Tracy Iseminger
Regardless of the severity, it goes without saying that you should be taking care of your body if you’re suffering from a food allergy. Not doing so can have moderate to severe consequences including death. For people who are just discovering their food allergies, managing can be difficult. We found this to be true recently when we discovered my daughters gluten intolerance. We found a few things helpful in our food allergy journey so I thought I’d share a few tips for dealing with food allergies.
Tips for Dealing with Food Allergies:
Reading Labels
Food labels don’t just contain nutritional information, they are also an indicator of the ingredients present in that food item. Quite often, these ingredients will have uncommon names so consult your doctor on what you should be looking for when checking out the ingredient list. Look for the specified “allergen” list following the list of ingredients.
Stock Up
You know how the saying goes: It’s better to have something, and not need it than need it, than not to have it. When you find foods that are allergy friendly, stock up when you see sales so you always have them on hand! Allergen friendly food tends to be a bit spendy so utilize coupons and buy in bulk when possible. Check your health food stores and shop online for a larger selection.
Cooking Measures
It’s common for families to have only one or two people suffering from a particular food allergy and the rest having an allergen-free diet. If you don’t eliminate the allergen-containing foods from your home, consider preventing cross-contamination by taking some cooking measures. This means having separate clean food prep areas as well as separate cooking utensils and cutlery so you don’t end up cutting peanut butter with a knife and using the same knife to cut the veggies.
Join Support Groups
You are not alone in dealing with food allergies. Try joining a support group to get advice from others dealing with the same allergies. Facebook Groups are one of the easiest places online to connect with others in your same situation.
Follow Allergen Friendly Food Bloggers
Chances are there is a blog dedicated to cooking for your food allergy. Connect with bloggers who are in your situation and use their blogs to find new recipes and answer your questions. Most bloggers who spend their time publishing this content want to be helpful so don’t be afraid to reach out to them in comments or on their social media profiles.
Medical ID Bracelet
If your food allergies are severe, consider wearing a medical bracelet. In the event a reaction does happen in public, people around you should be aware of your condition so you can receive immediate medical attention.
Adrenaline Injection
Epinephrine, commonly known as adrenaline, is used to prevent anaphylaxis. Again, if you have severe allergies, carrying an Epi-Pen is critical. You and those near you need to be trained to use it in order to provide you with the relief from the reaction. This also means that you’ll need to carry the injector with you at all times.
What are some of your own tips for dealing with food allergies?
We’d love for you to share!
