uKnow Peanut Molecular Allergy Test: We Took The Test!

The results are in!  But before I tell you the results, let me tell you the story.  My daughter has NEVER had a severe allergic reaction.  If you read our story, you will know that she was diagnosed with severe allergies to nuts, and a whole list of other foods, when she was 2 years old through skin-prick and regular blood testing.  Yes, we are lucky to have never experienced a severe reaction like so many of you, but I was always left to wonder if the allergy was true.

Have you heard of the uKnow Peanut Molecular Allergy Test?  According to the company website (https://www.uknowpeanut.com/Default.aspx), the uknow Peanut Test looks at component-specific IgE blood test which look at a person’s level of risk of a severe reaction. 

While I waited for the test date to arrive, and then waited for the test results, I have to admit that I really started to believe, in my mind, that she had outgrown her allergy or that we had been dealing with an allergy that never was.  I started letting loose.   I was like a college girl who just moved out of her parent’s house for the first time.  I went wild-crazy.   I stopped discussing her allergies and only telling people when necessary, like when ordering food at a restaurant.  I stopped blogging about food allergies.  I pretty much started pretending that we live a “normal” allergy free life.  I started shopping for food and buying even when the label said “made in a factory that processes nuts”.  I got a small glimpse of what my life was like before her food allergy diagnosis.  I yearned so badly for that life that I created it my mind, even before we got the results.

So, drumroll please........

 

 

 

Well, here are the results:  Severely allergic, high risk of anaphylaxis.  It was like someone punched me in the face.  Somehow in these last few months of living with the idea that we may be an allergy free home, I lost site of the blessings that have come along with this diagnosis:

1.  We are a family that is aware of what we put in our mouths.  I learned so much about processed food and being forced to avoid it has taught me to look for healthy alternatives.

2.  I learned to cook.  I mean I always had marginal cooking skills but I am improving my skills all the time.  Making and eating homemade, healthy meals is so satisfying.

3.  By changing our eating habits, many of our friends and family have done the same.  It’s had the “Tipping Point” effect on the health of our loved ones and people we encounter on a daily basis.

And let this be a reminder to all of us with food allergies in our family:  We can’t let our guard down, we have to keep fighting.  Fighting to keep our family members safe and healthy.  Fighting to educate people on food allergies.  Fight for awareness.  I thought I didn’t have to fight anymore.  But I am back and I am here to fight for the greatest little gift I have ever been given, my daughter Brooklyn.

Brooklyn’s Food Allergy Skin Testing Update:

I promised Brooklyn over a year ago that I would never make her go through skin testing for food allergies ever again.  Last week, I reluctantly broke that promise.  We had a scheduled appointment with her allergist to see if she has out-grown any of her food allergies.  Bad news:  The doctor talked me into doing this skin test.  Good News:  She outgrew some allergies! 

Looking at the picture, the two big welts in the center of her back are peanut and walnut.  Her levels on the blood tests and on the skin tests are still very high, so it's suspected that she is still extremely allergic to those nuts.  But….she has tested negative on both blood and skin tests for almonds, cashews, coconuts, and pistachios.  This is great news since she once tested positive to all tree nuts.  Eggs are still the big unknown.  Her levels have slowly decreased with eggs but they are still registering as an allergic response during testing.  We are used to eating vegan baked goods now and having an egg allergy, in a way, protects her from accidentally eating nuts in baked goods.  That is the most common way that nuts are accidentally eaten, baked goods. 

So, I wanted to post this experience since many of you are going through the same thing.  The testing is horrible on Brooklyn but put in perspective, it’s a little thing that can change our life for the better.  We are starting with coconut as the first re-introduction.  I bought a coconut but have yet to talk Brooklyn into eating some.  My years of pounding the idea into her that she can’t eat coconut is making it hard and scary for her to try something new.  She is old enough to be aware of how huge this step is in her life.  I will let you know how it goes with the re-introduction of these new foods.

Now, I am on a mission to find almonds that are NOT processed with peanuts or other tree nuts.  If anyone has information on where I could find those, please share.  I am thinking I will have to go straight to the farmer, but it will be worth it to add those into her diet. 

Testing and Re-testing of Food Allergies

If you’re one of the parents with a child that had a severe, immediate allergic reaction, then there is no doubt about your child’s allergy.  But if you are a parent, like me, that has a child with a list of foods to avoid that could be potentially fatal, but has never experienced any sort of reaction, then you may be in doubt about the allergy.  Brooklyn was diagnosed after having severe eczema and the doctors doing a full panel food allergy test (both skin and blood tests) when she was 2 ½ years old.  My doubts came this last Christmas 2010, when I was putting together home videos for family Christmas presents.  I came across a video of Brooklyn, about 10 months old, sitting on my dad’s lap, with a huge jar of peanut butter within half an arm length away from her. That is not something I remembered or would have paid attention to back then.   But the real shock came two seconds later when my dad, who is famous for eating peanut butter and jelly on his pancakes, gave Brooklyn a huge bite of that peanut butter pancake.  And nothing happened.  Nothing at all. 

Still to this day, Brooklyn has thankfully not had any reactions.  Her eczema even disappeared over a year ago.  I question whether the organic diet or my obsessive nature of trying to keep her safe has anything to do with how well she is doing.  But there is always that question in my mind: Is she really allergic to everything the tests say she is?  In August I took Brooklyn in for blood re-testing.  I was told she still has high levels for nuts but the egg allergy is registering lower every time she is tested.  The doctor said he will give her an oral challenge to egg in January 2012.  Fingers crossed that is negative, even though I have recently introduced eggs in baked goods, with no reaction.

The question of the accuracy of testing and re-testing is always on mind.  Should we keep re-testing every 6 months as I have been doing with Brooklyn?  Or should she have even been tested in the first place?  Here is a great article by Dr. Paul M. Ehrlich.  He is the new president of the New York Allergy and Asthma Society.  Check it out:
http://www.hamptons.com/Outdoors-And-Fitness/For-Your-Health/15744/Re-Testing-Food-Allergies-With-Your-Fingers.html