Fathers Day Weekend: Trials & Triumphs of a Peanut Allergy Dad

Being the daddy of a 4 year old little girl with a severe peanut allergy that's a topic that I throw into the mix when it comes to the things I post about on this blog. I'm honored that the national food allergy advocacy group FARE selected me to be the featured DAD on their special Fathers Day Weekend Blog post this year.  Here's a tidbit from the article:

What advice would you give to other dads with kids who have food allergies?
Speak up! Most people don’t understand the seriousness and complexity of severe food allergies. I have to say that I was clueless myself until our family was impacted. You need to be your child’s most vigilant advocate by educating everyone and being willing to say no to others when it presents a risk to your child. It’s not easy or comfortable having to constantly speak up to a teacher or other parents to require and enforce rules that safeguard your child, but if you don’t do it, no else is likely to stand up for you.

Food allergies don’t make life worse, they just make it different. We actually eat healthier now because we have more of a focus on our diet. Help your family make the best of the situation!

Studies show that moms and dads react differently to food allergies in their families.  In your experience is that the case?
My wife is definitely more active in researching information concerning my daughter’s food allergy than me. She is also more protective when it comes to restricting my daughter’s activities to limit her exposure to potentially dangerous situations. I don’t want my daughter to grow up in fear of her allergy, so I am more open to allowing her to go places and try things, as long as we take precautions to be safe.  I believe my wife and I do a nice job of balancing each other’s tendencies so that my daughter can experience a childhood that is both fun and safe.

To read the full blog post visit:  http://blog.foodallergy.org/2013/06/14/trials-and-triumphs-of-a-peanut-allergy-dad/

Also, here are a few of my past peanut allergy posts from A Geek Daddy:

YES, I AM THAT DAD!!!

BEST PEANUT ALLERGY FRIENDLY TEAMS IN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL 

THE SCARIEST MOMENT OF MY LIFE

Win a $15 iTunes Gift Card: FOOD ALLERGY AWARENESS WEEK Contest

UPDATE (5/19/13): Congratulations to Z. Noras who won the FOOD ALLERGY AWARENESS WEEK Contest & has been emailed a $15 iTunes gift card code.

As readers of this Geeky Dad's blog know, I'm the father of a little girl with a severe peanut allergy.  In addition to writing about adventurous road trips, comic books, things I do with my kids, toys and parenting tips, I also try to use this blog as an educational outlet on the topic of food allergies (specifically peanut allergies).  Here are a few of my past posts about our families struggles with our daughter's food allergy:

TheScariest Moment of My Life: The Day my Daughter went into Anaphylactic Shock;

Book Review: THE GIRL WHO CANNOT EAT PEANUT BUTTER;

YES, I am THAT Dad!

BEST PEANUT ALLERGY FRIENDLY TEAMS IN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL

In recognition of Food Allergy Awareness Week (May 12 – 18), I’m hosting an iTunes giveaway contest to promote understanding of the 8 most prevalent types of food allergies and consideration for those who suffer from the problem.  Answer in the comment section a few questions involving this post and the ones listed above and you could find a $15 iTunes gift card in your mailbox.  Simple as that!

You can earn up to 6 entries in the giveaway contest from Sunday, May 12^ththrough 11:59pm EST on Friday, May 17, 2013. Here’s what you need to do for a chance to WIN (each task is one entry and please submit each task as a separate comment so you get credit for each one):

[MANDATORY ENTRY] – Register to follow my blog & leave a comment below telling me what one of the 8 most common food allergies are (hint – look for the picture in this post ). Click on JOIN THIS SITE button located between the banner ads in the column to the right of this post if the link in this paragraph doesn't work (in the grey background area next to the 8 Common Allergies Picture)

ADDITIONAL ENTRIES – You can get earn up to 5 more additional entries for completing EACH of the following (Multiple people may answer each Q 4-6 with the same Answer):

[ENTRY 2] – Follow my twitter account @geeky_dad and tell me your twitter handle in the comment section.

[ENTRY 3] – Tweet this message on twitter & post the url from your twitter feed in the comment section:

I entered the @geeky_dad FOOD ALLERGY AWARENESS WEEK Contest at www.ageekdaddy.blogspot.comto win a $15 iTunes Gift Card

[ENTRY 4] – Tell me in the comments section who I ranked as the best Major League Baseball Club when it comes to being Peanut Allergy Friendly

[ENTRY 5] – Tell me the name of the author of THE GIRL WHO CANNOT EAT PEANUT BUTTER in the comment section of this post.

[ENTRY 6] – Tell me in the comment section the name of the 19 year old college freshman who died from a peanut allergy on March 8, 2013.

