We've Moved!

To better reflect the focus of our blog, we have a new name (and a new home) – Food Allergy Living at www.foodallergyliving.net. At the new address, you'll still be able to find blog entries from your favorite nutrition specialists twice a week. But you’ll also find some new goodies that will be updated once a month and distributed to subscribers as a newsletter. You’ll be able to count on a new recipe every month, submit your own questions to the nutrition specialists and see some beautiful smiles in our Neocate Faces section.

Be sure to check it all out at www.FoodAllergyLiving.net and let us know what you think. Also, don't forget to update your bookmarks and RSS feeds. See you all there!

Pediatric Food Allergies Are on the Rise

We've Moved! To better reflect the focus of our blog, we have a new name (and a new home) – Food Allergy Living at www.foodallergyliving.net. At the new address, you'll still be able to find blog entries from your favorite nutrition specialists twice a week. But you’ll also find some new goodies that will be updated once a month and distributed to subscribers as a newsletter. You’ll be able to count on a new recipe every month, submit your own questions to the nutrition specialists and see some beautiful smiles in our Neocate Faces section.

Be sure to check it all out at www.FoodAllergyLiving.net and let us know what you think. Also, don't forget to update your bookmarks and RSS feeds. See you all there!

Did you know that since 1993 childhood food allergies have increased by 18%? While some have questioned whether the increase is real, or just due to an increase in the number of cases actually reported, new research from the Centers for Disease Control suggests that the spike is real.

So what is causing more children to suffer from food allergies? An article I read yesterday from ABC News suggests that the increase could be caused by the introduction of foods to babies too early or super clean environments.

Dr. Clifford Bassett, the medical director of Allergy and Asthma Care of New York who is quoted in the article, says that one theory is that certain foods might be introduced too early to children. Even if you aren’t feeding your baby things like nuts, they might be in the creams or lotions you use on them in the form of oil.

The “hygiene hypothesis” explains another possible cause of increased allergies - super clean environments that are commonly associated with today’s medical and hygiene practices. The article cites Dr. Bill Parker of Duke University Medical Center:, "the immune system essentially lacks a normal workload... however, [it] does what it is built to do, and finds something to attack, often directing its attention toward such harmless things as pollen grains ... even healthy food."

Who knew that being so clean was a bad thing!

Hopefully these new findings will help highlight the seriousness of food allergies and the need for food allergy treatments. Would love to hear your thoughts on the study – make sure to let us know what you’re thinking in the comments section.

-Nita

Why I'm Thankful - Part 2

We've Moved! To better reflect the focus of our blog, we have a new name (and a new home) – Food Allergy Living at www.foodallergyliving.net. At the new address, you'll still be able to find blog entries from your favorite nutrition specialists twice a week. But you’ll also find some new goodies that will be updated once a month and distributed to subscribers as a newsletter. You’ll be able to count on a new recipe every month, submit your own questions to the nutrition specialists and see some beautiful smiles in our Neocate Faces section.

Be sure to check it all out at www.FoodAllergyLiving.net and let us know what you think. Also, don't forget to update your bookmarks and RSS feeds. See you all there!

You may have read Sarah’s “Why I’m Thankful” post last week. If you missed it, we are doing a series this month where we each share what we are thankful for in our own lives. This week is my turn!

I’m thankful to be living in a time with such advanced medical care. Every day I work with families of children whose lives depend on a special food or a special way of receiving nutrients. It scares me to wonder what happened to these children before we had such technology. Some of our Neocate users are allergic to just about everything. Before there were amino acid-based formulas, how could these children thrive or in some severe cases, even survive?

This issue also touches me on a personal level. My little sister, Caroline, has special needs and has depended on various products of technology throughout her life. When she was little, it was a struggle to get enough calories into her and she grew very weak, falling further and further off the growth charts. Her doctor prescribed Duocal, which allowed her to get enough calories to maintain weight and stay healthy. She now has a feeding tube due to dysphagia (swallowing problems) and she is doing great with it! The development of enteral nutrition has allowed children who can’t physically ingest food to get all the nutrients they need to survive and thrive – another great example of an obstacle that medical advancements have allowed us to overcome!

How have medical advancements/technology been a blessing to your family?

- Mallory

Tips for Talking to Your Doctor

We've Moved! To better reflect the focus of our blog, we have a new name (and a new home) – Food Allergy Living at www.foodallergyliving.net. At the new address, you'll still be able to find blog entries from your favorite nutrition specialists twice a week. But you’ll also find some new goodies that will be updated once a month and distributed to subscribers as a newsletter. You’ll be able to count on a new recipe every month, submit your own questions to the nutrition specialists and see some beautiful smiles in our Neocate Faces section.

Be sure to check it all out at www.FoodAllergyLiving.net and let us know what you think. Also, don't forget to update your bookmarks and RSS feeds. See you all there!

Talking to you doctor isn’t always easy, but it is an important part of getting good health care - especially when you are trying to figure out what is bothering your little one and get them quickly diagnosed and treated. You want to make sure you arrive for your visit prepared with the right information and ask plenty of questions. I wanted to share a few tips that can help you get ready for your next visit to the pediatrician, GI or allergist.

