As we near the end the month of May, our series on Hidden Food Allergens is wrapping up. Mallory and Nita wrote great entries with tips and ideas on how to best avoid hidden dairy, soy and gluten allergens in food.  Usually, there is a long list of items to avoid, so as Mallory mentioned, it’s helpful to print out your own list, laminate it, and take it with you on your grocery trips. It’s nearly impossible to memorize all those potential allergens you need to look out for on the product label. Having a list handy will cut back on the time you spend examining labels and make it easier for you to get what you need from the store and get on with your day!

Always remember, if you are uncertain whether a produce may contain an allergen, call the manufacturers and ask! The more educated you can be, the better.

Belonging to a food allergy social group or network can also allow you to share experiences and learn from other families who are in similar situations. Some groups you can join are the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN), Facebook and/or Twitter groups dedicated to food allergies (including the Neocate Facebook page), Kids with Food Allergies (KWFA), and the Food Allergy Initiative (FAI).  For example, if you just found out (from the manufacturer) that a certain food, surprisingly, had some traces of a particular allergen, you could share that information with others and help prevent accidental exposure from happening to another family.

So keep those Hidden Food Allergens lists handy and keep an eye on those labels!

What other actions have you done to help avoid those hidden allergens? We always appreciate hearing your advice!

- Christine

Most people believe that a product labeled as hypoallergenic will not cause an allergic reaction, but is this really true?

The definition of hypoallergenic is that a product is unlikely to cause an allergic reaction or will cause fewer allergic reactions. Unfortunately, there are few FDA standards that regulate the use of the term, so it’s hard to determine which products are truly hypoallergenic.

With infant formula, things can get confusing because there are several different types that claim to be hypoallergenic. One example is hydrolysate formulas. Although they claim to be hypoallergenic, the protein in these formulas is only partially broken down and allergic reactions can still happen. 

To distinguish them from hydrolysates, amino acid-based formulas like Neocate are sometimes referred to as “super” hypoallergenic. This is because they are made up of individual non-allergenic amino acids.

As the parent of a child with food allergies, it is important to ask yourself, “What makes this product hypoallergenic?” before giving it to your child. One thing that the FDA does require is a list of ingredients on the product label.  So be sure to read that ingredient list carefully and look out for potential allergens.

One other thing that you may want to consider when choosing a medical food (such as specialized infant formula) is how much it has been tested. With medical foods a manufacturer is only required to have 29 consecutive patients tolerate the formula in a trial and then they can claim it is hypoallergenic. And if the trial fails the first time, they can repeat it again until they reach 29!

Have any other questions about hypoallergenic products? Ask away!

- Sarah

Through our 1-800-Neocate information line we get a lot of questions but we also hear a lot of great stories from parents who deal with the effects of their child having a milk allergy every day.  We love hearing those stories and we love to share them with other food allergy parents who are coping with the same situations. 

With that in mind the old way of sharing your stories, recipes and photos – via snail mail –  is slow, cumbersome and just a little tough for most busy parents to put together, pack it up and send into us.  So our team of nutritionists has worked diligently to provide all of you with easier ways to share what you love to share the most.

If you have an account on Facebook, feel free to become a fan of our Neocate Fanpage where you can:

• Post questions, comments, suggestions, recipes & stories
• Add your photos (parents love to share their before & after photos of their children)
• Add videos
• Start discussions about relevant topics like the new Texas State Insurance Reimbursement Laws

If you are an avid user of MySpace, we just started our MySpace Neocate profile and you can read snippets of our blog posts over there (so you can decide quickly if our latest informational post is of interest to you), see photos and interact with us there by commenting on our wall.

And for those avid Twitter users out there, we didn’t forget you either.  We’ve got our own Neocate Twitter account where we tweet out links to our latest blog posts, answer questions about Neocate and give suggestions where we can.  We’re also looking into hosting some Tweetchats in the future about dealing with food & milk allergies, so keep your eyes open for that!

We recognize that in today’s busy world sometimes it’s just easier to connect with us through the places where you are already actively participate and we wanted to make it easier for all of you to do so.  So come on over and join the discussions, we’d love to hear what you have to say!

