Food Allergies For Dummies

385 Pages·2007·6.75 MB·English

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Food Allergies
FOR
DUMmIES
‰
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Food Allergies
FOR
DUMmIES
‰
by Robert A.Wood,MD,with Joe Kraynak
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Food Allergies For Dummies®
Published by
Wiley Publishing, Inc.
111 River St.
Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774
www.wiley.com
Copyright © 2007 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published simultaneously in Canada
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About the Authors
Robert A. Wood, MD,is Professor of Pediatrics and International Health and
Chief of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology at the Johns Hopkins University
School of Medicine in Baltimore, Maryland. After receiving his medical degree
from the University of Rochester School of Medicine, he completed his resi-
dency in pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins University, where he also completed
an allergy and immunology fellowship. Dr. Wood is an internationally recog-
nized expert in food allergy and childhood asthma and has published over
100 manuscripts in scientific journals, including the New England Journal
of Medicine, JAMA, Pediatrics, and the Journal of Allergy and Clinical
Immunology, as well as two books and numerous book chapters. He is Deputy
Editor of the journal Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, was Associate Editor
of the Annals of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, and has served on the edi-
torial board of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. He is on the
Board of Directors of the American Board of Allergy and Immunology. He
personally cares for over 4,000 patients with food allergy and has a special
interest in this topic as someone with a severe, lifelong peanut allergy.
Joe Kraynak is a freelance author who has written and co-authored dozens of
books on topics ranging from slam poetry to computer basics. Joe teamed up
with Dr. Candida Fink to write his first book in the For Dummiesseries, Bipolar
Disorder For Dummies,where he showcased his talent for translating the par-
lance of psychiatry into plain-spoken practical advice. He then tackled Flipping
Houses For Dummieswith legendary real estate pro Ralph Roberts to produce
the ultimate guide for real estate rehabbers. In Food Allergies For Dummies,Joe
returns to the doctor’s office with world-renowned allergist, Robert Wood, MD,
to pen the definitive guide to living well with food allergies.
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Dedication
From Robert Wood: To my wife, Renee Melly Wood, DVM, for her unbeliev-
able patience and support, to my parents, Dr. Bob and Carol Wood, for their
consistent support and lifelong example of hard work, integrity, and compas-
sion to all, and to my brother David, for all he taught me about life before his
tragic death.
From Joe: In memory of my brother Mitch, a brilliant physician and an out-
standing human being who passed away well before his time.
Authors’ Acknowledgments
Although we wrote the book, dozens of other talented individuals con-
tributed to its conception, development, and perfection. Special thanks go to
acquisitions editor Lindsay Lefevere, who chose us as the authors and guided
us through the tough part of getting started. Jennifer Connolly, our project
editor, deserves a round of applause for acting as a very patient collaborator
and choreographer — shuffling chapters back and forth, shepherding the
text and photos through production, and asking a whole lot of questions to
ensure that you would have all yourquestions answered. We also tip our hats
to the production crew for doing such an outstanding job of transforming a
loose collection of text and illustrations into such an attractive bound book.
We owe special thanks to the folks at FAAN (Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis
Network), especially FAAN founder Anne Munoz-Furlong, for gathering the
recipes for the delectable dishes served up in the appendix and for writing
the foreword for our book.
We owe a huge debt of gratitude to a few people who have played a special
role in moving the field of food allergy forward. From a scientific standpoint,
Drs. Hugh Sampson and Scott Sicherer at Mt. Sinai School of Medicine and
Dr. Wesley Burks at Duke University School of Medicine led the way in moving
the study of food allergy to the 21st century. From a personal standpoint, we
would once again like to acknowledge Anne Munoz-Furlong for what she and
FAAN have done to provide the leadership and resources that we all rely on
to educate everyone — from patients to schools to doctors — about what it
means to live with food allergy.
We owe special thanks to our technical editor, accomplished allergist John M.
James, MD, for ferreting out technical errors in the manuscript, helping guide
its content, and offering his own advice, guidance, and tips.
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Publisher’s Acknowledgments
We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our Dummies online registration
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Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the following:
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Copy Editor: Jennifer Connolly
Julie Trippetti
Technical Editor:John M. James, MD
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LeeAnn Harney, David Lutton
Cover Photo: © Cole Group/Getty Images
Cartoons: Rich Tennant
(www.the5thwave.com)
Publishing and Editorial for Consumer Dummies
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Publishing for Technology Dummies
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Debbie Stailey,Director of Composition Services
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Contents at a Glance
Foreword....................................................................xxi
Introduction.................................................................1
Part I: Feasting on Food Allergy Fundamentals...............9
Chapter 1: Breaking Out with Food Allergies ...............................................................11
Chapter 2: Turning Allergies Inside Out: Probable Causes
and Common Symptoms...............................................................................................27
Chapter 3: Spotting the Usual Suspects: Wherefore Art Thou, Allergen?.................51
Chapter 4: Picking On Peanuts: A Potentially Deadly Foe...........................................67
Part II: Progressing from Hives to Hope:
Diagnosis and Treatment.............................................83
Chapter 5: Labeling Your Ailments with an Accurate Diagnosis................................85
Chapter 6: Concocting Your Own Avoidance Diet......................................................113
Chapter 7: Making It Stop: Finding Symptomatic Relief............................................127
Chapter 8: Debunking Alternative Tests and Therapies............................................141
Chapter 9: Exploring Cures from Mice to Man: Current Research...........................153
Part III: Living Well with Your Food Allergies.............167
Chapter 10: Living at Home with Your Allergies.........................................................169
Chapter 11: Eating Out and Traveling with Food Allergies.......................................183
Chapter 12: Conquering the Challenges of Daycare and Preschool........................201
Chapter 13: Sending Food Allergies Off to School: K-12............................................219
Chapter 14: Empowering Your Adolescent or Teenager ..........................................241
Chapter 15: Preventing and Outgrowing a Food Allergy ..........................................253
Part IV: The Part of Tens...........................................269
Chapter 16: Teaching Your Child Ten Key Food Allergy Lessons.............................271
Chapter 17: Packing Ten Key Food Allergy Tips for Camp,
College, and Other Outings ........................................................................................279
Chapter 18: Substituting Foods and Ingredients: Ten Common
Dietary Substitutions .................................................................................................287
Chapter 19: Exploring Ten Outstanding Food Allergy Web Sites ...........................295
Chapter 20: Responding to a Severe Reaction: Ten Do’s and Don’ts.......................301