Food allergies

When my son was four years old, he suffered anaphylactic shock and nearly died. Few doctors were aware of peanut allergy then. My own GP dismissed the idea, until it happened to his own daughter.
In those days Epipens to be ordered from the USA and we had to wait for months to get one. I was classed initially as a neurotic mother, when I insisted on reading the labels on every piece of food I bought.
A few years later the same thing happened again in an operating theatre, he once again had an allergic reaction and his heart stopped.
Thank God times have changed.

I don't think things have changed enough Marydoll if the poor girl who ate a Pret sandwich is anything to go by. Hopefully this will be a seminal moment.

Our DGD has food allergies, including sesame. Thankfully, none of them severe enough for her to need to carry an epipen. but I read all the information coming from the inquest for that child who ate a baguette with sesame seed with horror.

The times when DGD was younger, and like Marydoll I scanned the labels of everything. DGD's allergies include mustard, which is so widely used for flavour in bought fresh food like sandwiches and dishes served in restaurants, in salad cream, mayonnaise and other food stuffs.

Her allergies are fading but DDiL was diagnosed with a auto-immune disease a few years ago and this is now causing her to have food allergies. I have both sets of allergies printed out and stuck to a kitchen door to constantly remind me when cooking of what I must avoid.

Christmas is coming and I will be making Christmas cake, pudding and my own mincemeat to ensure it is nut free. I just wish I could find a nut-free version of marzipan.

Monica , Tesco do marzipan substitute using Semolina

At a work meeting recently I met a young woman who has severe allergies to a lot of different foods. The evening dinner was an Indian meal which would contain nut products so she requested something from the main menu. When it came there were mange tout in it - she is allergic to peas (which she'd told them) so had to send it back to the kitchen - the chef said they were mange tout - he apparently didn't know they were peas!! There were so many things she couldn't eat and has to be so careful - she also carries the epipen in case of emergencies. It actually turned out to be quite comical in some ways as at each break during the meeting someone would appear with a huge platter of fruit and look for her

Whatever property you're selling, it should be clean and fresh. Every room (and the garden) should be clutter free and minimalistic so that prospective buyers can imagine what it would look like when they move in.

Whoops, wrong feed! Sorry.

I am very disappointed in Pret's defence - they owe a duty of care to their customers no matter what the regulations require.

I hope Natasha's parents and their other injured customers sue Pret so they take seriously their duty.

More food allergies and mental health issues now, that ever before. I never ever heard of anyone in any school I attended, having to have special meals or special measures taken when away on Brownie or Guide holidays or declining biscuit breaks or party food (and there were many parties)
Why is that?

*than, not that.

I have hay fever type allergies to dust and cats, but the worst and scariest is Brazil nuts, which make my lips and tongue swell immediately. I have obviously always avoided them since childhood, and fortunately they are not as commonly used as peanuts. I had some allergy tests and they said I reacted to almonds too, which I love and eat with no obvious side-effects. I just don’t feel the medical profession knows enough about allergies.

Since childhood my lips and mouth always swelled up after eating salted peanuts but I loved them and persevered obviously myself and family being completely unaware of how serious this might be. I now have no reaction whatsoever when eating nuts of any type so maybe something to be said for gentle exposure over a period of time? Have since gone into anaphylactic shock twice but that was as a result of hayfever problems.

I think there have always been mental health issues, it's just that nobody talked about it. Thankfully times have moved on. But I must admit I'm baffled too by the number of people with allergies - I'd never heard of it until recent years. It must be a nightmare for those who suffer. There has to be a reason for it. I wonder if it came with the rise of fast, over processed food? Also there is so much conflicting information these days - what pregnant mums can or can't eat, what babies can and can't eat. One day it's good for you, the next day it isn't. Then a few months later it all changes again!

That poor, beautiful girl, my heart goes out to her family.

aggie many thanks.

Gabriella. Doctors are not sure what the reasons are but air pollution, particularly particulates from diesel are believed to play a major part. Allergies were there. I can remember girls at school, only a couple, who could not eat certain foods, usually something like strawberries.

When my children were small I had a friend with children with cystic fibrosis and they had a restricted diet and party food was planned carefully in advance to accommodate them.

I think when we were young, children with any problem, no matter how mild, were excluded rather than accommodated

My Brother had asthma and eczema , then when the first penicillin came out he passed out with a severe allergic reaction, luckily in the surgery and he was forbidden any antibiotics for years , this must have been 70 years ago

My youngest GD, 6.5 years, is anaphylactic to dairy, pea protein and lilies. She is allergic to Sorbitol, in apples and pears, fish, soya, almonds and walnuts, and has idiopathic, (unknown), reactions as well. She also has hay fever and asthma.
She has to carry TWO epi-pens as well as antihistamines at all times, with laminated instructions, in a backpack that goes everywhere with her.
We read ALL labels obsessively, for her safety and with her brother, 12 years, being gluten intolerant we have to be extra careful.
It becomes a life style, looking for 'safe' food, reading labels, even on known products in case the change the recipe, and making sure that eating out is safe. Fortunately the parents of her school friends will ask what food she can eat, or my daughter provides her with appropriate party food for birthday parties.