- Sarah

As a follow up to our “Failure to Thrive: My child is underweight, what should I do?” blog, I would like to further explain the product Duocal.  It may be a good option for a child with failure to thrive (or FTT) as well as other conditions such as multiple food protein intolerance and conditions related to food allergies such as Eosinophilic Esophagitis (or EE), Gastroesophageal reflux disease (or GERD), and Atopic Dermatitis (or AD).

Duocal is a high calorie, protein-free powdered nutritional supplement that can be added to foods or beverages when additional calories are needed to gain adequate weight. Keep in mind that Duocal is not a formula and should not be used as a sole source of nutrition.

Duocal is made up of carbohydrates and fats. It is flavorless and super soluble so there are no changes to the taste and/or texture of the food it is being added to (which also helps with diet compliance). The Duocal 400g can comes with a scoop which provides about 25 extra calories per scoop.

The reason Duocal is unique is the fact that it does not contain proteins. This is important for a child who needs extra calories due to FTT or weight loss secondary to severe food allergies (keep in mind; only proteins can cause an allergic reaction).

Duocal is 100% milk free and is made in a milk free environment to ensure tolerance. Duocal is for children ages 1 and over. The amount of Duocal you or your little one may need per day is to be determined by your doctor or dietitian. The amount of Duocal needed per day really depends on what the specific nutritional needs are for the patient. Duocal is for children ages one year and older, so it can be used throughout ones life stages.

Duocal can be mixed with a wide variety of foods. Here are some quick tips on how to use Duocal to get you started.

(These are approximations, please check with your doctor or dietitian for exact amounts)

When using Duocal for:

· Beverages: Add 2 scoops of Duocal per 4 fl oz.

· Toddler Foods: Add 2 scoops of Duocal per ¼ cup of food.

· Mashed potatoes: Add 3-4 scoops Duocal per ½ cup of mashed potatoes.

· Soups: Add ~6 scoops of Duocal for a 16 oz serving (or one can) of soup.

The MyDuocal.com site has a lot of helpful recipes and complete nutritional information to help you better understand how to incorporate Duocal into your child’s diet.

Have you tried Duocal before? What kind of recipes did you make with it?

We are always excited to hear of new ways to use Duocal in helping patients thrive.

Christine

The first few years of a baby’s life are filled with so many exciting little milestones. One of them, of course, is transitioning your child to solid foods. Some parents find it a big relief and others feel a little sad because it’s a reminder that baby is growing up, (Don’t worry, she’s probably not ready for college quite yet!) but all in all it’s not too much of a big deal.

When you have a little guy or gal with a food allergy, like a milk allergy, this transition can cause a little angst. “How do I avoid an allergic reaction?” and “How do I make sure the baby’s getting enough to eat/the proper nutrition?” are questions we hear a lot around here.

Some parents also wonder if they should take the risk of introducing solid foods at all!

Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. Your little one actually needs solid foods so that they can start developing the necessary motor skills for chewing, biting (food, not people J) and speech development. So how can you safely begin introducing solid foods to your baby? Here are some important things to remember.

1. Wait until your baby is six months old to start them on solid foods, this will allow their immune system to mature a bit more.

2. Have a challenge phase where you introduce a few core foods to see what your baby can tolerate.

3. Introduce the foods least likely to cause allergic symptoms first.

4. Allow your baby to get used to the taste and texture of solid foods, as well as feeding from a spoon.

5. Introduce new textures in three stages:

• Stage 1:  thin and smooth
• Stage 2:  lumps and chunks
• Stage 3:  finger foods

6. In the later stages, the solid foods now in their diet should provide most of your child’s nutritional needs.

If you are nervous about allergic reactions in the challenge phase, check out Neocate Nutra. It’s a hypoallergenic, amino acid-based semi-solid medical food that you can give to children over six months old. The texture is similar to yogurt and it can be eaten by itself or you can mix it with other foods (my favorite is mixed with apple sauce!).

Have any tips for transitioning to solids? Let us know what you think below.

- Sarah