The Itch: Allergies, Asthma, Eczema & Immunology

#30 Racial and economic disparities in food allergies, interview with Emily Brown

How do disparities (racial and economic) impact people with food allergies?

Dr. G and Kortney explore disparities in food allergies with Emily Brown, the founder of Food Equality Initiative. Emily shares her story of food allergies and food insecurity, and how this impacts so many Americans. 

Emily started Food Equality Initiative (FEI) to ensure that no mom has to feel like she did when she first stepped into a food pantry and could not find any safe options for her family. 

FEI’s mission: Improve health and end hunger in individuals diagnosed with food allergies and celiac disease through access to safe and healthy food, nutrition, education and advocacy.

What we covered on this episode:

• Why Emily started Food Equality Initiative and her journey into becoming an allergy mom.
• The role of family support in food allergy management.
• Food disparities and food insecurity - what does this mean.
• Why there is no shame in asking for help.
• American food programmes: WIC, SNAP (supplemental nutrition program).
• The struggles food allergy families may face at food banks and pantries. 
• How you can benefit from FEI or get involved.
• Since avoidance of allergens is the only treatment, access to safe food is therefore also the treatment. Emily and FEI are working to make safe food covered by insurance.
• Asthma and food allergy disparities - how they are linked.
• Why doctors need to screen for food insecurity.

Helpful resources:

• Emily’s open letter to the food allergy community
• #ForTheHealth: Ending food allergy healthcare disparities series hosted by FEI
• Infographic of the impact of food allergies on a food budget

#29 - Nutrition and food allergies during pregnancy

Are there special precautions you need to take when pregnant with food allergies?

 

Chelsey Amer joins Dr G and Kortney to talk about her experience being pregnant with food allergies. As a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist Chelsey also shares information about proper nutrition during pregnancy for those with and without food allergies.

 

Dr G also shed some light on allergic reactions and what you need to know about taking allergy and asthma medications during pregnancy.

 

What we cover in this episode:

• Chelsey's journey with food allergies, chronic lung disease and how she became a registered dietitian.
• Can you use anti-histamines, epinephrine, topical steroids while pregnant?
• Pregnancy and asthma, can you continue to use controller medications and does anything change with asthma during pregnancy?
• Tips on how to eat a well-balanced diet during pregnancy and what that looks like.
• The role of supplements during pregnancy: what to look for and what to take.
• Is it ok to be a vegetarian while pregnant? Will your baby get all the nutrients they need to thrive?
• Why omega 3 fatty acids should not be neglected during pregnancy.
• What foods to avoid during pregnancy.
• Should you avoid eating allergenic foods while pregnant if you are not allergic to them? If you have a child with food allergies, should avoid eating their allergens during pregnancy?
• Can vitamin D help prevent allergic disease in babies?
• Why you want to introduce allergenic food to your child early on.
• Breastfeeding: what foods should be avoided, and when should you avoid allergenic foods while breastfeeding?
• When should someone consider working with a registered dietitian?
• What concerns Chelsey had about food allergies for herself and for her son.
• How to safely introduce your food allergens to your baby, and what Chelsey has been doing with her son.
• Sugar and gestational diabetes during pregnancy.

 

Helpful Resources: https://www.itchpodcast.com/post/episode-29

 

 

#28: How to feel comfortable in your skin with eczema - Interview with Alexis Smith

What is the secret to feeling comfortable in your skin, especially when you have eczema?

 

Dr. Gupta and Kortney interview "skinfluencer" Alexis Smith, who shares her eczema journey on Instagram. Alexis has appeared on the cover of People Health Magazine, and Dove Beauty campaigns openly displaying her skin. Alexis shares how to feel comfortable in your skin, how to date, and wear makeup when you have eczema.

 

Dr. G goes into detail about patch testing for contact dermatitis, and how it is an integral part of eczema management.

