Does anyone have a Tree nut or peanut allergy?

monicarcaro

My son has a severe allergy to tree nuts and possibly peanuts. This has just recently been discovered the last few weeks after a SEVERE attack from ingesting a partial nut, and then this weekend after his father stopped by and kissed him on the cheek. The reaction began immediately, and come to find out his father had been drinking a protein shake right before that contained tree nut (pecan) and peanuts. We're still fighting this one.

Just looking for some insight to nut allergies, or some foods to watch out for in particular? Any support would be great, since I know nothing first hand when it comes to food allergies. Learning, learning, learning..

Over here! Legumes (peanuts included) and Tree nuts which are the worst :-/ I get reactions to this just like your son did and have been to the hospital several times for anaphylactic shock.

Seriously watch out for the following:
1) ANY type of baked good. Cookies & 'bars' specifically. Especially with this whole "almond flour" fad - make sure to be super careful!

2) Coffee! (not your son, but you obviously :-P) Hazelnut is a killer, and not typically announced when served with friends.

3) Chocolate candies!! Even if you read the ingredients, be very careful around these. You never know if it comes in contact with other chocolates made with tree nuts/peanuts. Just make sure to be aware :-)

4) Veggies like green beans, if he has a legume allergy. I can't eat these anymore - turns into severe anaphylaxis, but since he's allergic to peanuts I'd watch out for this allergy as well. May/may not pop up eventually, but it can't hurt to be careful. The less epi-pens the better! haha

5) Any type of sauce at a restaurant, for example: sauce on chicken, pasta sauce (could have pine nuts), etc.

6) Granola!!!!!!!! Ugh, super killer.

That's all I've got :-) Message me if you have any other questions!

Dort68

Actually, no. The ONLY trusted method of determining allergy is surviving an ANA reaction. Children younger than 5 do not have reliable results from SPT or Blood draw. Allergists have to take a careful family history and listen to what the parents have to say to determine if certain things are or might be allergy.

To the OP, I have been dealing with my son's food allergies for 5 years. His first reaction was anaphylaxis, resulting from touching a pita bread at 7 months. He has been epi'd three times, taken off by ambulance once and hopsitalized more times than I care to count.

My son has had an ANA reaction to: peanut, tree nuts, wheat, dairy, egg, rye, sesame, cinnamon. It was hard at first, but is MUCH easier to deal with now that we as a family have a handle on it.

I have a blog if you're interested, it tells a lot of our food allergy journey:

www.dorothy-lifewithboys.blogspot.com

Thank you! Yes my son a few weeks (probably a month ago) got an ANA episode... first one ever... to a piece of a cashew... he got kissed on the cheek by someone who had been drinking a proteing shake (which labeled May contain traces of tree nuts (pecans), peanuts)..

What symptoms do you wait for in order to administer the EpiPen? I guess my questioning comes from my thoughts... if he JUST gets the hives and rash and swelling of the eyes but no breathing troubles.. would you still administer> or fight with benadryl? my sons doctor has told me that when i administer epi pen, to make sure to take him to the hospital or call an ambulance because if/when the epi pen wears off you want him at a facility for emergency care or monitoring. He had a soy allergy as a baby, but since he was about 14 months he can drink/eat dairy products now.... could the allergies at all be related?
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The rule of thumb is "two systems involved" before you Epi. However, note that Epi will NEVER harm a child, it will just increase heartrate. Also remember that Epi doesn't "cure" the ANA, it just slows down the reaction so you can get professional help. If you Epi, you MUST go to ER afterwards.

I've Epi'd our son when his eyes swelled shut and he had a huge amount of mucous coming from his nose. That's 2 systems-b/c if there's mucous in his nose, it could be in his lungs. I've also Epi'd him when he was covered in hives and couging. In hind sight, there are at least 3 episodes where I let the benadryl do it's magic and I probably should've Epi'd him.

