Friday, June 01, 2007

Peanut Allergies Strike Again

This morning, I heard DJ Mike on 89.3 KSBJ talking about how his family discovered his daughter Abby Grace is allergic to peanuts. They discovered the peanut allergy in a similar fashion as we discovered Little K's... trial & error with peanut butter.

I want to share some info based on my 2-year-old daughter's peanut allergy. Much of this information was provided to us by our allergy doctor at Allergy & Asthma Associates so it's legitimate.

- Most restaurants that cook with peanut oil are actually using "heat-extracted" peanut oil which does NOT have the peanut allergen in it. Yes, ChickFilA is okay to eat. "Cold-extracted" peanut oil is very expensive so restaurants don't use it.
- Only 10% of folks with peanut allergies will outgrow the allergy. Other food allergies vary.
- Peanut allergies range on a scale of 0 (no allergy) to 6 (super allergic). However, a person's range/sensitivity to peanuts can change year to year. So, consider having Abby Grace tested by a doctor.

Whew! Now, that that's off my chest, I can get to work. Peanut allergies are very scary but living with one is doable without living in a bubble.

Until the next nap time...