Allergy Alert Stuff has moved to allergyware.com

If you have input on HR 4063, I’m very interested to hear what you think. Here’s a summary:

H.R.4063
Title: To direct the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop a policy for managing the risk of food allergy and anaphylaxis in schools.
Sponsor: Rep Lowey, Nita M. [NY-18] (introduced 10/17/2005) Cosponsors (57)
Latest Major Action: 11/4/2005 Referred to House subcommittee. Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Health.

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SUMMARY AS OF:
10/17/2005–Introduced.Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Management Act of 2005 - Requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop and make available to local educational agencies a voluntary policy to manage the risk of food allergy and anaphylaxis in schools. Directs that such policy address: (1) a parental obligation to provide the school with information regarding a student’s food allergy and anaphylaxis; (2) communication strategies between schools and emergency medical services; (3) strategies to reduce the risk of exposure in classrooms and common areas; (4) food allergy management training of school personnel; (5) authorization of school personnel to administer epinephrine when the school nurse is not immediately available; and (6) creation of an individual health care plan tailored to each child’s risk for anaphylaxis.

Send me your thoughts via email at allergyware@gmail.com, in text or audio, or call me at 1-888-65-GCAST, 2255537532 (that spells “Call Leslea”), pin #1111. Or, you can just click “comments” and leave me a note right here! Your choices are endless, aren’t they?

I’m going to be interviewed for comments on the topic, so of course I am always interested not just in what *I* think, but what other allergy parents think, as well.

I’m pleased to announce that this year I was able to order the decadent treat known as Girl Scout Cookies for the first time in years.

Check your local GS Cookie order forms, as these things are produced regionally and plant circumstances may differ, but this year we are having some Samoas, Thin Mints, and All Abouts!

Rock on!!!!!!  Thank you FALCPA and Girl Scouts!!!!!!!

(Goodbye, diet!)

 

Wed Feb 22, 3:24 PM ET

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Women with major depression are more likely than women who are not depressed to have allergies, and allergies also appear to be more common in men with nervous, anxious personalities, a study has found.

The findings, from a national survey of 3,032 U.S. adults, suggest there is a relationship between depression or neurotic personality traits and allergy — and suggest that these associations are different for men and women.

Past studies have linked depression and allergies, though it’s not clear if one leads to the other. One hypothesis has been that people with “neurotic” personalities — who have a tendency to be nervous, anxious and moody — might be prone to both depression and allergies. The trait is already thought to be a risk factor for depression.

To test this idea, the authors analyzed data from a nationally representative survey of Americans between the ages of 25 and 74. Depression and personality traits were all measured using a standard battery of questions.

Overall, the researchers found, both depression and “neuroticism” were associated with a greater likelihood of allergy. Study participants with major depression were 50 percent more likely to have allergies than those without depression, while adults with neurotic personalities were 22 percent more likely to have allergies than their peers without neurotic personalities.

However, a closer analysis showed that depression and allergies were linked only among women, and neurotic personality did not explain the relationship.

In contrast, men with neurotic personalities had a higher risk of allergies, but there was no connection between depression and allergies.

Dr. Renee D. Goodwin of Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, in New York, led the study, which is published in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine.

More research, according to Goodwin’s team, is needed better understand the connections between depression and allergies, and between neuroticism and allergies — as well as why there are sex differences.

In the case of depression, the researchers speculate, it’s possible that the disorder contributes to allergy development by impairing the immune system or through some other biological effect.

On the flip side, the stress of dealing with chronic allergies may lead to depression in some people.

Similarly, the relationship between neurotic personality and allergies could work in either direction, according to the study authors.

They note that people who are naturally anxious, for example, may be more sensitive to allergic responses and seek treatment for milder symptoms that other people might ignore.

On the other hand, although personality traits are thought to form early in life, it’s possible that allergies cause some people to think more negatively in general and respond to daily stresses with more anxiety.

SOURCE: Psychosomatic Medicine, January/February 2006

   

Nebulizer (PS)

Originally uploaded by khayes.

Wheezy allergic kids may grow into asthmatic adults

By Michelle Rizzo
Fri Feb 24, 1:34 PM ET

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Children who have airway hyperresponsiveness, a symptom of asthma, and allergic manifestations have an increased risk of developing asthma by the time they become adults, according to Danish researchers.

