Allergies

We took Charlotte to get tested  for allergies this week. I have been putting this off for a while now because just the process is very scary for a parent to watch their children be in pain and not be able to do anything about it. They inject a small amounts of common allergies in their back and if there is a bump or hive based on the size/width/elevation they are allergic to it. It was painful for all three of us.

The doctor said based on her past with eczema and her peanut episode we should test her for several different things other than the usual cats, dogs, mold, etc. Turns out she needs to avoid at all costs peanuts, tree nuts (Almond, Beechnut, Brazil nut ,Bush nut,Butternut, Cashew, Chestnut, Coconut,Filbert, Ginko nut,Hazelnut,Hickory nut,Lichee nut,Macadamia nut,Nangai nut,Pecan,Pine nut, Pistachio, Shea nut, Walnut), eggs, and shellfish( crab, shrimp, scallops). He will re-test her in 6 months. He is hopeful that she will grow out of the shellfish and eggs but not 100% of the peanuts and tree nuts.

we are now a nut free family!

The doctor said several times how severe of an allergy she has to these certain foods. And that she needs to keep them out of reach, out of harm and to ALWAYS have her epipen with her and to educate the people who are around her most. Tree nuts can cause severe allergic reactions. It can cause Charlotte to go into  anaphylactic shock.  The doctor went through how to administer the epipen and we are glad to show anyone how to use it when she is around you.

epipen jr.

The doctor also said that he knows how hard it is to eliminate egg from her diet but to take out as much as your can. For example if she was at a birthday party and had a cupcake and there happen to be egg in it because it was cooked/baked more than likely it will not effect her. But if she were to eat scrambled eggs or fried rice with eggs then it would be a severe reaction. We are also worried that she could get a hold of a chocolate bar and it may not have peanuts in it but was made on machines that make bars with peanuts/eggs then it could still give Charlotte a severe reaction.


We are telling you all of this information because it is serious and the closest people to her need to know this information as much as we do. We will from here on out provide food for Charlotte for every meal and snack time because we know what she can have and what she cannot and this is our responsibility and so we can really monitor it. We really want her to learn form this that she needs to ask mama and dada what she can eat before she can eat it. But because she is young we have to be her eyes and brain until she learns. But she will learn.

We are hoping this will help with her eczema and avoid further problems with food in the future. FYI- TO ALL THE MAMAS OUT THERE- We did learn that babies that do not have eczema at an early age usually do not develop severe food allergies. We will be keeping a watch on baby boy Dugger and other babies in the future!

If you have any questions the best way to get answers is to ask us and not look it all up on the internet except http://www.foodallergy.org/page/tree-nut-allergy   is the website that the doctor gave to us as a reference.  We have found that website extremely helpful and it has really educated us on the severity of the subject.


We are going to teach Charlotte starting now that she does not take food from anyone except mama and dada and that she does not eat any food without first asking mama or dad if it is ok to eat. We are going to teach her that she is special and cannot eat food like other people can because it can hurt her. She must ask us first. We are also buying her some fun but educational children books that will hopefully over time they will teach her that she cannot eat everything she is given or that she can see or that she can reach.

After learning more and more about the tree nut allergies we are scared out of our minds but starting to come to terms with it and understand it will be a constant battle but definitely avoidable if monitored closely with precaution. Once again we are telling you all of this not to scare you but to be educated on the subject and to help us be another set of eyes. We just don't want another reaction like what we witnessed to peanuts and reactions like that only get worse each time they are exposed to it. Pray for us around Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter~ lots of yummy nutty food and candy!