Tag: allergy

Read the Label!

Whether you’re allergic or have food intolerance, it’s always important to read the label! My kids loved to watch GI Joe when they were little. I remember hearing …”and knowing is half the battle” over and over and over again during the PSAs at the end of the show. When it comes to keeping yourself from ingesting foods or medicines that will harm you, knowing really is half the battle. Reading the ingredients on product labels is a first line of defense to keep you from harm.

NutriLabelOf course it’s tempting to skip over reading labels. It’s time consuming and sometimes difficult when the text is in 2 point type. I’m most likely to neglect this task on products that I buy frequently. If I read the label a week ago, I think, why should I do it again? That’s just silly. But it isn’t silly because products change and I won’t know that unless I’m checking.

I also know that sometimes reading labels will lead to the recognition that everything that seems to trigger my dermatitis has the ingredient povidone or things that give me indigestion all contain corn in some form. Such an insight can quickly lead to an elimination of discomfort and an acceleration of healing. That makes me feel better and how can that be bad?

Still, you may think there’s no reason to read labels on items that logic dictates will not contain anything of concern. It may be time to think again. Not sure?

Take this quiz and see how you do:

Listed below are items that could be of concern to the allergic or food intolerant. Match the ingredient that is an item of concern with the product in which we found it lurking, then take a look at the answers and see how you did.

Item of concern – POVIDONE

A)Farm Raised Atlantic Salmon
B)Morton Iodized Salt
C)Tylenol
D)Dried Cranberries
E)All of the above

Item of concern – MAGNESIUM SULPHATE (Epsom Salt)

A)Hormel® Black Label® Bacon
B)Target Market Pantry Purified Drinking Water
C)HIllshire Farm Lit’l Smokies
D)Fiber One Chewy Bars
E)None of the above

Item of concern – AUTOLYZED YEAST EXTRACT (Contains glutamates)

A)Swanson Natural Goodness Chicken Broth
B)Wonder Classic White Bread
C)Kashi® GOLEAN Crunch® Cereal
D)Van’s Gluten Free Totally Original Waffles
E)All of the above

Item of concern – CORN

A)Yoplait Light Thick & Creamy Yogurt
B)Tylenol
C)Honey Nut Cheerios
D)Tums
E)All of the above

Item of concern – NATURAL FLAVORS (May contain corn, gluten, or dairy)

A)Rice Krispies Cereal
B)Sara Lee All Butter Pound Cake
C)Keebler Club Crackers Original
D)Pepperidge Farm Gluten Free Goldfish Mega Cheese Puffs
E)Cap’n Crunch Cereal

Item of concern – SOY

A)Hidden Valley Ranch Salad Dressing
B)Campbell’s Cream of Potato Condensed Soup
C)Nacho Cheese Doritos
D)Manischewitz Egg Noodles
E)Schar Table Crackers

Item of concern – WHEAT

A)Kikkoman Soy Sauce
B)Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup
C)Mission Garden Spinach Wraps
D)Thai Kitchen Curry Stir Fry Rice Noodle Meal Kit
E)All of the Above

Item of concern – PEANUTS

A)Philadelphia Cream Cheese
B)Honey Nut Cheerios Cereal
C)Special K Protein Bars
D)Honey Nut Chex Cereal
E)Wonder Classic White Bread

Item of concern – DAIRY

A)Coffee-Mate® Liquid Non Dairy Creamer
B)Phillips Coastal Crab Cakes
C)Kinnikinnick Gluten Free Cinnamon Sugar Donuts
D)Land O’Lakes Margarine
E)A & D, or B & C

Item of concern – Malt

A)Equate Ibuprofen Tablets
B)Werther’s Original Caramel Coffee Candy
C)Kellogg’s Corn Flakes
D)Chick-fil-A Vanilla Milkshake
E)Nancy’s Lorraine & Florentine Petite Quiche

Now, take a moment to review the answers below. Were your instincts correct? Were there any surprises? Did you discover a possible reason you are having symptoms?

Perhaps it’s time to consistently read the label. What do you think?

