Saturday, November 8, 2008

What Do You Want To Hear About Peanut Allergy?

As I mentioned last week, I'm participating in NaPoBloMo this month - posting on Peanut Free Mama each day, faithfully, in November.

Being the anal organized self that I am, I put together a calendar of what I'll be posting about. But then I got to thinking: I wonder if there's things that my readers want to hear about?

Well, here's your chance: either leave a comment or email me at peanutfreemama@gmail.com to give me your post suggestions. It could be anything - don't be shy!

10 comments:

Elaine at Matters of the Heart) said...

I am sure anything you choose will be great, it always is....

Do tell about the MSNBC piece....

Unknown said...

Here's one: Going to the movies. (We're going to see Madagascar today, so it's on my mind.)

Are you concerned about contact reactions at the movie theater? If so, what do you do to prevent such a reaction there?

Do you generally think the popcorn at the movie theater is "safe"? If not, what PF snacks do you sneak into the movies?

Thanks!

Anonymous said...

I would love to hear more information about how parents of toddlers manage food allergies at daycare centers/pre-schools. My daughter is about to move to the toddler room (at a peanut-free center, but she has multiple allergies) and she is old enough to grab food off of another child's plate, but not old enough to know what she should and should not be eating. How do other parents work with daycare centers to feel more comfortable?

Thanks!

Elaine at Matters of the Heart) said...

Okay I am back on this one. You may have already done this, if so point me in the right direction, I have not been following long.

I would love to hear and have a list of brands you feel safe with. Like snacks, baking, pre-made etc... I know everyone has their own comfort level, so it is nice to hear what others feed their allergy kids.

Thanks

Anonymous said...

How about birthday parties? I hate feeling like a stick in the mud EVERY birthday party - nagging the host/ess about what they will be serving - the brand of what they will be serving etc. I want my son(s) to feel included so I have gone out of my way to make sure he has the same as everyone else (or as close as possible). I make cupcakes to bring along to every birthday party - some parent's really enjoy the extra treats (I'm always sure to bring enough for all the guests) but others don't seem to feel so good about it. I am THINKING that they feel a little bad that they did not provide something that all the guests could enjoy.... or maybe they are jealous when so many devour my cupckes - faster than the cake??? :) I just want my children to be able to enjoy the party and stay safe. What does everyone else do for these events?

Anonymous said...

I'd love to see some sort of summary post for parents of newly diagnosed children. Call it Peanut Allergies 101.

When our daughter was diagnosed, my first question was "What do we need to do first?" I found that most of the resources online seemed to assume that the parent already knew what to look for, but we didn't. Did we need to bleach the whole house? Could we still eat at restaurants? What did we do if a package didn't make any reference to peanuts at all? That sort of information was surpringly hard to find.

Even now I'm still learning things -- one of your recent posts mentioned beauty products in passing as if was common knowledge that they could be dangerous, but that had never even occured to me.

Anonymous said...

Me again. :) I thought of another post. I'm pregnant and my friend who is a pediatrician at Children's Hospital talked to me about taking probiotics in my third trimester. I guess recent data has suggested that it can help avoid a potential egg allergy in your unborn baby (or soon to be born baby). :) Anyway, I've read so much data about what to avoid during pregnancy to prevent future food allergies and what to try during pregnancy to prevent future food allergies. What's funny is I doubt the baby will have eggs or peanuts either way, as we don't eat them much in our house because of my daughter. But, when considering that I want to breastfeed again, I'm wondering if I'll have to go on the dairy elimination diet again if my baby has a milk allergy, too, like her sister. Anyway, there is just so much data out there, it's hard to know what advice to follow about preventing future food allergies when pregnant. Thanks!

Gab said...

Thank you so much for your suggestions! I have ALOT of writing to do!

Everyone else, keep the comments coming.

Oh and Part 2 should be posted by Friday (I hope).

Anonymous said...

About the birthday parties (and other celebrations)

We often bring Krispy Kreme donuts for our "treat". At our K.Kreme store everything is peanut free- be sure to still check yours- you never know when they might change things up (like Nestle choc. chips did a few years ago..ggrrrrr ) My son LOVES the donuts and actually is pleased instead of being bummed-since he gets his fav. donuts when everyone else is having their treats. If we are somewhere where he can't have the treat and I haven't prepared, I tell him I'll take him for a donut-or make Rice Krispy treats- when we leave and he's always thrilled. People marvel at how well he handles disappointment- he's 11 now so he's had a lot of practice!

Also, did you know candy corn has peanut in it?

A great tip for new PA people/parents- JOIN Food Allergy network (FAAN)!! It used to be around $28/year -worth every $$.They send out newsletters and alert emails for any recalls and possible contaminations. They also are great advocates for us!! I learned SO Much in my first few years as a PA mom and they had great ideas and recipes too!! My son got his own newsletters with other kids names, ages, interests etc- it helped him thru those 1st years of feeling so "different"

KUDOS for this site- it is WONDERFUL, keep up the great work and exchange of ideas and support!

Unknown said...

I am new to this and am interested in information about (I hope this doesn't sound ghoulish) reactions.

Not really the details of the reactions but...

Have you had to give the Epi injection? If so, how many times has it been necessary? How do you carry it? How do you get the people you are trying to teach to take it a seriously as you do?

There is a wealth of information about what a reaction may look like, what may trigger a reaction, what to avoid, etc. I have found very few people who talk about the situation we are all trying to avoid and how Epi effects our lives.

This information may be out there, I just haven't come across it yet (like I said, I am still very new to peanut allergy).