By Anne Harding
New York - Fairs, picnics, ball games and other social gatherings can make spring and summer prime time for allergic reactions, warns the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI).
Dr Amal H. Assa'ad, associate director of the Division of Allergy & Immunology at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Centre and an AAAAI member, told reporters that just the day before she had treated a nut-allergic child who developed a reaction after eating a salad with cashews and banana bread with walnuts at a pot-luck party. "This is a very typical story," said Assa'ad.
Parents of children with peanut or tree-nut allergies need to be vigilant about the food the child comes into contact with, and should also carry an Epi-pen with them at all times, she added.
Allergens can also lurk in food offered at fairs, festivals and carnivals, Assa'ad noted, and people with nut allergies, as well as allergies to cow's milk or eggs, should avoid these offerings entirely, since it's not possible to know just exactly what is in that funnel cake or corn dog. "The actual chef or whoever prepared the food is not going to be there," she pointed out.
Restaurants - especially those serving Chinese food - can also be danger zones, Assa'ad said. The AAAAI points out that more and more restaurants are switching to peanut oil and soy oil because neither contains trans fats, but people with peanut or soy allergies may have reactions to these oils.
Symptoms of an allergic reaction to food can include a skin rash, vomiting, paleness, coughing and wheezing, according to Assa'ad. However, she added, first-time reactions usually don't occur out of the blue, since children typically have had other allergic symptoms such as eczema. The child may also have other food allergies, or there may be other people in the family with food allergies.
While first-time allergic reactions to insect stings do come as a surprise, they usually don't occur in young children, but in older kids and young adults, the allergist said.
The most important thing, she added, is to get suspected allergies checked out by a board-certified allergist. "It is best that children or adults be evaluated and know for sure what they are allergic to and what they're not, so that they don't overreact if they really don't have an allergy to something and they don't under-react if they do."