Dr. Celeste Porsbjerg, of Bispebjerg Hospital, Copenhagen, and colleagues followed 291 subjects for 12 years. The subjects were 7 to 17 years of age at enrollment in 1986. They completed provided information on asthma, allergies and lifestyle in 1986 and again in 1998. They also underwent asthma and allergy testing.

At entry in 1986, roughly 4 percent of the group had asthma. This increased to nearly 12 percent by the second survey.

According to the team, wheezing in childhood raised the risk of asthma and allergic sensitization to house dust mites in adulthood more than threefold. Having dermatitis as a child also raised the risk of asthma in adulthood.

“The development of asthma in young adults could be predicted in 67 percent of cases by factors that were already present in childhood,” Porsbjerg explained in an interview with Reuters Health. “Among people who do not have any of these factors in childhood only a very few (4 percent) went on to develop asthma in adulthood.”

If it’s possible to identify those at risk of developing asthma, then “early intervention is a possibility,” Porsbjerg noted. “An example of intervention could be immunotherapy,” she said. “Individuals who are allergic to house dust mites and who also have hyperresponsive airways, have a very high risk of developing asthma, and in these subjects immunotherapy could be indicated in order to stop this development.”

SOURCE: Chest February 2006.

• Granola bars: nonuttin.com (I liked these), allerenergy.com (Katespot.com recommendation)
• Leave me a message by calling 1.888.65.2278 (outside the US +1-305-437-8719). Enter # 2255537532 (CALL LESLEA), pin # 1111.
• Please visit allergyware.com. Yes, I take requests.
• 
• My clubmom.com articles. Not all of them are about allergies. Most, but not all.

Some recalls:

**THE FOOD ALLERGY & ANAPHYLAXIS NETWORK SPECIAL FOOD ALLERGY ALERT NOTICE**

WALNUT ALLERGY ALERT
February 23, 2006

Arnold Foods Company, Inc. is recalling Brownberry brand Natural Wheat
Bread (24 ounces) due to undeclared walnuts.

The bread was sold in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South
Carolina and Tennessee. The product being recalled has a blue or white
square lock tab closure with a code date of “Feb 27″ printed on the lock
tab closure.

Consumers who have purchased the product can return it to the place of
purchase for a full refund. Consumers with questions should call the
company at (800) 984-0989.

and

Federico’s Bakery Issues Allergy Alert on Undeclared Sodium Bisulfite

Contact:
John Lee
(626)357-3243 X13

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE — Duarte, CA — February 23, 2006 — FEDERICO’S BAKERY of Duarte, California is recalling its “Apricot-filled Butter Cookies” because they contain Sodium-Bisulfite in the Apricot filling. People who have allergies to sulfites run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reaction if they consume these products.

The recalled “Apricot-filled Butter Cookies” were distributed in California in retail stores. The product comes in a clear plastic package and is contained in the following item numbers:

Item No. / Description / Size

VS 118 / Italian Deluxe Assortment / 13.50 oz
VS 119 / Fancy Butter Cookie Assortment / 11.50 oz
VS 122 / Butter Cookie Apricot Center / 11.50 oz
VS 123 / Assorted Butter Cookies / 11.50 oz
V118 / Deluxe Italian Assortment / 32 oz
V119 / Fancy Butter Cookies / 32 oz

No illnesses have been reported to date in connection with this problem.

The recall was initiated after it was discovered that the Sodium-Bisulfite containing product was distributed in packaging that did not reveal the presence of Sodium- Bisulfite. Subsequent investigation indicates the problem was caused by not properly labeling the Sodium-Bisulfite in the packages.

Consumers who have purchased the packages above are urged to return them to the place of purchase for a full refund. Consumers with questions may contact the company at 1-626-357-3243 extension 13.

Some news links:

• Wonder Bread - Where’s the Whey?
• Cockroach allergy just like dustmites
• Generic Flonase to be available in the US
  

Great music this week by andyguthrie and Die Warzau

Podcasts are free to subscribe to through iTunes and most any other podcast-listening software.  You don’t need an iPod or any other mp3 player other than your computer.  To have a listen to this week’s episode, please investigate the info on this site (iTunes, podcast pickle, etc.), or just click here if all that just freaks you out too much.

An excerpt:

Three different boys, three different skins. If you have multiple children, like me, you might experience a similar phenomenon in your household: one child has perfect, smooth, supple skin, another has “normal” textures all over his body, the third has dry patches that often turn red or pink and, worst of all, itch.

