Working Hard for a Cure

Today I'm going to talk about what kind of food allergy research scientists are doing, what they hope to find, and when they'll find a permanent cure to food allergies.

Food allergies seem as though they'll never go away! They're like a scar. Scars never go away, no matter what. But, there is one way to get rid of an allergy for good. The term for it is outgrowing. If you would like to learn more about outgrowing food allergies, you can check out my food allergy book that I put on an earlier post. But what scientists really want is a cure for food allergies, since outgrowing can only happen to some people.

There was a recent food allergy study that helped many children. What they did was scientists surveyed food allergy families. This was done during July 2013, and they figured out the following pieces of information:

• A little more than a quarter of the children—26.6%—outgrew their allergies, at an average age of 5.4 years old.    
• Children who were allergic to milk, egg, or soy were most likely to outgrow their allergies. The likelihood of outgrowing shellfish, tree nut, and peanut allergies was significantly lower.           
• The earlier a child’s first reaction, the more likely that child was to outgrow the allergy.
• Black children were less likely to outgrow their allergy than white children.
• Boys were more likely to outgrow their allergy than girls.

These doctors/scientists conclude that this data will help food allergy families in need.

Oral Immunotherapy is also something that is helping people with food allergies. Oral Immunotherapy, or O.I.T for short, is when the food allergen is administered slowly but steadily in increasing amounts into you, until you are desensitized (Desensitization means that a person can consume a small amount of a problem food without experiencing a reaction.) This analysis is helping people with peanut, walnut (tree nut), and other food allergies. The scientists's goal is to be able to do this on each of the main food allergies: dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, eggs, wheat, soy, fish, shellfish.

To learn more about a leading cure to food allergies, visit the FARE website at: 

http://www.foodallergy.org/

I Need Your Advice!

Okay, sorry about last week. I didn't post, and this week is kind of a weird post. It isn't something that's about food allergies, but it will be a big help in the future for my posts.

I would like your advice on what I should post about! Say you want to know about something that I haven't posted about. If you want to learn more about that topic, you can either leave it in the comment section below, or you can e-mail me (if you know my e-mail address). It would be more convenient if you told me your idea(s) through the computer because if you tell me in person, I will probably forget to write about it.

I can't wait to hear all of your great ideas!

What Do YOU Think?

There's been a question going around. This is the question:

How old should a kid be to carry his/her own medications?

Well, first of all it depends on how responsible the child is. In my opinion, a little kid shouldn't be allowed to carry a drug. I think this because it's not safe for someone not very experienced to carry around a shot. Plus, if an older kid loses a lot of things, it probably isn't the best idea to trust them with something so important.

Something else to consider is how many after-school activities the child has. If they have an activity, such as cross country, where they'll be moving around a lot, the child, coach, and his/her parents will need to discuss if carrying an Epi-pen is appropriate. I carry my medications in a fancy little belt that I can buckle around my waist while I'm running. There's a picture of that handy little bag below.

Another point is if any of the kid's allergens are around during an after-school activity, school, etc. If there will be and the kid is going to be with adults that don't know how to use an Epi-pen, it is essential that the kid carries the medicine!

One, actually two more things to think about. If the child wants to carry the Epi-pen around all the time or just some of the time is up to him/her. I carry mine around almost all the time. Lastly, HOW DO YOU CARRY A DRUG??!! Actually, there are lots of choices. You can carry it in your purse if you are a little older and actually carry a purse or bag. But what I use (as mentioned above) is a pink belt. I just think it's the easiest option.

So, my final answer is that it all depends on what's above. I hope this was helpful to you. Please leave a comment on what YOU think below!



                                                 

Me running with

my pink belt mentioned above.

Perfect for carrying my medicine!                                                

Lunch Situation

In the previous post, I wrote about snack in the classroom and how I handle it. Well, today I'm going to talk about lunch the same way I did for snack!

Lunch has a few more challenges than snack, because kids are allowed to bring in whatever food they want. To keep me safe, I eat at the end of the table so the lunch/recess aids can keep an eye on me. I also eat lunch and keep my lunchbox on a tray. The tray is bright red and it has my name on it. Unlike the navy blue trays the school lunches come on, mine looks different so everyone can tell it apart. Anyone can sit next to me or across from me, even if they have one of my allergens.

Kids act extra cautious when I ask them to sit next to me. They usually say something like "No, I have cheese on my sandwich. I don't want to kill you!" I tell them then, "You won't kill me. Just don't touch me and I'll be fine." I just have to explain it to them. Then they understand.

Of course, I have to have a plan on what I would do if something spills on me. Usually, that doesn't happen. But it has. What I do is I go to the nurse, wash it off, and get some medicine, called Benadryl, on the spot that my allergen touched me. That's all there is to it!

In the past few years, I've sat at the special peanut-free table. But, then I couldn't sit with any on my friends. In older school years, I've sat with my tray, but nobody could sit next to or across from me. So, I like it the way it is this year because my friends can sit with me.

Who knows what it'll be like when I leave elementary school and go to the middle school next year. New challenges await me. But for now, I've got plenty of challenges in 6th grade. Talk to you later!

Snack Situation

Hi guys! Sorry I haven't written since December. I guess you could say I've been a bit busy with the holidays and school.

In 6th grade, we have snack-time right after that day's special class: P.E. (gym), art, music, or media (library). Of course, students aren't allowed to bring in chocolates, goldfish, trail mix, cheese puffs, etc. So, how my teacher, my parents and I keep me safe is that we made a snack list. The list had treats and foods that the class is allowed to bring in. Each snack, from fresh fruit to gummy snacks, my mom had specified what brand(s) are safe and what brands aren't. She's talked to each of my teachers since first grade (or possibly before that!) and worked out a way to maintain the kids bringing in safe food for eating. The way it is this year is my teacher stands outside in the hallway, close to the door of the classroom, with me. As kids get their snacks from their locker and walk into the room, I check to make sure that the snack is safe. If I know it isn't, I say, "Save it for lunch time!" If I'm not sure about the food, then I read the ingredient label to determine if it has anything bad in it. If it doesn't have an ingredient label, then I say, "Nope, sorry, not allowed!" When we have a substitute teacher, I do the same thing as if the real teacher was there, but I do it completely on my own.

So, sometimes snacks are a challenge, but I can handle it!

My Food Allergy Book

This is my book. It has lots of information in it. I made it in 5th grade. Sorry about the spelling/grammar mistakes!

Where You Least Expect It

One day, my mom was looking at face washes in a store. She chose a face wash and started to read the ingredient label. She reads EVERY label. Some of you might think that it's not necessary to read labels on things like face washes, but it's a good thing my mom did read the ingredients! The second ingredient on the list were crushed walnut shells. Walnuts are a type of tree nut, and I'm severely allergic to tree nuts!

 I'm touch sensitive, which means when one of my allergens, such as milk, touches my skin, I have an allergic reaction. Usually I just get rashes and occasionally ecxema (an extra itchy rash with a bump in the middle), so I don't have to go to the hospital or even take my Epi-pen. If my mom hadn't read the ingredient label on that face wash, there wound've been some pretty gross consequences. My face probably wound've gone bright red, itchy, and splotchy, although the symptoms could be anything. Note to all people with food allergies: Read all ingredient labels!