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The holiday season, although fun for most children, can be a very dangerous time of year for kids with food allergies.
After all, many of the things that trigger food allergies, including milk, eggs, peanuts, soy, wheat, fish or shellfish, and tree nuts such as almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, and walnuts, are used as ingredients in holiday snacks and meals.
Among the other things that can put allergic children at risk include:
- family members who don't 'believe' in food allergies
- homemade items with hidden ingredients
- homemade items that might be contaminated with allergenic foods from other containers or utensils
- a ready supply of snacks, especially nuts, left around the house
Some things that you can do to prevent your child from having an allergic reaction include:
- Make sure that the host, other family members, and anyone else bringing a meal or snack to holiday meals know about your child's food allergies and to not include the ingredients that he is allergic to.
- Avoid any foods if you are not sure what all of its ingredients are.
- Bring 'safe' foods or snacks if you don't think that there will be enough foods at the meal that your child can safely eat.
- Have your child's EpiPen ready in case that he or she does have an allergic reaction.
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