Does your child have food allergies? Know a child that does? These days, it’s hard not to at least know one child with a food allergy. Did you now the number of children with food allergies has increased over the last decade and every three minutes, a food allergy reaction sends someone to the emergency department? My younger was diagnosed with a life-threatening peanut allergy shortly after turning two. She and I had been at the library for a craft time in which we made a bird feeder, using a pine cone, peanut butter and bird seed. She hadn’t ingested any of the peanut butter (and I hadn’t introduced to her diet yet). In the 5 minute car ride home, she broke out in hives and was having difficulty breathing. I realized immediately what was happening and got Benadryl in her. Allergy testing confirmed what I feared, a severe allergy to peanuts. Each year we return to the allergist to be retested and her tests continue to come back at the severe level. As with any parenting challenge, it’s been (and continues to be) a learning process for all of us.
KC Parent is excited to be partnering with Children’s Mercy Hospital for an upcoming LIVE Twitter Chat on March 9, at noon, discussing food allergies. Whether you are like me, a mom of a child with a food allergy or a mom that will at one point have a friend over or have a classmate with a food allergy, this chat will be a great time to hear ideas from not only other local moms, but also with a doctor and KC Parent staff. Join KC Parent, Children’s Mercy and Dr. Chitra Dinakar about ways to recognize food allergies, and how to keep kids safe at home, in the classroom, and even while they’re not with you.
Jot down questions and we’ll be ready to chat with you on March 9!
Include #FoodAllergyChat in tweets to participate; or, just search the hashtag during the chat timeframe to follow along.
Thinking about joining us? Let us know below with your Twitter handle!
When: Wednesday, March 9th, Noon, CST
Where: From the comfort of your home!
Follow https://twitter.com/KCParent and https://twitter.com/ChildrensMercy
#FoodAllergyChat