13 Responses

  1. Janessa says:

    The thing about dairy is so so true. Even restaurants don’t take it seriously. One place told me “Well, you’ll just get a sore stomach, right?”, which is extremely frustrating in itself. Most places don’t even know if there’s dairy in their meals.

  2. […] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Marla and Cybele Pascal, Cybele Pascal. Cybele Pascal said: Check out Food Allergens: Which Are Most And Least Familiar? video @ http://www.cybelepascal.com/?p=1771 […]

  3. Maryellen Hughes says:

    One that I think people are NOT familiar with is mustard. My son’s worst reaction was to mustard. Scary because it’s hidden away in things like salad dressing and such.

  4. Janessa:

    It’s because they don’t understand the difference between a food allergy and lactose intolerance, don’t you think? It’s interesting, because I think statistically, dairy is actually the most common allergy of all.

    thanks for your comment. Do you have any other allergies?

    best,

    Cybele

  5. Maryellen:

    I have heard they’re going to add it to the list of top allergens in Canada, because it’s become so common. But you’re right, it’s totally overlooked. Another I just learned of myself is celery, which is supposedly very common in England. Have you heard this?

    best,
    Cybele

  6. Janessa says:

    Dairy, honey (and bees), as well as latex. I’m intolerant to quite a few different foods, citrus and potatoes being the two major ones. I’m also intolerant to a lot of different additives they put in processed foods, especially MSGs! Thankfully my mom is a nurse and always cooked organic for us growing up, and that included meats, so we always had free range hormone free beef, chicken and bison.

    The doctors believe that most of our allergies stem from my mom being on medication for chron’s disease before we were born. My brothers are both severely intolerant to fructose, though they’ve gotten better as they’ve gotten older.

    My dairy allergy is the worst since I’m also asthmatic and I get sick for ages with it. The biggest problem I have is finding the time to cook the proper meals. I work 3/4 time and am finishing my education degree so I usually just end up eating crap by the time I get home.

  7. Winnie says:

    I have two daughters, currently 4 and 2, with food allergy. My older daughter is allergic to milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish — the first three in the list being most severe (life threatening). I agree with you that people may not be aware of the fact that food allergy other than peanuts can be just as severe.

    My younger daughter is allergic to wheat, rye, and sunflower seeds. Her doctor told me that since sunflower seeds butter is more commonly available now (as people use it as a substitute for peanut butter), more people find out that they are actually allergic to sunflower seeds. We wouldn’t have found out about that if we didn’t have a jar of sunflower seeds butter at home for my older daughter..

  8. Chris Obringer says:

    Also alot of people don’t know about yeasts!!!!! it can be in microwave popcorns (the flavored ones) and salad dressings,and that is just to name a few that most people don’t know about! WOULDN’T IT BE AWESOME if there was someone or even 2-3 people who would stand outside (MAJ) grocery store(s) with flyers and info on the diffrent allergens in the food they are about to BUY !!! to help them b more aware! I have had SEVERE allergies for more than 20 yrs.!!!! Even Caffeine could b one for Heart Pts as well,it is a stimulant for some people! TY~ Chris

  9. Sherri says:

    My son has severe food allergies from the “main ones” to ones most have not heard of. It is VERY hard to find foods which are free enough for our family. I will finally find a product that looks good(soy, corn, GFCF) and then it will have PEA protein in it 🙁 Well, when you have a severe reaction to green peas like my son, it gets frustrating to say the least.

    My daughter is also very allergic to milk. I agree most people say “oh she is lactose intolerant?” I then say, no it is the protein itself she can not process, not just lacking an enzyme.

    We are free: soy, corn, gluten, casein, egg, pea,rice, apple, grapes, and banana free. Along with what I call “crap free” no artificial or perservatives, no dyes….really the list could do on and on, but I will stop 🙂

  10. admin says:

    Hi Sherri:

    Thanks for your comment. It seems like there is pea protein everywhere you turn these days. It just behaves the same way that soy does so people are swapping it out for that. I am hearing more and more often about allergies to it. Legumes are legumes….

    best,
    Cybele

  11. Maryellen Hughes says:

    Cybele,

    I concur on the pea protein issue. Just when I think I might have found a ‘butter-like’ spread for my son or a ‘cheese’ (Daiya), I see pea protein on the list of ingredients and I have to put it back on the shelf.

    In regards to the mustard, after he had a very serious reaction, I, of course, Googled it and found that it is much more common in Europe.

    My son is allergic to dairy, soy, egg, mustard, tree nuts, peanuts and peas. He also has something called eosinophilic esophagitis (EE). Cybele, do you know much about EE? I have found I have had to direct his care myself as most doctors don’t have a clue. After endless, copious vomiting for months (and dropping from 75 to 5% in weight), I suspected EE (only knew of it from my endless research to try to help my baby). I took him to a GI and told him to do an endoscopy, which confirmed the diagnosis.

    BTW, Kai is now 3+ and doing great. Obviously, we avoid the above foods, his weight has rebounded, and as I always tell him, “We are fortunate enough to have plenty of things available to us to eat.” We eat clean, we eat well and we eat organic. Your cookbooks have opened up new worlds and I am greatly appreciative. I guess I’ll have more concerns as he gets older and is less right by my side. Fortunately, for right now, I totally trust his pre-school. That doesn’t mean, of course, that I don’t hope that he might be so fortunate to outgrow, at least his dairy and soy, allergies.

    Be very well and keep up your fine work.

    Maryellen

  12. Heather says:

    @Maryellen H.: EE is caused by continuously inhaling allergens. The people at your son’s daycare eat something he is allergic to before coming…your son inhales it all day long;they wear something with an allergen such as soap, lotion, shampoo, etc… (almost all household products contain some form of allergen, shea butter (tree nut), lecithin (egg), soy lecithin (soy), wheat, corn, other nut oils, casein (milk), etc… Your son is inhaling this stuff all day long. Take him out and home school and it will clear up (if your home is completely free of all allergens). I am a former daycare teacher and currently stay at home, home school mom of 1. Yes, I shelter my child but my child’s eczema does not flare up and she does not have allergic reactions (minus the couple of times at a family get together but everyone is now well informed and it won’t happen again). My home is completely allergy-free, we do not allow people into our home without taking showers, brushing their teeth, and not eating an allergen for 24 hrs. before coming into contact w/ our child. I cook everything from scratch and do not take her to anything that would have food present, period. My daughter has multiple anaphylactic allergies, as does my Mom (who is an RN), which is who she inherited it from. Almost everyone on my Mom’s side of the family works in the medical field so my info is very well sourced.

  13. Mag says:

    Absolutely true!!! my son was in the ER for an accidental egg exposure at 7 months old. He’s also allergic to 5 of the 8 major allergies (plus several others) and everyone automatically assumes that peanuts is the worst one, but in reality it’s the egg allergy that is the most severe for him.

Leave a Reply to Janessa