When Your Child Has Food Allergies: A Parent's Guide to Managing It All - From the Everyday to the Extreme

by Mireille Schwartz

Keeping kids safe takes vigilance. But when your child has food allergies, the challenge is greater and you worry that much more.

As a food-allergy mom (and someone seriously allergic herself), author Mireille Schwartz has been through it all. Now, in this clear, reassuring guide she helps you get a handle on food allergies, establish new routines, and restore peace and order to family life. You'll learn to:

Spot the signs and symptoms of an allergic reaction ● Navigate testing and diagnosis ● Decipher ingredient labels, keeping an eye out for "hidden" allergens ● Allergy-proof your whole home—not just the kitchen ● Create an emergency kit and an allergy action plan ● Make school a safe and enjoyable environment ● Find lunchbox substitutions your kid will like ● Deal with restaurants, playdates, birthday parties, holidays, and other group celebrations ● Plan for safe travels—from summer camp to family getaways ● And more.

From protecting your child to teaching them to take care of themselves, When Your Child Has Food Allergiescovers it all so your life can get back to normal.

Genres: Parenting

240 pages, Paperback

Published April 20, 2017

About the author

Mireille Schwartz is CEO of the Bay Area Allergy Advisory Board, a contributor to CNN Health and Yahoo News, and columnist for Allergic Living. Schwartz, her parents, her brother, and her daughter all have serious food allergies.

Reviews

[Becky]

First sentence: This is a book written by a parent, for parents. So it is full of practical, honest, first hand information about how to cope, and thrive, with a child who has a chronic food allergy.

Premise/plot: Who is the book for? Parents, primarily. But also grandparents, aunts and uncles, teachers, and dare I say food service workers? What is it about? Food allergies. Specifically it is about how to create safe environments for children with food allergies. It deals with home environments--going beyond just the kitchen. It deals with school environments. It deals with eating out at restaurants, going to holiday or birthday parties, going on vacation, flying on airplanes, etc. It teaches parents how to be advocates and protect their children from allergens. It isn't always going to work, however, so each and every chapter--in reality more like every few pages--the message is always, always, always have an epi-pen with you; always contact 911 and get help if you're having a reaction.

The book is divided into four sections: "What You Need to Know," "Ways You Can Offer Support," "How Your Child Can Live Fully and Safely," and "Ways You Can Protect Your Child."

The big eight are: milk, eggs, finned fish, crustacean shellfish, peanuts, tree nuts, wheat, and soy.

The book contains several lists: "Mild Early Warning Signs," "General Symptoms of Food Allergies," "When to Call an Ambulance," "Symptoms of Anaphylaxis," and "Symptoms of Eosinophilic Esophagitis."

My thoughts: I thought this one was packed with a lot of information. It covers every area--at least every area that I can think of. It deals with diagnosis, symptoms, medical treatments, emergency care, emergency preparedness. It deals with how to talk with your child, with family members, with friends, with parents of your child's friends, with teachers, with principals, with school nurses, with waiters, with chefs, with babysitters, with anyone and everyone that might come into contact with your child. Don't keep your child's allergies private, tell anyone and everyone. You never know.

I thought the book was thorough. I had heard of cross-contamination. But I'd not thought of how this might involve pets and pet food. I had heard of the Big 8--the eight foods that are the most common allergens. But I'd not thought of looking for the big eight outside of food. For example, some inks contain soy!

This book definitely drives home the message that everything--every little thing, every big thing--takes deliberate thought and planning once someone in your home has an allergy. The book mainly deals with severe allergies which are a matter of life and death. The book mentions in passing milder allergies which are not life threatening but are still uncomfortable and best avoided. For example, a severe allergy reaction would lead to a person not being able to breathe. A milder allergic reaction might be breaking out in hives. You won't die from hives, but, certainly you don't want to purposefully expose yourself to anything that will lead to them!!!

[Brigitte Ayerves Valderas]

When my brother discovered his peanut allergy, he was a teen. At first, my mother had the impression that he wasn’t trying to finish his dinner. He struggled to explain the discomfort he was filling in his throat, which quickly elevated to a point where he felt he could barely breathe. Once the nature of his #allergy was revealed, my family and I took extra steps to become more aware of what was in his food as well as ours.

