are the types of reaction always the same?

[tiredbuthappy]

Hi all! I am very happy to see this forum, not because I have food allergies, but because as a Pre-K teacher, I often have students with food allergies. I am often amazed by the ignorance of people regarding the seriousness of food allergies, and it can make my job very nerve wracking. It is generally a problem when parents of other children send in foods that a child reacts to. We are not a nut-free school, and I am very surprised that we have not seen any serious reactions yet.

Anyways, I currently have a child who has an allergy to peanuts, oranges, and eggs. Her parents keep telling me that her reactions are only dermatological- primarily eczema. They say she has never had any respiratory symptoms. I have seen her eyes and face swell up. It makes me very nervous. Is it possible that her reactions are only dermatological? Everytime I see evidence of a reaction, I send her to the nurse and call her parents. I am just afraid that one of these days, her symptoms will be anaphylactic. She does not have an epipen. I have repeatedly encouraged them to see an allergist. They said they saw one a couple years ago. They are currently having insurance problems, so they are not seeing one now. I don't trust their pediatrician's word, because the dumb@ss actually gave the child the flu shot despite her egg allergy.

[Dian58]

Thank you for being concerned about this.  I can't tell you how many times I had to pick up my daughter from school because she got sick immediately after lunch.  The lunch room monitor had usually forced her to eat something she knew she shouldn't, but of course they wouldn't listen to her because she was just a kid.  It's nice to know there's someone somewhere looking out for the kids.

[dai3symae]

Food allergies...especially peanut allergy....can grow worse with each reaction.  The child may have only topical reactions (a sign of anaphylaxis by the way) this time and stop breathing the next time.  Some people react to even the smell of peanuts.  This is nothing to mess around with.  You are smart to send her to the nurse every time.  Hopefully her parents will get their insurance straightened out.

My soy allergy (which isn't nearly as serious or as likely to be life threatening as peanuts) started out as a topical rash from lotions and progressed to waking up covered with hives from eating cheese sticks cooked in soybean oil.

I'm a teacher also.  I know how much you worry about a child with ahealth problem and how much you want to do something and how little you can do.

Sandy

[ChitChatNine]

Here is a link to our Health Pages to FAAN which has tons of info for schools when it comes to food allergies.  Maybe they even have posters, etc. available to put up in your food areas.

Health Pages Link
http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/Allergies/FAAN/show/628?cid=238

C~

[tiredbuthappy]

thank you for your responses!

I will continue to send her to the nurse at the first sign of a reaction. i don't think her parents understand the potential severity of her condition. After Halloween, she missed several days of school because her face had swelled so much. Her mom sighed and said, "I guess I just wanted to let her be a kid for Halloween." I refuse to let her have ANY baked good brought in by other children for special occasions, even though her parents claim a munchin or occasional cupcake is OK. i KNOW that it's not ok because baked goods are frequently cross contaminated.

i once had a girl with a severe peanut allergy. her father gave her 2 skittles (which did not list nuts as an ingredient or possible contaminant) and she had a severe reaction. it's scary. other parents in the classroom did not understand. despite VERY clear signs, notices and conversations, they would still send foods containing nuts to school. I even had a parent try to give this poor little girl a cookie everyday when she picked up her own daughter. thank goodness, the girl knew to say no.

I admire all of you who are on this difficult journey with your children, and I pray that my kids never have to cope with food allergies. I know it can be managed, but i can't imagine the constant worry a parent would have.

[ChitChatNine]

Every reaction can present itself differently at any given time.  What once may be eczema-only can lead to more serious reactions with each add'l exposure so cont'd visits with an allergist are very important.  Oftentimes, it stays only with dermatologic reactions (not hives) such as eczema, too.

Knowledge is so important to help the parents of allergic children not only learn to protect themselves in an emergency situation, but to educate their caregivers appropriately.

From my experience, if a child's face has swelled with a known history, too, usually an epi pen will be scripted  (jr or sr stregnth) to have on hand. But if there is lack of this communication between parent and Dr., then there is a gap .. and you bring this up as an excellent thread and question.

C~

[1nana]

Her allergies could very easily lead to an anaphylactic attack.

Both of my kids suffered from pretty severe allergies and they only got worse. By the time they were in their teen years they were both having  to carry epi pens.

What started off as mild dermatological reactions turned into full blown anaphylactic attacks.

To get back to your original question, NO, the reactions can present themselves differently from one time to the next. (at least with my experience)