Top tips for Managing Allergies in the Early Years

Too tired for Allergies!

Life with little people is tough, stress levels can be high and there is never enough time.

Bring in some health or behavioural issues and now they are saying the dreaded “allergy” word and wanting you to radically change your little ones’ diet. Enough already!

Let’s keep it simple!

Here we have some simple tips for managing allergies in all home, school, in care and social environments.

At Home

Keep it simple! If everyone in the house changes to allergen free it is simpler to manage cross contamination … toasters, cooking utensils etc. There is also the high likelihood that someone else is in the same boat, but not identified as yet.

Everyone else gets to enjoy the “allergens” for tuckshop, work lunches or dinners out. Obviously special care is needed with washing hands and faces if it’s an anaphylactic allergy.

Include allowable treats in the early days at least so they don’t feel like they are missing out.

At school, daycare or in-care

Inform teaching staff and other parents about your child’s dietary needs in writing

Get a letter from health practitioner to bring credit to your request: Doctor, Nutritionist or OT.
Let the teachers know as part of the letter what your child’s individual ramifications are; ie anaphylactic/diarrhoea/ vomiting/behavioural challenges etc
Educate your own child as the buck will eventually stop here. Teach them that it is standard to ask “is it ….. free”. Many children can do this around 3 years of age.
Do up a list of the ins and outs for the teaching staff just to be sure and a laminated one for the childs’ school bag
Let the teaching staff know “if they are not sure”, do not give it to your child
Discuss the impact of cross contamination with both the child and the carers
Accept that there will be stuff ups, these will be a learning for the teacher, the child and you
Be open to regular dialogue with the teaching staff while they ‘nut’ it out
Educate around Epipens, use and maintenance with your child and carers

Class activities that might involve allergen containing products

Offer to supply the allergen free version or supply a list that is of equal pricing/availability in your local area (consideration that present day teachers have a lot more on their plate and are often stressed)

What about cake days/parties at school

Have a back up supply and only offer them on these occasions
Alternatively, maybe its canteen day or a treat after school if they keep to the plan. Remember treats can be non-food treats.

Tackling the canteen

Not all kids get canteen so sometimes it just is, they can still have treats from home or store bought or, dare I say, “non-food treats”.
Work out what canteen food is safe or have treat days from home or a café ( I took my children for what they called “quality time” once a fortnight, which was a before school breakfast at a safe café)
Check if cross contamination will be a problem. The convenor may not be open to doing allergen free or the risk of cross contamination may be high if the canteen has a small layout or high preparation of non-friendly foods.

Kids sharing food/lunchboxes

This is a learning for your child
Educate your child on the cause and effect
Always try to begin the journey of allergy free on school holidays
Accept the stuff-ups and use them for learning
Let your child have an input into their lunchbox (it may not be always perfect, but it will be safe)
Keep their lunch as ‘normal’ as possible

How to handle party invites and play dates

Work with your child to educate the parents and friends
Accept the stuff ups as part of the early journey and help your child understand the reason and implications
Dialogue with the parents having the party as to what is happening food wise. Most parents will meet someone with allergies early, so chances are you won’t be the first.
Sometimes the party food choices will just not be ok. At these times it is an honest conversation with the child that they have the choice to go and take their own food or choose to skip the party.

Eating out

Work out your safe list of local cafes and restaurants
Call first and double check that it really is achievable in their kitchen
Always ask again as you order even if it is marked safe on the menu ( I couldn’t tell you the number of times I found what was delivered was not )

Most of all …

Keep it simple

Accept the Stuff -ups

Be kind to yourself

Jacinta Callaghan BHSC Nut Med

With extensive knowledge in Biochemistry, Microbiome, Genetics and Physiology and counselling, coupled with her qualifications in Nutritional Medicine and Emotional Health, Jacinta Callaghan is on a mission to help people better understand how amazing the human mind and body really are.
As a practicing Nutritional Medicine and Emotional Health specialist and former lecturer on Nutritional Medicine at Torrens, Jacinta understands and treats people according to each individuals’ underlying causes, symptoms and back story.
Jacinta is known to clients, students and other practitioners as blunt, honest whilst being compassionate, and just a little bit ‘nerd-like’ in her knowledge.
She is not afraid of telling like it is … with the science to back it up.
And with science ever-evolving and new evidence supporting the efficacy of Nutritional Medicine being uncovered each and every day around the world, more and more people seek answers beyond big-pharma.
Her over-riding passion is for sharing her knowledge and educating people to regain their health, and to clear a path through the endless information and mis-information (aka B.S) in an easily digestible way.
There is no one size fits all in Nutritional Medicine or Emotional Health, and Jacinta is on a mission to uncover what will ‘fit’ each and every person she treats.

Jacinta shares her knowledge of Biochemistry, Microbiome idiosyncrasies, Genetics, Physiology, the “normal” workings of the body end emotional healing through:

Private Consultations combined with:
Key note speaker on Children’s Health Topics including Autism, ASD, Allergies and behavioural problems; Women’s Health, Boundary Setting, Dealing with co-dependency and Narcissistic Personality Disorder,.
Workshops on Autism and ASD, Allergy related conditions, Women’s Health Topics, Menopause, Boundary Setting, Dealing with co-dependency and Narcissistic Personality Disorder
Through her website: Jacintacallaghan.com
Regular blog contributions eg Dr Joe Today ; kidsfitaustralia.com: kiddiepedia.com.au:
Assisting her Students, mentoring other Nutritional Medicine Practitioners around Australia.