During the Easter season, eggs and chocolate are everywhere! As a parent, you always want to create a fun holiday atmosphere for your child. However, when your child has a food allergy, Easter can be a tough time. Let’s face it, “Easter eggs” and chocolate bunnies are a big part of the celebration! But, with a little bit of creativity, your child can have as many memorable moments and traditions as any other child celebrating Easter.

The Basket
There are many ways to create a great Easter basket for you kids without the chocolate! Books and stuffed animals are always a great option. Who wants a chocolate bunny when they can have a stuffed one! Along with Easter comes the beginning of spring- so bubbles, sidewalk chalk and any other outside toy would be a great addition. Your child will be able to play with their Easter baskets long after the chocolate is gone.

The Eggs
When it comes to decorating eggs, you can use wood eggs, plastic eggs or even Styrofoam eggs instead of hard boiled ones. Create them early with your child and use them as a decoration around the house. It will be a constant reminder of how fun “fake” eggs can be to decorate.

The Tasty Treats
Okay, admittedly, giving up the chocolate and goodies isn’t going to be easy. The good news is there are now companies that make allergy-friendly Easter treats that some kids with food allergies can have. However, since every child’s allergy is different, be sure to check the labels and make sure the treat is ok for your little one.

And of course chocolate shakes are always fun. The amino acid-based formula Neocate Junior is available in a chocolate flavor (it is artificial flavor, so no danger there) that you can mix with ice to make a cool shake.

Allergymoms.com has a bunch of food allergy safe recipes for Easter and I have heard some parents have also used Neocate Chocolate to make some other fun recipes. I’d love to hear about them below if you’re willing to share. Just a word of warning, don’t put Neocate Junior Chocolate or any other amino acid-based formulas in the freezer. (The freezing process doesn’t cause allergic reactions, but it does cause loss of some of the formula’s important nutrients.)

If you have any other fun allergy-free Easter ideas, please share below!

Take care,

April

Last week, Rob Stein from the Washington Post wrote an interesting article entitled “Immune Systems Increasingly on Attack” about the rise in asthma and allergies as well as other immune-related diseases like lupus and multiple sclerosis.

Mr. Stein discusses the “hygiene hypothesis,” which blames our increasingly sterile lifestyle for weakening our immune systems and making us more susceptible to allergies and allergic diseases. He also points out that while many researchers are convinced this is the “why” behind the rapidly growing number of people with allergies, he also mentions that many are far from sold on this idea. And many readers posted comments on the Washington Post Web site with a variety of opinions on the issue – from pollution to vaccines to vitamin deficiencies to artificial flavorings.

Since my work as a dietitian is focused on managing these conditions and improving the lives of kids who suffer from them, I’ll leave the debate as to “why” up to the experts – and the online opiners, of course.

But I am glad that the research of the scientists quoted in this article (and so many more) is underway so that hopefully, one day, we will find a way to identify the cause and ways to prevent our kids from suffering from these types of conditions.

In the meantime, we’ll be here blogging away about how to deal when you have a child with a food allergy or related GI condition.

As always, feel free to send your thoughts & opinions our way.

Be well,

Dr. Y