Also, if you administer Benadryl, be wary of rebound reactions. The child needs to stay on Bendadryl for 24 hours post-ANA (at a minimum.)

lynn1982

FYI: The Epipen is just a shot of epinephrin. It buys you time before you can get to the hospital. The last time I had to use one on myself (long story), it had to be done twice because it wore off before getting to the hospital. It doesn't treat the allergy.

Marcillene

My son has a severe allergy to tree nuts and possibly peanuts. This has just recently been discovered the last few weeks after a SEVERE attack from ingesting a partial nut, and then this weekend after his father stopped by and kissed him on the cheek. The reaction began immediately, and come to find out his father had been drinking a protein shake right before that contained tree nut (pecan) and peanuts. We're still fighting this one.

Just looking for some insight to nut allergies, or some foods to watch out for in particular? Any support would be great, since I know nothing first hand when it comes to food allergies. Learning, learning, learning..

Over here! Legumes (peanuts included) and Tree nuts which are the worst :-/ I get reactions to this just like your son did and have been to the hospital several times for anaphylactic shock.

Seriously watch out for the following:
1) ANY type of baked good. Cookies & 'bars' specifically. Especially with this whole "almond flour" fad - make sure to be super careful!

2) Coffee! (not your son, but you obviously :-P) Hazelnut is a killer, and not typically announced when served with friends.

3) Chocolate candies!! Even if you read the ingredients, be very careful around these. You never know if it comes in contact with other chocolates made with tree nuts/peanuts. Just make sure to be aware :-)

4) Veggies like green beans, if he has a legume allergy. I can't eat these anymore - turns into severe anaphylaxis, but since he's allergic to peanuts I'd watch out for this allergy as well. May/may not pop up eventually, but it can't hurt to be careful. The less epi-pens the better! haha

5) Any type of sauce at a restaurant, for example: sauce on chicken, pasta sauce (could have pine nuts), etc.

6) Granola!!!!!!!! Ugh, super killer.

That's all I've got :-) Message me if you have any other questions!

THANK YOU so much for this! I have not heard any advice for the granola, legumes, sauces etc.

I am curious to know (as ive been wondering myself) about coffee, or creamers and such. or if I want a cappuccino from a convenient store. I assumed that because it could potentially be cross contaminated, that this was a bad idea. but have not heard yet.

and i have been concerned lately about going to pot lucks and picnics and such because there is NO WAY to know if someone cooked with a generic product that the label states 'traces or manufactured in a plant with tree nuts etc"/// very scary.. any thoughts on this?

Marcillene

The rule of thumb is "two systems involved" before you Epi. However, note that Epi will NEVER harm a child, it will just increase heartrate. Also remember that Epi doesn't "cure" the ANA, it just slows down the reaction so you can get professional help. If you Epi, you MUST go to ER afterwards.

I've Epi'd our son when his eyes swelled shut and he had a huge amount of mucous coming from his nose. That's 2 systems-b/c if there's mucous in his nose, it could be in his lungs. I've also Epi'd him when he was covered in hives and couging. In hind sight, there are at least 3 episodes where I let the benadryl do it's magic and I probably should've Epi'd him.

Also, if you administer Benadryl, be wary of rebound reactions. The child needs to stay on Bendadryl for 24 hours post-ANA (at a minimum.)

Does your son ever get reactions AFTER the initial allergy attack? For instance... after each episode his doctor has directed me to continue him on benadryl. 3-4 days later he STILL has hives (of coure not as bad...sloooowly getting better), and eczema outbreaks so his dr. perscribes a 10 day steroid and told me to continue the benadryl. i guess my original assumption would be after 2 days or so on constant benadryl that his reaction would be better. after each episode he has had... around the 4th or 5th day he has (both times) gotten congested and cold like symptoms for a day or two. is that typical since his immune system tries to fight everything off all at once i guess?

which leads me to my next question... does your son instantly get the mucous in the nose? or do some symptoms occur 12 hours later (and would that still be feasible to give him an epi pen shot.. 12 hours or a day later?)