1. Keep a diary of your little ones symptoms: what they are, when they started, how frequent and if certain foods or medicines make them worse.
2. Make sure they know what different formulas and medicines you have already tried and what affect they had (i.e. did they make some symptoms better and others worse?).
3. If there is a particular type of treatment (formula, medication) that you are interested in, bring information about it in case the doctor hasn’t heard of it. There are so many different options out there, and your doc may or may not be familiar with all of them.
4. Make sure that you completely understand your doctor’s explanations and instructions for new treatments. I get so many questions from parents who don’t understand their doctor’s instructions about mixing formula or transitioning onto Neocate.
5. Call ahead to see if there are any tests scheduled and how you need to prepare. For example, a lot of GI docs like to test stool samples so bringing one in with you can save some time in the waiting room!

Is there anything else that you have found helpful before visiting your doc? I know of some moms who have even taken videos and pictures so that their docs can get a better sense of their children’s symptoms. What worked for you?

-Nita

Why I'm Thankful

We've Moved!To better reflect the focus of our blog, we have a new name (and a new home) – Food Allergy Living at www.foodallergyliving.net. At the new address, you'll still be able to find blog entries from your favorite nutrition specialists twice a week. But you’ll also find some new goodies that will be updated once a month and distributed to subscribers as a newsletter. You’ll be able to count on a new recipe every month, submit your own questions to the nutrition specialists and see some beautiful smiles in our Neocate Faces section.

Be sure to check it all out at www.FoodAllergyLiving.net and let us know what you think. Also, don't forget to update your bookmarks and RSS feeds. See you all there!

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, Nita, Christine, Mallory and I thought it would be fun to do a series of blog entries on what we are thankful for in our own lives. I’m going to kick it off today, but be sure to check in each Thursday in November for a new “Why I’m Thankful” post.

I am thankful for the knowledge and experience that I have gained by working at Nutricia. I not only have the privilege to help families find relief for their babies, but I was also able to put my knowledge to use with my own child, Reagan. After 7 weeks of allergy-related reflux and colic, Reagan was also able to find relief with Neocate and my husband and I were able to find a little more assurance in ourselves as new parents…….and also a tad more rest!

After hearing from parents every day about what a long journey it is for them to finally find relief (usually 3-4 months), I was grateful that Reagan found comfort in just 7 weeks (which felt like an eternity at the time). I returned from maternity leave feeling even more empowered to help other mothers because I now understand first hand how desperate and exhausting these situations can be. It brought my job to a whole new level and I am thrilled to be able to have an opportunity to share my knowledge and become a resource to other families in these situations.

I was also able to help my niece, Maya who was diagnosed with a milk allergy and ended up on Neocate shortly after Reagan. Reagan and Maya are now 16 and 14 months old and have both grown out of their allergy and reflux issues. They are happy and healthy babies which I could not be more grateful for!

What are you thankful for this year? I would love to hear about your families!

-Sarah

Food Allergy News Roundup

We've Moved!

To better reflect the focus of our blog, we have a new name (and a new home) – Food Allergy Living at www.foodallergyliving.net. At the new address, you'll still be able to find blog entries from your favorite nutrition specialists twice a week. But you’ll also find some new goodies that will be updated once a month and distributed to subscribers as a newsletter. You’ll be able to count on a new recipe every month, submit your own questions to the nutrition specialists and see some beautiful smiles in our Neocate Faces section.

Be sure to check it all out at www.FoodAllergyLiving.net and let us know what you think. Also, don't forget to update your bookmarks and RSS feeds. See you all there!

While I’m always paying attention to stories about food allergies, I’ve noticed lately there have been even more articles than usual in the media, which is great. More stories helps to increase awareness and educate the public about how serious food allergies can be as well as some of the signs/symptoms people should look for if they suspect an allergy. Below are just a few of some of the articles and posts about food allergies from the past few weeks that have caught my attention.

How – and How Not – To Diagnose A Food Allergy
Have you been thinking about having your child tested for food allergies? Before heading to the allergist check out this entry from The Washington Post’s “Checkup” blog. It talks about the benefits of formal allergy testing and gives some helpful information about the different types of diagnostic tests from the Food Allergy Initiative.

A Family That Takes It’s Food Allergies Seriously
I always think it is amazing when kids are out in the community raising awareness about their food allergies. The Boston Globe reported last week on Spencer and Zoe Cohen. Between the two, they are allergic to nuts, fish, soy, mangoes, bananas, carrots, broccoli, and lettuce! The siblings traveled to the FAAN Kids Congress last month where they met with lawmakers to lobby for the FAAMA Act which could help fund more food allergy research.

A Next-Generation Epi-Pen is unveiled
Dey Pharma, the makers of Epi-Pen, released a new more user-friendly Epi-Pen. If your little one needs one, don’t forget to read our tips for Epi-Pen safety. Hopefully you will never need to use one, but it is always best to be prepared for an emergency situation!

Trained Dog Warns Child with Allergy to Peanuts
We blogged about a new furry trend in food allergy safety - food allergy dogs - a few weeks ago. Now USA Today is telling the story of the Rine family whose adorable Portuguese water dog Nicco helps their son Ethan avoid peanuts. Right now these dogs are expensive because of the high cost of their extensive training, but they are helping keep kids safe. Perhaps as they become more common, the cost will go down and they will be more affordable.

Have you read any interesting news or tips recently? If so, share them with us in the comments!

-Christine