Consult your doctor to make sure, but chances are good that the child with the itchy red patches has some form of eczema. Eczema is very common, and a lot of children with allergies get it. It can be an allergic reaction itself, or it can just be one of those nasty little things that “happen” from a variety of causes.

Read more here.  Make sure and give me a good rating if you go, okay? 

JP PasteriesOriginally uploaded by tsaiware.

**THE FOOD ALLERGY & ANAPHYLAXIS NETWORK SPECIAL FOOD ALLERGY ALERT NOTICE**

SOY ALLERGY ALERT
February 21, 2006

Best Brands Corp. is recalling Twisted Snails Frozen Danish Dough due to
undeclared soy.

The Danish twist dough was sold to retail and grocery store bakeries and
other food-service outlets in Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa,
Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota,
Pennsylvania, Ohio, South Dakota, Texas, and Wisconsin.

Consumers may have purchased the product as baked, spiral-shaped Danish,
either iced, filled, or plain. The Danish twists may have been sold from
trays in the bakery counter or in individual packages with grocery store
labels. The name “Best Brands” or “Twisted Snails Frozen Danish Dough”
would not appear on the consumer package.

Consumers who have purchased the product may return it to the place of
purchase for a full refund. Consumers with questions may contact the
company at (800) 328-2068.

Man, I hate when my snails have soy in them!

No offense, these look lovely, but I’d rather eat the Danish variety than the French.

I eat snails!

Originally uploaded by cfsantos.

Avoiding milk protein–with a lot of good links. Thanks, Karen, for letting me know about your site.

Here’s one of my dairy allergy designs:

If you haven’t heard about the Mardi Gras photo sale fundraiser my family is running to raise money for displaced residents of New Orleans to rebuild their homes, their lives, and their community, then listen in. Visit the website at hkmg.wordpress.com.  Music info is here.

We now return to your regularly-schedule allergy news.

Just get me through this week (the Mardi Gras Ball is Friday), and there will be a new allergyware podcast next week.

Hope you’re having a great weekend.

Check these out: granola bars that are free of eight of the top ten food allergies. Thanks to Cindy for sending that to me. They’ll give you a free sample, too!

And now some food allergy alerts:

CRW_9265aOriginally uploaded by Svetlanka.

**THE FOOD ALLERGY & ANAPHYLAXIS NETWORK SPECIAL FOOD ALLERGY ALERT
NOTICE**

SOY ALLERGY ALERT
February 15, 2006

Flying Salmon Inc. is recalling “Carpathian� Brand Caviar due to undeclared
soybean.

The products were distributed through retail stores in Northern
California. They are packaged in 2-oz. or 4-oz. plastic or glass jars or 8-
oz. plastic containers and are identified as follows:

“Carpathian� Brand repacked Japanese Orange Tobiko Caviar
“Carpathian� Brand repacked Japanese Wasabi Tobiko Caviar
“Carpathian� Brand repacked Japanese Black Tobiko Caviar

Consumers who have purchased the products may return them to the place of
purchase for a full refund. Consumers with questions may contact the
company at (800) 622-8427.

I know y’all are a bunch of caviar-eatin’ fools! Hold the presses!

**THE FOOD ALLERGY & ANAPHYLAXIS NETWORK SPECIAL FOOD ALLERGY ALERT NOTICE**

MILK ALLERGY ALERT
February 16, 2006

Marito’s Bakery is recalling 8-oz. packages of “Keikitos” (muffins) due to
undeclared milk.

The product was sold in New Jersey and New York. The recall includes all
codes of “Keikitos� (muffins) in 8-oz. plastic bags.

Consumers who have purchased the product should return it to the place of
purchase.

And, finally…

**THE FOOD ALLERGY & ANAPHYLAXIS NETWORK SPECIAL FOOD ALLERGY ALERT
NOTICE**

SHRIMP ALLERGY ALERT
February 17, 2006

Chung’s Gourmet Foods is recalling frozen chicken egg rolls due to
undeclared shrimp.

The egg rolls were shipped to distribution centers and retail
establishments nationwide.

The product comes in 36-oz. packages labeled “China Express, Chicken Egg
Rolls, With Sweet & Sour Sauce Packets, 12 Count.� Each package bears the
establishment number “P-13218� inside the USDA mark of inspection. The
packages also bear the case code “2003425� or “1003425.�

Consumers with questions should call the company at (713) 741-2118 or (800)
824-8647.