So, as I read Mirelle Schwartz describe her daughter’s strong reaction to unknowingly consuming food she was allergic to, I completely understand Schwartz's level of fear.

While reading Schwartz's book, "When Your Child Has Food Allergies," I found myself becoming more aware of the foods that I offered my four-year-old nephew. For instance, one night I was eating General Tso shrimp for dinner while my nephew munched on his chicken nuggets. He turned and started to stare at my food. His curiosity perked, and like many kids his age, he wanted to taste the food I was eating. As a loving Aunt, I instantly shared my food. Once I put a sample on his plate, I instantly heard the sound of a record scratching in my head, and I thought: "whoa, what if he has an allergic reaction to #shellfish." Fortunately, I recalled my sister-in-law saying he didn’t have any allergies. Regardless, my level of awareness was raised.

Food allergies are a discovery, and sometimes the revelation can go from concerning to downright frightening. Schwartz shares how she has several #foodallergies herself, and how it has affected her life. Severe reactions to her food allergies as well as her daughter’s allergies have altered how she approaches their daily routine. Each day involves a great deal of preparation as well as an extreme vigilance. Her book addresses nearly every instance where having a food allergy can alter behavior. She reveals how a food allergy or allergies can become a constant participant in any activity. It’s present in nearly all relationships and events, such as holiday gatherings.

Schwartz researched her topic well. She provides recent and relevant facts, and she considers nearly every lifestyle change as a result of having a severe food allergy. This book is a good resource to have on hand whether or not your child has a severe reaction to certain foods.

It will help you to further your understanding of food allergies and become well informed when preparing food for family, friends, and associates.

[Nicola]

I've read quite a few allergy books over the last six months. One of the things that I like about this one is that it is well-structured and has a good layout (kudos to the editor!). Some of them can have good nuggets of content but hidden in a frustratingly badly laid out book. This has a logical progression of information, good page layout, clear headings, and logical chapters. It's written by a mother with allergies, and whose child has allergies, and is not written in conjunction with a paediatric doctor specialising in allergies, however, it is well referenced to various studies and appears accurate.

The focus is on allergies (rather than intolerances) with lots of useful parenting advice - including a section on how to encourage teens to keep safe while socialising and dating!

**I'm also grateful for the reviews on allergy-related picture books! I've put in a request for our city's library system to buy the No Biggie Bunch picture book series :)

[Shana]

*I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in return for my honest and fair review. * As the mom of a kid with multiple severe food allergies, I found this book helpful and reassuring. To be honest I ant my family and close friends to read it too. I loved the matter of fact way it was written (i.e. When in doubt use the epi pen!) and LOVED the books and resources listed for how to talk to your kids about food allergies. There was great advice for talking about dating and helping them to learn to eat out alone, etc. It literally addressed all my fears. Like Halloween or birthdays for example. Also some handy recipes. Love this book. Thanks. NetGalley.

[Rachel Wood]

A harrowing read for a parent with a newly diagnosed food allergic child in that the author points out all the places your child can come into contact with their allergen(s) and sometimes there’s nothing you as the parent can do about it. But this is also a book that every parent, caretaker, teacher, and anyone else who spends any amount of time with food allergic kiddos should read. The amount of information on food allergies is simultaneously (and shockingly) lacking and overwhelming, and reading this book is a good first step in sorting through the information and considering how to apply a food allergy diagnosis throughout your child’s life.

[Deb Atwood]

A very practical guide to parents of food allergic children. I read this book as research, and count myself lucky that my children do not suffer from life-threatening food allergies. When Your Child Has Food Allergies contains the perfect blend of warnings balanced by practical advice for keeping children healthy and social despite their limitations.

[Alisha Mooney]

Definitely validated my anxieties of being a “food allergic parent” and provided a lot of incredible insight and tips into the new life we’ve stumbled upon as my son has been diagnosed with an anaphylactic milk allergy.

[Mary]

This book is mainly for people who live in the USA and have done none or very little research about the topic prior reading this book.