Looks like food allergies are on the rise and it could be because we, as parents, are with-holding foods from our youngsters. In the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology kids who are not exposed to common allergens have a higher likelihood of developing allergies, especially the peanut allergy.
Therefore, exposure to peanuts early on may help kids develop a better immune system and actually prevent them from further allergies.

Salicylates are chemicals found in plants but are also found in foods, medications, and cosmetics. Salicylates, when intolerable, can cause immediate effects such as headaches, nasal congestion, flushed cheeks, rashes, stomach pain, and trouble breathing.
But, for some children, like AJ, salicylates have a different reaction. AJ reacts by getting hyper, by stimming, and making odd noises. The problem is that he just can not control it.

Last year I did a lot of research on diet and behaviors because I felt that a lot of his behaviors were related to diet. I was not this type of person before we …read more

Allergies are tough, I know, I know! And, if you don’t have allergies it can be even harder to spot them in your child. My parents never thought to look for them in their children because they did not have them but when I was finally tested in college I had a severe allergy to eggs, wheat, and dairy. I have built back a tolerance to the wheat and dairy in that I can tolerate them in small amounts but I can not have eggs.
Spotting an allergy in children can be easy if you know what to look for:
Other symptoms …read more

RSV, as it is commonly known, is a highly contagious virus which is prevalent in infants mainly during the winter months. It is transmitted primarily hand-to- nose, hand-to-mouth, and hand-to-eye contact.
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the RSV season is in full swing right now. The RSV levels have reached the 30% level- meaning that one-third of all infants tested for the virus are testing positive. The CDC considers this to be an epidemic.
Now, because this is such a serious illness, and because this is so prevelent, RSV is considered to be one of the most important childhood illnesses. …read more

Parents Magazine reported last month that children can overcome food allergies by doing allergy challenges. Now, personally I don’t think this is very safe for children, even under a doctor’s supervision, which the magazine clearly states. However, it is said that a child can build up an immunity by eating small bites, working their way up from a crumb to a slice.
Currently the only advice doctors can give to the estimated 12 million Americans who have food allergies is to avoid the food and carry a self-injectable dose of epinephrine in case they accidentally consume the allergenic food. There …read more

Approximately 1% of children now have peanut allergies. That is about 3 million people and that is a growing number.
Peanut allergies are NOTHING to take lightly and are usually a life threatening condition so it is very important to know how to prevent an attack and to know what to do if there is an attack.
1. Read ALL food labels and know what words manufacturers use.

Dr. Ikechukwu U. Ogbuanu from the University of South Carolina in Columbia recently found that children who were breastfed for 4 months or longer had larger lung capacities by the time they were 10 years old than children who were not.
While the children’s speedier exhalations could have been related to the beneficial components of breast milk, “the lung capacity cannot be really explained by the immune factors in the breast milk,” Ogbuanu told Reuters Health.
Most likely though, is that it is more difficult to drink from a breast than a bottle.

A new report released November 24 states that children from Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita have serious physical and mental health ailments. The study, conducted by the New York based Children’s Health Fund reviewed the medical records of 261 children from a trailer park in Baton Rouge (children who were displaced from the hurricanes).
What is most alarming is that 41% of the children under four had iron-deficiency anemia, 55% of elementary aged students had behavior or learning problems, 42% had allergic rhinitis,, and 24% had upper respiratory and allergic skin ailments.
The question is; is this a problem with natural …read more

The American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine recently published a new study that shows babies born four months before the peak of the winter virus season were more likely to develop asthma than babies born at any other time of the year.
Why?
Because being born at that time of the year increases the chance of a respiratory infection during infancy, which also increases the chance of asthma.
WebMD

Unless you purchase a FRESH turkey your Thanksgiving Turkey is bound to have Lactose. Whey, whey products, and products like sodium lactate are in deli and processed meats to improve texture, emulsification, cook yield, and the finished product performance.
Lactose can be used to replace sugar, dextrose, and syrup so it keeps cost down and it looks healthier.
So, if you need a casein free or lactose free product chose a FRESH turkey.