Marcillene

FYI: The Epipen is just a shot of epinephrin. It buys you time before you can get to the hospital. The last time I had to use one on myself (long story), it had to be done twice because it wore off before getting to the hospital. It doesn't treat the allergy.

Oh okay, so once you get to the hospital.. what do they do to treat an allergy attack? ive never been given any information from his doctors regarding this situation...

lynn1982

oops, I take that back. I guess it does treat the allergy since last time they gave me more once I got to the hospital. I still think you should go to the hospital though if you need to use the epipen. I know I always have.

AbbeyDove

Oh okay, so once you get to the hospital.. what do they do to treat an allergy attack? ive never been given any information from his doctors regarding this situation...

If you are in a situation in which you have to use the epi, you MUST take the child to the hospital, or the reaction will come back. For severe reactions, an epi pen only works for about 20 minutes. That's why they often come in two-packs--just in case you have a difficult time getting to the ER. You should ask your doctor for a two-pack of epi-pen juniors.

If he can swallow, give him Benedryl right away as well. It's important not to let the reaction get too far, because there is sometimes a point at which the ER cannot halt it, and the child can go into shock and then organ failure due to the histamine response--and that's even if his airway is still open.

When you get to the hospital they'll treat him with steroids, liquid if he can still swallow, otherwise I think they administer by IV. It's been a while since we've had to do this. It's not the kind of steroids weightlifters take, though, it's usually some form of prednisone, which will halt the reaction, typically. Then they'll hold him for observation, to see if the reaction resurges. If it does, he'll get another dose of steroids. If it doesn't, they'll send you home with either liquid or tablet steroids, for him to take until the allergen is out of his system. He will have to taper off the steroids slowly, because they're not a drug you can just stop taking. Steroids are hard on the stomach and are not a drug you would want him on long-term, but they are life-saving in this circumstance.

I know all this is very scary. You do get used to managing this allergy, I promise. And because he will have had it for as long as he remembers, he will get good at asking about any food he is offered.

AbbeyDove

Oh, and we don't wait for two systems to be involved. I've never heard that before. When he starts swelling, we're on the phone, administering the epi and waiting for the paramedics. But our son has an insanely severe allergy. His IGE score for peanuts is 100.

Marcillene

Oh, and we don't wait for two systems to be involved. I've never heard that before. When he starts swelling, we're on the phone, administering the epi and waiting for the paramedics. But our son has an insanely severe allergy. His IGE score for peanuts is 100.

What is an IGE score? (I assume after testing this week, his allergist will explain this to me, but just curious)... What about tashes? does your son develop the hives and such?

OhSnap779

My daughter is severely allergic to tree nuts (cashews in particular). The problem with this allergy is that nuts can be found in so many foods that don't actually have nuts, due to cross contamination. Reading labels is crucial to avoiding possibly fatal reactions. My daughter has a little back pack that she takes with her everywhere that contains two epi pens, benadryl, an inhaler, and a little card that says what her medical issues are. I tell everyone she comes in contact with about it, in case of a reaction, and she is now the one asking wait staff at restaurants to read the labels of the food she wants to order, or asking to speak to the manager. We have a meeting every school year to set up a plan, so her teacher and school staff know how to keep her safe and know what to do in case of an emergency. It's hard to say what foods have it and what foods don't, because you never know when companies will change their ingredients, etc., so reading labels is so important. Just keep getting the word out to your son, family members, and anyone who will be taking care of him.

Marcillene

is it possible for a food to contain traces of nuts and not state on the ingredients? the only reason I ask is because my son had another allergy break out, and ive read the ingredients on EVERYTHING before he ate it. The only things i can think of is A) the food had traces and just did not state that or some how cross contamination of SOMETHING he ate had something in it (for example, i used the toaster for his bagel. thats the only thing i can think of. Now ive only ever used the toaster for toast or pop tarts... but unless one of those had traces of something, and i cooked his bagel in there...)