My main gripe is having to pay extra for gluten, dairy, soya free foods, like a small loaf of bread costing between £2 - £3.50 and tasting like sandy cardboard!

Our grandson is anaphylactic to egg- even just traces.

You just cannot believe how hard it is to keep him safe, for parents, for us grandparents too. When they come to visit, it takes me a week of cleaning, cupboards, draws, all cutlery, plates, utensils, dishwasher, etc, etc. We have two frying pans we keep for their visits.

It means no visits to restaurants- as cross contamination if the kitchen just cannot be garanteed. And at school, he has to have packed lunches - he is now 12- and it is getting even harder, re scout and school trips, etc. So so sad for him- and so hard for his family, and his sister too. He has never been able to stay at a friend's Birthday party- and he only has 2 friends' families that can be trusted to take this allergy really seriously and understand it.

We have genetic immune responses against some common disease organisms such as intestinal worms. Some harmless thigs in the environment like pollen grains have allergens on their surface which are similar to, and so cause immune reactions related to, triggers like those worms which are now totally inappropriate.

These reactions seem to be linked to the cleanliness of our modern environments as our immune system doesn't get used to differentiating between the triggers which need immune reactions and those which are harmless and don't.

Exposure to an allergen which is repeated at increasing concentration, can develop tolerance but needs to start very low and be carefully monitored to prevent a life threatening reaction.

Eating a wide variety of foods in pregnancy does help to prevent asthma, etc. in the children, as does being brought up on a farm or in close contacts with wildlife. This provides the exposure to many potential allergens and teaches the immune system to recognise the harmless from the disease causing stimuli.

I have heard a 'too-clean' theory related to intolerances, not sure about allergies which are somewhat different and more serious. In other words our environments are so clean its not good for us. I think the argument is that because our bodies dont get a chance to react to pathogens, bugs and dirt our immune systems attack harmless things like food instead. I am dairy intolerant, but it only developed about five years ago, suspiciously after I had suffered for nearly a year with a tooth problem requiring a galaxy of antibiotics. When I went to the GP about the effects of the intolerance he immediately told me to go back to the dentist and get him to stop the antibiotics and, if necessary, remove the tooth. I think the antibiotics destroyed my gut bacteria which for some reason have never got back to normal, and now as a result I am unable to digest lactose. I know there is research to suggest people living in very clean environments dont have a broad range of gut bacteria.

I have several food allergies and food intolerances.

Nowadays, establishments where food is prepared on site should have a printed book that lists allergens and must be available if a customer asks what ingredients are in the food they are purchasing.

Unfortunately though, my more unusual (but severe) allergy of pineapple does not seem to be listed yet pineapple is used in far more foods than people realise as a (hidden) form of natural sweetener.

The last time I had a severe and somewhat scary reaction especially as I was on a remote island in the Indian Ocean was after using a lip balm sunscreen whilst on holiday. Only after getting extremely sick did we realise that it was supposed to be a 'tropical' flavour and contained pineapple flavouring.

Even in the supermarket I have to take extreme care not to venture near the fruit display or a trolley where the green shoots from the pineapple could potentially come into contact with my skin!

My mum used to make "marzipan" with semolina in the post war years when so much eas still rationed. However she did flavour it with almond essence which I think would be risky. Interesting that Tesco are doing a version,

One of my grandchildren had an infection following her birth. My daughter says that the hospital which is now closed was dirty. She was give a hefty dose of antibiotic when she was just a day old and my daughter suspects this may have damaged her immune system. She is severely allergic to all dairy products, eggs and sesame and is also asthmatic. She went into anaphylactic shock and nearly died when she was a few months old but fortunately they were close enough to a hospital and her life was saved. Now twelve, she carries an epipen all the time and will probably have to for the rest of her life.

I remember making coconut ice to replace marzipan on a Christmas cake, because my mother in law didn't like almond paste. It was VERY sweet - but nice!

SunnySuzie, your observations about excessive cleanliness and overuse of antibiotics has been highlighted a lot recently. I grew up on a farm with all the contact with animals and muck that goes with it and thank goodness have never been allergic to anything.
Michael Mosely has done loads of research into this and he also believes that children born by C section are missing out on their mothers immunity and should have their faces wiped over with her vaginal secretions at birth. I know, sounds a bit yuk but also logical.
You might benefit from taking a good probiotic Suzy. ProBiob Clinica has some interesting research behind it. Well worth reading.