Allergies Misunderstood

Food allergies are widely misunderstood. 

I always happen to encounter people who seemingly have little to no awareness of what allergies are and their direct impact on a person’s well-being. I’ll narrate a common occurrence that happens often while out in public settings (cafes, restaurants, friendly gatherings):

Me: “My son has food allergies; he shouldn’t be eating that as it has sesame!”

Person X: “Oh, that’s fine. There’s only a little bit of sesame there. It won’t hurt.”

Me: “No, it really will. He can’t even have food that’s come close to sesame (eggs, dairy, and nuts for son’s case as well).”

They either uncomfortably nod and opt to change the subject, or they try to show interest by asking questions without really understanding the full gist of it. It might be tiring and somewhat frustrating having to explain to every new person that my son comes across in his life of the severity of his allergies, but I can’t ignore it. I shouldn’t. It’s best for people to be made aware of this condition.

I don’t want to claim that I’ve been knowledgeable about what food allergies were and their direct effect on a person’s health as I’ve had to educate myself about it on the spot as soon as my son had his first allergic reaction. 

It wasn’t a pleasant experience and I hope no one has to deal with it but the reality is that some of us might fall victim to this disease so it’s on all of us to support each other by learning about its symptoms and effects even if it doesn’t directly impact us. I honestly can’t and shouldn’t blame anyone for their lack of awareness on Food Allergies; I never knew the full picture of Food Allergies and its severity until it happened to us.  

Food Allergies is when the body’s immune system mistakenly believes that a harmless substance is harmful to the body. So, to protect itself, it starts to attack the substance. This attack appears in the form of an allergic reaction with a variety of symptoms.

An allergic reaction can occur within minutes after ingestion or can take up to hours. That is why it is very important that if you want to introduce new food to your kid, make sure you do so during the day so you are able to monitor them for enough hours – you wouldn’t want them to react while they are asleep

The most severe allergic reaction is called anaphylaxis. It can have different signs and symptoms, including difficulty breathing and/or a dangerous drop in blood pressure. If untreated, an anaphylactic reaction can be fatal.

What to do in case of an anaphylactic reaction? EpiPen EpiPen Epipen! Its main ingredient is epinephrine which can help to prevent or reverse heart collapse, helps the airways to open up … Inject the Epipen immediately and rush to the hospital.

Epipen doesn’t save a life but it saves you time.

More awareness is needed in our societies so that kids with Food Allergies grow up in a safer environment and feel part of the society – no different than the rest.

Food Allergies can happen to anyone, at any age. Yes, it can happen to YOU!

Educate yourself & help raise awareness.

Disclaimer: all information is from my own understanding and research. It’s not medical based.