Brittany Mahomes has been all over social media lately – and not just for her husband’s drive to win the Super Bowl or her blossoming friendship with Taylor Swift.
Brittany, the wife of Kansas City Chiefs’ quarterback Patrick Mahomes and a women’s soccer team co-owner, is using her profile to raise food allergy awareness. The cause is clearly close to her heart – both the Mahomes’ daughter Sterling, who’s almost 3, and 1-year-old Patrick (nicknamed Bronze) have food allergies.
With Bronze, Brittany relates on Instagram that she had “one of the scariest experiences of my life.” In the summer of 2023, at 8 months old, the infant began having an anaphylactic reaction.
Brittany began her allergy advocacy by leading a fundraising drive for FARE, the food allergy non-profit. (This included her own contribution of $100,000.) Now, she is raising awareness of using epinephrine through a partnership with AUVI-Q, the compact epinephrine auto-injector.
On Instagram, Brittany shared the above video. In it, she discusses that “the safety of your child is always the most important thing when you’re out and about. I do always have my AUVI-Q on me … to be confident knowing that it is there if we need it.”
Brittany Details ‘Scariest Day’
As part of her partnership with AUVI-Q, Brittany has been doing select media appearances. On “The Kelly Clarkson Show” on January 26, Brittany for the first time gave the full details of Bronze’s frightening reaction.
Brittany told Kelly Clarkson that she had been gradually introducing new foods to her son. “We got through milk; we got through eggs. But on the first day with peanuts, within minutes, he started to get fussy.” Thinking her son might just be tired, Brittany explained that she decided to put him to bed early.
“I took his diaper off and he had hives everywhere. Within minutes, it began to cover his whole body.” Brittany said her child was also swelling.
“In the back of my mind, I’m going ‘oh my God, it’s going to his throat, we need to go to the emergency room.'” She used an AUVI-Q auto-injector, went to the emergency room, and “he was fine.”
Food Allergy Takeaway Messages
While the campaign with AUVI-Q is a paid partnership, Brittany is making important points about reactions and epinephrine in younger children. These include that the brand makes an 0.1 milligram device specifically for infants and toddlers weighing 16.5 to 33 pounds. (It’s the only such injector available.)
and their kids. Credit: @brittanylynne
She notes in the video that it’s also important to raise awareness of what a severe reaction looks like in young children.
“Based on my experience, I can tell you that a severe reaction may not look how you think it should look.”
At Allergic Living, we commend Brittany Mahomes using her voice to help raise awareness of food allergies. She is getting across the messages that these allergies can be life-threatening, and the importance of having and using epinephrine.
In the text accompanying her Instagram post with the video, Brittany thanks food allergy parents for an outpouring of support after her experience with Bronze. She also shares a highly relatable message: “Like all moms, my kids’ safety and happiness is my number one priority.”
Related Reading:
Ask the Allergist: How Do I Recognize an Allergic Reaction in a Baby?
Allergic Living’s Guide: All About Epinephrine
