Sam's Story
Samantha Yaffe’s frank take on motherhood with allergies
By Samantha Yaffe
Entry 16: An Asthma Plan? What Asthma Plan?
Our allergic journey is anything but predictable. But until last week, I was relatively confident with my system for allergy management, and the second nature of my vigilance. As it goes, every person who looks after Lucas gets my thorough EpiPen tutorial and a line-by-line explanation of his Allergy Action Plan, which covers all the bases, including the difference between an anaphylactic reaction and an asthmatic one.
In addition to allergies to peanuts, tree nuts, egg and a host of other foods, animals and enviro elements, Lucas is asthmatic. But we don’t carry his puffers unless we’re traveling or going somewhere with animals, which we tend to avoid or really prepare for since he’s so severely allergic to dogs, cats.... More
Gluten-free Girl
By Shauna James Ahern
This is Not
a Fad Diet
You must have noticed it, too. Suddenly everywhere – the words “gluten-free” appear. They’re on packages of foods and bottles of beer and advertising supplements for grocery chains.
Companies that produce food have begun to take notice of those of us who cannot eat gluten. According to a report by Packaged Facts, a market research company for the food and beverage industry, the gluten-free foods market in the United States has grown an average of 28 per cent annually.... More
ask the celiac expert
By Shelley Case, RD
Q Is the gluten-free diet also good for those without celiac? More
ask the allergists
With Dr. Susan Waserman
and Dr. Wade Watson
Q My son is allergic to peanuts, tree nuts and all seeds. I’m curious about seed allergies: why is sesame viewed as a major allergen and declared in the ingredients of foods while sunflower seeds and oil are not? More
editor's note
By Gwen Smith
It’s Time to Stop
Mocking Allergies
It has become fashionable of late to mock food allergies as a “trendy” condition, a construct of over-protective parents or attention-seeking adults. I simply can’t think of any other serious, sometimes life-threatening condition that is dissed more often.
Take last month, for instance. There we were smack in the middle of Food Allergy Awareness month: the Food Allergy Initiative in New York had.... More
hot topics
By Laurie Harada
Executive Director of Anaphylaxis Canada
Martyr Mom No More
When my son, Julian, was diagnosed with peanut allergy years ago, I faced the news alone. My husband Victor could not come to the allergist’s appointment as he had a business commitment. Overwhelmed by the thought of possibly losing our child, I had a meltdown when I called Victor later. Sobbing, I explained: “He could die from this allergy if we‘re not careful.... More
