You’ve just taken your 6-month-old baby to the pediatrician, and they recommended you start to introduce common allergenic (something that has the potential to trigger an allergic reaction) foods like dairy, eggs, and peanuts. But what if your baby has a reaction? What does life look like with food allergies?
Food Allergies in Babies and Toddlers
My brother was diagnosed with an egg allergy when he was about a year old after taking a bite of my dad’s breakfast sandwich. This triggered a series of testing that eventually led him to be diagnosed with allergies to peanuts and cottonseed oil as well. Sometimes kids will grow out of their food allergies, but others will have them for life. At the time of a new diagnosis, it is really hard to predict whether or not your child will grow out of the allergy.
The priority at this time is keeping them safe. Fortunately, you have a lot of control over what your baby eats. It’s important to educate other family members and try to remove the allergenic food from the home if possible.
Food Allergies in Daycare and Preschool
Your allergist should provide you with an allergy action plan. This a document that will list your child’s allergies as well as how to determine if an allergy is mild, moderate, or severe — and how to manage it. You should get copies to be given to your child’s teacher and the school nurse. Your child should also have a set of two EpiPens at home and two EpiPens at school.
At the daycare and preschool age, it can be difficult for your child to fully understand their food allergies. They’re going to want to eat the same treats as the rest of their classmates. This makes it essential that the adults around them are careful and well educated about their allergies. Mistakes happen and accidental exposures are not uncommon.
One of my brother’s most notable accidental exposures was when he was in preschool; he was offered what he thought was a bowl of vanilla pudding. It turns out, someone had mistaken mayonnaise for pudding. Not only is the thought of eating a bowl of mayo disgusting but it could have been life threatening for my brother.
You are an important advocate for your child at this time. Trust but verify everything that your child is offered to eat.
Food Allergies in School-Aged Children
As your child grows older, they will start to have a better understanding of their food allergies. Encourage your child to ask questions about the foods around them. They will start to recognize what foods are safe (or not) for them to eat. Medical ID bracelets or tags are also a great idea for children in school to identify their food allergies.
As they become more social — including going to friends’ houses, playing sports, and joining clubs — this time period will have many new situations in which you and your child will need to teach others about their allergies.
Food Allergies in Adolescence
By the time your kid is a teenager, they should be a pro at their allergies. They know how to read labels themselves and identify safe and unsafe foods. Unfortunately, adolescence is also a time where kids start to partake in more risk-taking behaviors.
As my brother got older and more complacent with his food allergies, he became more careless. He would try and guess whether or not foods had egg in them rather than reading the food label or asking the waiter at a restaurant. He started doing what he called a “one bite challenge.” If he felt pretty confident that a food did not have egg, he would take one bite and wait a few minutes to see if he would have a reaction before eating any more. This is really dangerous and should be discouraged.
Adolescence is an important time to acknowledge your child’s growing independence and reinforce the importance of remaining vigilant with their food allergies and the serious consequences of an allergic reaction. They should also be carrying a set of EpiPens with them at all times. It is important that they also learn how to use the EpiPen. You are no longer their biggest advocate because they have to be that advocate for themselves.
Food Allergies and the Holidays
Children with food allergies can enjoy the holidays just like everyone else. Depending on your child’s age, you may have to help out with arrangements for younger children, such as working with hosts ahead of time to inform them of your child’s allergies and offer to bring safe dishes or a small “safe plate” in case of cross-contamination or menu uncertainty.
You may also want to teach your child some key phrases so they’re ready when someone offers them food they can’t eat or they aren’t certain it is safe to eat. This advance practice preparation will reduce anxiety in your child and avoid any inadvertent hurt feelings during holiday events.
- “I have a food allergy, so I need to be careful about what I eat.”
- “I’m allergic to [specific food], so I need to avoid it.”
- “I can’t eat that but thank you!”
- “What ingredients are in this?”
Learn More About Food Allergies
Children with food allergies can live happy and healthy lives! It just requires a little extra effort to find them their favorite safe snacks and educate those around them.
For more resources on food allergies, visit the Allergies Topic Center on KidsHealth.org.
Written by: Katie DiBello, MD, a second-year pediatric resident at Nemours Children’s Hospital, Delaware.
