ms. Harrington is the registered dietitian for iMomConnect, LLC’s “Allergy-Free For Me Cookbook” application which will be available on the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad next month.

As discussed in my last blog posting, it can be scary, frustrating and time-consuming trying to figure out how to manage your child’s food allergy, and understandably takes a big toll on the entire family. I would like to offer parents some tips for managing such an important aspect in your child’s life. First, spend some time looking for allergy-free recipes, specific to the food you are avoiding. Building a collection of recipe’s your family enjoys will reduce cooking frustrations. Where would you find these recipes? There are many allergy-free resources available, such as allergy-free cookbooks, the internet, mobile phone applications, magazines, and your local library and county health department. Home life will become easier if you are able to prepare one, delicious meal for everyone to eat. I discourage you from becoming a short order cook. As an additional time saver, purchase allergy-free, ready-made products so you don't have to make everything yourself (the “Allergy-Free for Me Cookbook” application has a list of companies who sell allergy-free, ready-made products.

Second, meet parents who also have kids with food allergies and share tips with them. Support groups and allergy free blogs are both good avenues for pursuing this.

Next, discover tricks for dealing with a “choosy” eater. It can be frustrating when kids want to eat the same thing every day, but it is not uncommon. Kids are often slow to accept new tastes and textures, so you may have to present a food 10 to 15 times before they will try it. Don’t give up! As the parent, also don’t forget the influence you have on your child’s food preferences. Children often eat what they see their parents eating, so try to be a good role model.

Some children are simply less likely to try new foods, but here are some tips that may work for your child:
• Keep mealtime positive. Do not force your child to eat or make “deals” with your child (ie: “eat your vegetables and you will get dessert”).
• Allow your child to feed him/herself and offer safe finger foods.
• At each meal, make sure there is something your child knows and likes on the plate. Alongside the familiar food, place the unfamiliar food or food your child is typically “choosy” toward.
• When introducing a new food, encourage your child to touch, smell, lick, or taste the new food. Let them take their time “exploring” the new food.
• Use healthy dips such as yogurt, hummus, ketchup or low-fat salad dressings to encourage your child to eat fruits, vegetables, and meats.
• Involve your child in preparing the meal (like dropping cut-up fruit into a bowl for a fruit salad). Handling, smelling and touching the food helps your child get comfortable with the idea of eating it.
• Always offer your child what the rest of the family is eating, in toddler-sized portions. Over time, these choices will become as liked and familiar as their favorites.

Once you have your home life squared away, what happens when the control of your young child’s diet is no longer yours, such as when you drop him/her off at daycare or school? It is a troubling thought to wonder if another caregiver will really understand your child’s allergy. Quite frankly, it may be up to you to raise awareness, which will lead to a much more joyful experience. Food will be a part of every daycare setting, and assume food will also be a part of every preschool or kindergarten classroom. Because of this, become involved in your child's school as much as possible. Most teachers appreciate parental support! Talk to the teacher/daycare provider about your child’s allergy and create a letter to give to other parents, informing them of your child’s food allergy. Talk to the school/daycare about possibly offering allergy-free food alternatives for snacks or special classroom occasions. Suggest parents only bring treats for sharing which are clearly labeled with the ingredients. Offer to provide the teacher/caregiver a “how-to” video on using an epi-pen, and give the teacher/caregiver a detailed personalized management plan in case your child experiences a reaction.

In this posting, I suggested various ways to cope with a food allergy in your family. The best course of action usually involves discussing with others what worked best in similar situations in order to determine what the right course is for your family. We hope to address some of these issues in our Allergy-Free Cookbook App and we look forward to hearing about any helpful ideas which have worked for your family you might share with us on the blog.

For further information/resources on food allergies, please visit the following links:

1) www.mayoclinic.com, “Food allergies: Watch food labels for these top 8 allergens.”
2) www.eatright.org, American Dietetic Association
3) www.foodallergy.org, The Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network
4) www.babyandkidallergies.com