CLICK HERE to comment

GOOD LUCK EVERYONE! For more information about food allergies please visit the FARE website www.foodallergy.org

Remember, you need to submit a new comment for EACH entry so each of your entries is assigned its own number and included in the random number generator selection. Also here are a few RULES for the contest:

Participants must be USA residents living in one of the 48 lower continental states.  You must register to follow & become a member of the blog to participate. It is FREE to join this blog. By participating in this contest, you agree to waive any and all claims for any injury, liabilities or damages relating in any manner to your participation in this promotion and agree to hold the contest promoter harmless for any damages that could or may occur resulting from this contest. Winner agrees to allow contest promoter to post their name and/or twitter handle on this blog & twitter identifying them as the winner of this contest. Prize will be sent via First Class U.S. Postal Service delivery upon winner selection, but the contest does not guarantee delivery after the prize has been mailed if a mishap with USPS occurs. Each comment submitted in this contest will be assigned a number and a number will be randomly generated from the total number of all valid submissions to pick a winner. A winner will be selected on May 18, 2013 or a date shortly following and will be contacted by email or twitter notify them and confirm their mailing address. Contest prize: one $15 iTunes gift card.

Disclaimer:  Neither  Apple Inc. nor iTunes is a sponsor of this contest or has any association in any manner with this promotion.  iTunes is a registered trademark of the Apple Inc. The prize has been purchased by the host of this blog for use in this contest.

YES, I am THAT Dad!

My life changed forever in a half hour time span – that was the time it went from feeding my daughter a snack of peanut butter on banana slices to being in the intensive care unit of the local hospital emergency room.  I posted awhile back about the “scariest moment of my life” when I went from being totally ignorant about food allergies to learning my daughter suffered from a life threatening case of them.  It’s been a few years since that episode when my 18 month daughter went into anaphylactic shock that caused her eyes, nose and throat to swell shut and began shutting down her vital organs.   The struggle continues everyday as we have to monitor our little girl who is now 4 years old making sure she doesn’t eat or have her skin come into contact with peanut or tree nut proteins that cause the reaction.

You would think it would be easy to just check ingredient listings to keep her safe, but unfortunately it’s not that simple because most cases of people with food allergies going into anaphylactic shock occur from contamination of a food item when it is being cooked, prepared or served rather than them eating something that had the allergen as a “ingredient.”  I love ice cream but because of the potential of contamination when making the ice cream (using same machinery to make a batch with peanut butter than another with a different flavor) or serving it (using the same scoop to put nuts on a sundae as to get a scoop of Superman for a cone) going to the local ice cream stand or Dairy Queen has become a no no for our family now.  It doesn’t have to be a noticeable ingredient to cause a reaction, a microscopic contamination could kill my daughter, put her into a coma, or cause her serious organ damage.

Take for example the recent story of 27 year old actress Chantel Giacalone who while on vacation in Las Vegas in February indulged in some ice cream at a local restaurant.  While the ice cream didn’t have any peanuts in its ingredients it somehow was contaminated and she suffered a severe allergic reaction on the spot.  Chantel has been in a coma now since Feb 20, 2013 in a Las Vegas hospital.  With no family in the area and no health insurance this is a tragic story of a young woman letting her guard down to enjoy a treat with some friends and things going horribly wrong.  This though is what people with severe food allergies have to deal with on a daily basis. CLICK HERE to read more about Chantel's story.

I didn’t realize until we had to start monitoring my daughter’s diet and interactions how prevalent food is at school and social functions.  I have become THAT Dad who has to tell people NO when it comes to providing treats at school or family functions.  We just can’t risk food prepared from a bakery or someone’s home where there could be contamination risks.  Yes that even means I have to turn down items baked by grandma because she keeps peanut butter and nuts in her kitchen to bake with when we aren’t over visiting.  I can see people’s body language when I speak up, like last week when a woman brought in cupcakes for my daughter’s preschool class for her daughter’s birthday treat from a bakery that weren’t safe and the teacher said she couldn’t give them out or when I told my aunt that she couldn’t bring cupcakes to Easter dinner for our kids from her favorite bakery, that they see me as an overprotective parent especially when something doesn’t have peanuts or tree nuts listed as an ingredient.  It is OK though, because I am going to continue to be THAT Dad and do what it takes to keep my little girl safe.

Food allergies really are a life or death matter.  Just a few weeks ago, a 19 year old freshman named Cameron Groezinger-Fitzpatrick lost his life after eating a cookie that had been baked using peanut oil.  He decided to take a chance and ate the cookie on a whim when a friend offered it to him when he was back home in the city of Plymouth Massachusetts for Spring Break from his freshman year at Bryant University.  Two hours later he was pronounced dead at a hospital emergency room on March 8, 2013.
CLICK HERE to read more about Cameron's story.

These are examples of a 27 year old woman and a 19 year old woman who knew the precautions they needed to take and still suffered horrible consequences from food allergy accidents.  Now just picture the trials parents with younger children who may not even be able to understand their medical conditions face.  Please if you know of anyone with a severe food allergy, especially children, please understand the significance of their condition, and make an extra effort to be considerate and understanding.  Your kindness will be truly appreciated and you may just save a life!

For more information about peanut/tree nut allergies visit the FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) website:  http://www.foodallergy.org/