We went to the allergy specialist today to determine the course of action for my daughter's probably peanut allergy. After a brief discussion of what happened two weeks ago after touching peanut butter, Dr. Kurt Peeters agreed she probably is actually allergic. Apparently, many adults claim food allergies. "Surveys show that aboutone-third of all adults believe they have food allergies. Yet true food allergy is estimated to affect less than two percent of the population."*
Little K will have blood tests next week to confirm her probable allergy and then we'll return to Dr. Peeters office on 2/20 for the results. Yeah! In the mean time, we're avoiding peanuts and peanut products except heat extracted peanut oil, which is safe from the peanut allergen. I thought it was especially interesting to discover that regular chocolate M&Ms contain crushed peanuts in the shell. I've emailed the manufacturer to confirm but if the food allergy doctor tells me this, I'm betting he's right. Thank goodness we can still get our little (and big) hands on plenty of other chocolate! (What's life without chocolate, I say!)
Thanks for your kind thoughts & well wishes as the not-allergic-to-any-food Mom navigates the food allergy world. I'd love to hear your comments & thoughts on this topic, too, so email me or share your comments on this blog.
Until the next nap time...
* Source: "Understanding Food Allergy" by the American Academy of Allergy & Immunology
