Children
Tips for coping with your child’s serious food allergy
For parents, managing their child’s serious food allergy, can be an overwhelming prospect. But with the right tools, strategies and support in place it will become a normal part of your daily family routine.
A food allergy results when the body’s immune system interprets a certain food as being harmful, which then triggers a reaction. “Symptoms can appear after exposure to a specific food source with an immediate or delayed reaction,” explains Jandri Barnard. Barnard, a private practicing dietitian at Mediclinic Newcastle and a member of the Dietetic Committee of the Allergy Association of South Africa (ALLSA), says that this reaction indicates that the food is an allergen – a food that causes an allergic reaction.
How do I know if my child has a serious food allergy?
The most common food allergens include milk or dairy products, eggs, peanuts and tree nuts, wheat (gluten), fish and shellfish, and soya, says Barnard. Your child can be tested for immediate food allergies by a medical professional by means of a skin prick test, blood test or oral food challenge.
“Mild or moderate symptoms can include persistent eczema or skin reactions, hay fever, and gastrointestinal upsets including nausea, persistent vomiting, frequent diarrhoea and cramps,” says Barnard. “As soon as an allergy is identified, discuss with your doctor or allergy specialist which medication or antihistamines should be kept on hand to relieve an immediate reaction.”
In the case of a more serious reaction, namely anaphylaxis, medication in the form of epinephrine and emergency medical care might be required . Anaphylaxis is…
What to do when anaphylaxis occurs
Antihistamines alone cannot be used to treat anaphylaxis, explains Dr Tshegofatso Mabelane, a family allergy specialist at Mediclinic Morningside. “Epinephrine, or adrenalin, is medication that treats a severe, life-threatening reaction, known as anaphylaxis in allergy,” Dr Mabelane says.
With anaphylaxis, when a child with a food allergy accidentally eats or drinks something they’re allergic to, it will cause serious symptoms almost straight away or within minutes, says Barnard. An immediate dose of adrenaline and emergency care is needed in such cases.
She says these reactions to allergens require immediate medical assistance:
- throat tightness
- wheezing
- shortness of breath
- repetitive coughing
- difficulty breathing
- high-pitched noises when breathing
- hoarseness
- turning pale or bluish
- tongue swelling
- difficulty swallowing
- low blood pressure
- fainting
- chest pain
- dizziness
Adjusting your child’s diet to avoid known triggers
“Once your child’s allergy is known, the main thing is for them to be educated to avoid these food sources and foods in which they can be hidden,” says Barnard. “It’s best to consult a dietitian associated with ALLSA who will provide personalised information to create a balanced diet that includes all the nutrients for a growing child and find alternative food sources to known allergens.”
Each child’s symptoms may vary so get to know your child’s unique response to the foods they are’s allergic to. “Remember, if the allergy food is hidden within another food, for example a peanut in a chocolate bar, there may be a slight delay in symptoms occurring,” Barnard adds. “While each child is different, in these cases the reaction will generally be focused on the area where there is contact – around the mouth causing swollen, itchy lips or a rash on the face.”
Tips to manage food allergies outside the home
It’s one thing managing your child’s food allergy at home or in a controlled environment but it’s quite another when you’re not with your child or they’re eating in a restaurant or another person’s home, for example. Barnard suggests the following ways to manage such eventualities:
- Give your child medical identification listing the food allergy/ies.
- Keep an emergency plan and prescribed medication on hand.
- Educate your child – no matter their age.
- Educate and inform your child’s school, teacher, family and friends.
- Read food labels to identify hidden food sources known by other names.
- Check restaurant menus beforehand and insist on knowing the ingredients used if there’s any uncertainty.
- Before letting your child attend a party, inform the parents of your child’s allergy and which foods to avoid. Pack in an extra ‘party-friendly’ food pack for your child to still be part of the celebratory activities.