More FA questions

[Chitowngirl]

My DS is peanut, egg, and shellfish allergic. He attends a daycare that is nut free and has since he is 7 months old. So far he had had no allergy issues and I have had no concerns. They serve him breakfast, lunch, and two snacks daily. The other day I had an interaction that concerned me. They were doing special treats for Halloween and the teacher asked me ahead of time if a certain snack would be ok. I appreciated that greatly, but during the conversation I mentioned that most brands of pretzels and raisins are "made in a factory." She was shocked as she said that they serve both those foods frequently.

Now I'm anxious. Obviously I can't be 100% sure that these weren't safe products, but I'm highly suspicious that they aren't. Complicating matters is that I'm not even 100% sure for I feel about "made in a factory foods" myself. We don't as a family avoid them 100%, but we do use them sparingly and only in certain circumstances. So, I guess I'm posting here to get some perspective from other FA parents as I'm not sure even how I feel about it and if I do want to make a change I'm not sure how to go about it. Thanks.


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[Kindra178]

As I have posted here, and per the doctor's recommendation, we avoid "made on same equipment" but do not avoid "made in same facility." We also (obviously) avoid "may contain." Ds has had mild reactions (vomiting and hives) from equipment warnings products. He has never had any reactions from facility warnings.


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[MSWR0319]

We avoid it all. There is no law requiring those statements and many companies use them differently. For some "made in a facility" means "made on shared lines". "Made on shared lines" could mean "may contain". There's absolutely no regulation and studies have shown that up to 10% of products labeled with these warnings actually contain enough peanut protein to cause a reaction in some people. Our allergist gives out a folder to new patients and it explains all of this and that you should not eat anything with a warning. Our action plan considers vomiting and hives a major reaction requiring an epi, which are reactions I've heard from other people (not only kindra178) as well with these products. I'm just not willing to chance it. I would not be comfortable with school making the call. Even if you do allow it, that's your decision to make, not theirs.

[jgenie]

We avoid anything with a warning as well. When DS2 was in preschool 2's and 3's he had a snack box that contained pretzels, animal crackers and raisins that were safe for him. When he got to preschool 4's his teacher didn't want to have to worry about him accidently getting the class supply of foods. She arranged for me to meet with the director and we sat down to look at brands of everything they provided as snack. We were able to find brands that were safe for DS2 and they changed brands for the entire school. The thought was that there were other students with the same allergy so this way everyone was safe. DS2 has always attended a nut free school luckily. His middle school won't be nut free but by then he'll be older.

[Kindra178]

We avoid it all. There is no law requiring those statements and many companies use them differently. For some "made in a facility" means "made on shared lines". "Made on shared lines" could mean "may contain". There's absolutely no regulation and studies have shown that up to 10% of products labeled with these warnings actually contain enough peanut protein to cause a reaction in some people. Our allergist gives out a folder to new patients and it explains all of this and that you should not eat anything with a warning. Our action plan considers vomiting and hives a major reaction requiring an epi, which are reactions I've heard from other people (not only kindra178) as well with these products. I'm just not willing to chance it. I would not be comfortable with school making the call. Even if you do allow it, that's your decision to make, not theirs.

I have heard about that study here but never have found it. Would love to read it. Our doctors have made clear that they are not aware of any Ana case from a facility warning, I am shocked to hear that vomiting, absent breathing symptoms, requires an epi.


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[doberbrat]

I have heard about that study here but never have found it. Would love to read it. Our doctors have made clear that they are not aware of any Ana case from a facility warning, I am shocked to hear that vomiting, absent breathing symptoms, requires an epi. Sent from my iPhone using Baby Bargains (https://siteowners.tapatalk.com/byo/displayAndDownloadByoApp?rid=87652)

One should obviously get medical advice from their own dr but I've always been taught that 2 reactions = epi pen. So Hives & vomiting. breathing & hives. facial swelling + whatever.

I'm recertified yearly as a sub in the schools and we're taught - Better to give the epi promptly than not.


ETA: For the OP I would think this is a discussion you should have w/your allergist because different kids may have different needs. The same way some kids might be ok with sitting next to someone else eating peanuts and others would have an allergic rxn just from being in the room.

[MSWR0319]

I have heard about that study here but never have found it. Would love to read it. Our doctors have made clear that they are not aware of any Ana case from a facility warning, I am shocked to hear that vomiting, absent breathing symptoms, requires an epi.


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I'll see if I can find it. Our allergist talks about it all of the time.

This is not the action plan our allergist uses, but it's ver similar. http://www.foodallergy.org/file/emergency-care-plan.pdf Their recommendation to epi with those symptoms changed a few years ago when Natalie Giorgi died from just having pb in her mouth before spitting it out. She died from a delayed reaction and delayed epi. After that, recommendations started changing. Ours were always to epi with mild symptoms, but it wasn't the preferred method until her case.

ETA: Here's an overview of the article but I'm still looking for the actual study.http://allergicliving.com/2013/12/02/advisory-labels-may-contain-confusion/1/