"Me Allergic To Allergies"

A proud day in the life of a mother of children with food allergies occured about a month ago. My two year old looked at a can of tomatoes and said "me allergic to tomatoes." I was, of course, thrilled as it is my hope that he can learn what he is allergic to so that he can say "NO" when offered. Attempting to build on this great teaching opportunity I prompted him to say what else he is allergic to, he replied with "cow's milk". I excitedly praised him and prompted him for further insights. To which he replied, in a very matter-of-fact way, "me allergic to allergies." Frankly, I couldn't agree with him more ;)

On My Bookshelf

What books/publications have helped us most during our journey? Here are some of my favorites.

The Whole Foods Allergy Cookbook by Cybelle Pascal

• All recipes are free of wheat, milk, eggs, soy, peanuts, treenuts, fish, & shellfish. Unfortunately, the recipes are NOT gluten-free. But I've managed to convert them fairly easily to gluten free. She also has a lot of great tips for reducing sugars.

Living Without: bi-montly publication

• I always look forward to the release of this magazine! The recipes are predominantly dairy/gluten free. They also have great articles relation to food allergies & sensitivities. Check it out at http://www.livingwithout.com/.

The Food Allergy Cure by Dr. Ellen Cutler

• Written by the founder of BioSET. A fascinating book identifying some of the alternative approaches to coping with food allergies. It also identifies common ailments and complex disorders and their origins in food.
  
  

Micromiracles by Dr. Ellen Cutler

• A fabulous book identifying the powerful effects of enzymes. It details how enzymes can benefit us by fighting inflammation, slowing aging, accelerating weight loss, renewing our energy, combating depression, dealing with digestive problems, and other ailments plaguing us today.
  
  
  
  

Enzymes for Autism and other Neurological Conditions by Karen DeFelice.

• Digestive enzymes have been a very key part of the management of our food allergies. I love this book because it is an excellent no-nonsense book written by a mother of two sons who suffered from gastrointestinal problems and neurological challenges. She gives excellent descriptions of the elements at play with digestive disorders and enzymes and how they can help. She gives a fantastic analogy of six blind men and an elephant, which for me was a clear description of how doctors tend to view these conditions. We as our children's advocate are responsible for piecing together the six blind men (doctors) interpretations and declaring our "elephant".

Healing the New Childhood Epidemics: Autism, ADHD, Asthma and Allergies by Dr. Kenneth Bock

• I can't say enough good about this book. It is fantastic. Look at this data identified by Dr. Bock. Do you realize that Allergies have increased 400% in the past 20 years? Autism now affects every 1 in 150-166 births, an increase of 1500% - 6000%. ADHD has increased 400%. Asthma has increased 300%, and ashtma deaths have increased 56%. This book explores some of the root underlying causes of these increases and identifies a "healing program" to help undo some of the damage which so many kids have sustained.