Does your child have a food allergy? Perhaps your child gets itchy, watery eyes, an itchy rash, and starts wheezing when exposed to anything with wheat. Maybe your loved one got hives when they ate cookies with nuts in them.
It can be a shock to see your child go from being healthy to experiencing distressing symptoms after eating a common food. Our board-certified allergists and immunologists with Advanced Allergy and Asthma diagnose and treat all childhood allergies, including food allergies. We help keep your loved one safe so that they have a healthy childhood.
It can be really difficult to see your child being unable to eat birthday cake at friends' birthday parties if they have an egg or wheat allergy. You bring homemade cake, but your young child may feel included. As your loved one ages, they understand the offending food makes them sick. They'll be able to navigate social situations more easily, and in some cases, they may outgrow the allergy.
The following foods are the cause of almost all food allergies:
You wonder whether your child will ever grow out of their allergy. The answer is, perhaps. Sometimes, depending on what it is, children grow out of a food allergy.
By their late teens, a majority of children may be able to eat the following foods they've been allergic to in childhood:
Your child may not outgrow an allergy to other foods on the list. Following are salient statistics on the percentage of children who outgrow the following allergies:
If your older child mistakenly consumes a bite of a food they're allergic to and doesn't have a reaction, we can test your child to determine if they've outgrown the allergy. We administer a blood or skin test.
We also administer a food test to your child in our office. We give your child a very small amount of the food your child is allergic to and wait 15-30 minutes to see if they react. We repeat the test until your child eats an amount the size of a normal food serving. If your child doesn't react to the food, it's safe for them to eat. We continue to prescribe an Epi-pen for your child to carry in case they react in the future.
Today, you have many resources to help you navigate your child's food allergy. Kids with Food Allergies (KFA), a division of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, provides educational resources, including recipes and support groups. We recommend a food allergy card when dining out that contains the substance your child is allergic to and guidance on food preparation for your child's meal.
We help guide you as you manage your child's food allergy. Call Advanced Allergy and Asthma or send a message through our online portal today.
