Living With An Allergy to Nuts Requires Avoidance and Carrying Medication

Despite the challenges of living with a nut allergy, it can be done

Those with nut allergies tend to be diagnosed as children. They are at an age when their parents must take special precautions to make sure that their child avoids nuts. Parents can take the extra time needed to do peanut free baking and making treats without nuts. After the child is diagnosed as having this allergy, her mom and dad need to begin to read every food label very carefully before allowing the child to eat the food.

It takes a precautionary attitude to live with nut allergies

Because nut allergies can be life threatening, the key to successfully living with a peanut or nut allergy is to NOT eat any food that could possibly contain nuts. Which foods are they? The list is long and includes foods with hidden nuts. Sauces, chili, and many baked foods have ground nuts that are not easily identified. These could be foods at restaurants, food stands at festivals or carnivals, school lunches and treats that a child's friends want to share. When you have nut allergies, it is better to pass up the food than to risk having a severe reaction.

Learn to substitute other foods for nuts

Parents of children with a nut or peanut allergy have found many ways to keep their child happy and not feel singled out when others in a group of kids are eating. Kids can take sunflower seed butter on a sandwich instead of peanut butter, and they can
take their own snack of safe foods any time that children are eating together. Fruits or vegetables, cheese sticks, and other items are healthy alternatives.

Learning about nut allergies and foods to avoid is a continuing process

Parents will want to keep reading labels and learning more about ways that nuts are hidden in many kinds of foods. As public awareness increases over the dangers of nut and peanut allergies, more companies are listing whether peanuts are produced in the same place as no-nut foods.

Educate your child and everyone who comes in contact with her

One of the best ways to be sure that your child is safe is to begin teaching her at a young age which foods are safe to eat. Relatives and friends, day care centers, preschools, and schools that provide snacks or meals also need to be made aware of which foods are safe for your child to eat. Young children need to be supervised to be sure that they are not eating foods from their friend that could cause an allergic reaction. By school age, parents need to work with the teacher, principal, and others to ensure their child's safety.

Be prepared for mistakes or emergencies

Despite all of the precautions that parents take, a child of any age could accidentally eat a nut product and experience a dangerous reaction. Any adult in charge of your child should have immediate access to medication in an auto-injector carrying cases that can stop a life threatening reaction. Older children will eventually learn to use these by themselves, but younger children will be dependent on the adults around them.