Answers:
Povidone – C)Found in Tylenol
Magnesium Sulphate – B)Found in Target Market Pantry Purified Drinking Water
Autolyzed Yeast Extract – A)Found in Swanson Natural Goodness Chicken Broth
Corn Starch – E)Found in All of the Above – Yoplait Yogurt, Tylenol, Cheerios and Tums
Natural Flavors – D)Found in Pepperidge Farm Gluten Free Goldfish Mega Cheese Puffs
Soy – B)Found in Campbell’s Cream of Potato Condensed Soup
Wheat – E)Found in All of the Above – Soy Sauce, Cream of Mushroom Soup, Spinach Wraps, and Curry Stir Fry Meal Kit
Peanuts – C)Found in Special K Protein Bars*
Dairy – A&D)Found in Coffee-Mate® Liquid Non Dairy Creamer and Land O’Lakes Margarine
Malt – C)Found in Kellogg’s® Corn Flakes

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

*Honey Nut Chex Cereal does not list peanuts in the ingredient list or a peanut warning, but is considered controversial by some. Consume at your own risk if you have severe allergies. http://www.foodfacts.com/ci/nutritionfacts/Breakfast-Foods/General-Mills-Honey-Nut-Chex-Cereal–oz/1647

Should I let my gluten-intolerant child play with play dough?

Every kid loves to play with play dough! When I was small, my grandmother would whip up a batch using flour, water, salt, and food coloring. My cousins and I were quickly entertained and, per Granny’s instructions, confined to the kitchen table so that she was free to do her chores without interruption.

We made the usual snakes, tiny people, cookie cutter shapes, cakes, and pies. Because we knew the play dough was edible, we didn’t hesitate to put it up to our lips when pretending to eat a play dough cookie.

At my own house we played with commercially produced Play-Doh®, as did my children when they were younger. Although there’s no longer any metal or cardboard involved, I still love those bright yellow containers with the tight fitting lids and the distinctive smelling dough inside.

Play Dough

Clearly I’m not alone because Hasbro produces over 100 million cans of Play-Doh per year.(1) With that much Play-Doh around, unless your child never leaves home, there’s virtually no chance for him to avoid an opportunity to play with some.

If your child is gluten-intolerant or has Celiac disease, is it okay for him/her to join in the play dough fun?

According to the Hasbro Play-Doh website, the dough is “primarily a mixture of water, salt, and flour. It does NOT contain peanuts, peanut oil, or any milk byproducts. It DOES contain wheat.” The site continues, “PLAY-DOH compound is non-toxic, non-irritating & non-allergenic except as noted: Children who are allergic to wheat gluten may have an allergic reaction to this product. Also, due to the high salt content in PLAY-DOH compound, the product can be harmful to pets if ingested.”

Could you take this to mean you should absolutely forbid, and vigilantly prevent, your child’s exposure to this substance? You could take it that way, but such a drastic response may not be necessary unless your child has a wheat allergy that may lead to anaphylaxis and anaphylactic shock.(2)

If your child is not allergic, but has an autoimmune intolerance to gluten there is no reason for concern unless she eats the Play-Doh. Gluten molecules are too large to be absorbed through the skin.(1) Even a brush of play dough on the lips will likely transmit less gluten than allowed in an item labeled “gluten-free” in a country that has an allowable standard.(3)

A toddler is more likely to eat Play-Doh than an older child, and some particular children are prone to put everything in their mouths whereas others are not. Since a toddler’s environment is more closely controlled anyway, it may be possible to keep them in a mostly Play-Doh free environment until they are older. If you know your older child has a habit of ingesting foreign items, then it may be good to explain in stronger terms to this child, the potential danger of eating Play-Doh. Otherwise, why not just let them play?

It is difficult enough for a child to feel “different’ because he has to eat differently. When there’s no significant immediate danger, why even mention an adverse possibility? Again, you know your child. If you think it’s necessary to tell them not to eat the Play-Doh then tell them, but for most kids saying nothing is probably the best strategy. You can always sterilize the cookie cutters once the Play-Doh has been put away.

It’s always great to discover something we DON’T have to be worried about. For the gluten-intolerant and those with Celiac Disease, playing with Play-Doh is perfectly safe as long as you don’t ingest it. Go get the kids; it’s time to make something fun!

Email pictures of your kid’s play dough creation to support@cooking2thrive.com, and we’ll post it here on the blog.

 

 

(1)http://www.hasbro.com/playdoh/en_US/faq.cfm

(2) http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/mplusdictionary.html

(3)http://thehill.com/blogs/regwatch/healthcare/284929-gluten-free-labeling-rules-head-to-white-house

 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I have mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”