 

What we cover in this episode:

• The role Instagram played in her eczema journey and the doors that it has opened from collaborations to developing a community
• How Alexis's family adapted to her diagnosis and the changes they had to make as a household
• The emotional toll eczema puts on you 
• Alexis's story of not covering up her eczema and why is it important to know and remember that "people don't care"
• Advice on how to be more comfortable in your one skin and gain confidence in your body
• How to interact with people who comment on your skin and don't really understand it?
• Navigating makeup with eczema
• Tips for rocking your eczema routine
• The testing used to help diagnose eczema
• Dating with eczema
• Mental health & resources for people who are feeling emotionally drained from their skin condition

   

  Additional resources:https://www.itchpodcast.com/post/episode-28

 

 

#27 - How to treat atopic eczema

What can you do to avoid atopic eczema flares?

 

In part two of the atopic eczema series, Dr G and Kortney discuss treatments and management techniques. From oral steroids to bleach baths, get ready to learn about all the ways you can help maintain healthy skin and avoid flares.

 

What we cover in this episode:

• What types of creams should you use to help maintain your skin
• Medicated creams: steroid cream, non-steroidal creams: Protopic and Crisaborole
• Sun exposure’s impact on your skin
• Other atopic eczema therapies: Phototherapy, Oral steroids: the pros and the cons, Dupilumab - dupixent: use and side effects, and Antihistamines
• Skin care for atopic eczema: soaps, bathing, moisturising
• Bleach baths
• General tips on how to avoid a flare.
• Can eczema be cured?

   

  More resources: Atopic Eczema Treatments

#26 - What is atopic eczema? Part 1

What is the itch that rashes? 

Dr G and Kortney are at it again; this time, they are doing a deep dive into atopic eczema. In part one, they go through all the terms associated with atopic eczema, what causes it, the symptoms, and the triggers. In part two, they will be covering treatments and maintenance.

What we cover in this episode:

• Eczema and dermatitis
• Atopic eczema/atopic dermatitis
• Contact dermatitis
• Neurodermatitis
• What happens in the body to cause atopic eczema? 
• Why the skin barrier is essential in understanding atopic eczema and why you need to keep it moisturize
• What does atopic eczema look like/how to recognize it.
• How atopic eczema in effect different age groups.
• What are the triggers of atopic dermatitis: weather, temperature, environmental allergens, food allergies, stress.
• How to diagnose atopic eczema and why it is crucial to work with an allergist while diagnosing a baby, especially if they are being tested for food allergies. 
• How food allergies and eczema present in adults.

#25 - Travelling with food allergies

Can you travel with food allergies? You bet! This is how!

In this episode, Kortney and Dr. G talk to Allie Bahn, a travel guru, who has been blogging about her adventures since 2008. Despite her allergies, Allie always finds various ways of exploring the world, while being conscious about her condition.

Travel has evolved for Allie from road trips with her family as a kid to solo adventures around the globe. Allie shares the steps she takes and her mindset around travelling with food allergies. There is no impossible destination as long as you are prepared.

What we cover in this episode:

• How to make travelling with allergies possible - what you need to prepare in planning and your expectations.

• How travelling with food allergies evolves as you get older

• How to solo travel with allergies

• Summer camps and student exchange:

• How should parents and children have a conversation when deciding to participate in an exchange program and what is necessary to prepare for it.

• How to know when a child is ready for travelling abroad

• Are organizations more hesitant to allow kids with food allergies to participate in exchange programs?

• What to do when preparing for first-time travel after food allergy diagnosis

• How to build up confidence in travelling with allergies

• How to prepare for travelling with allergies

• How does Ally decide where to go next

• Where should one be finding emergency services abroad

• The resource www.allergytravels.com

List of resources: https://www.itchpodcast.com/post/episode-25

#24 - Dating, Alcohol and food allergies!

Kissing, love, drinking, oh my! How does a young adult navigate this and more when they have food allergies?

Dr G and Kortney sat down with Amanda Orlando, the blogger behind Everyday Allergen-Free and author of the cookbook Everyone's Welcome and Dan Kelly from the podcast May Contain to talk about dating!

They set out to talk about navigating love life with food allergies, but the conversation morphed into alcohol, college and figuring out how social life in your late teen's early twenties. There is some fun stuff in this episode, and the guests reveal some personal details about first kisses and more!

What we cover in this episode:

• How to bring up your food allergies with a date
• It's normal not to know how to bring up your allergies
• Always share your allergy with dates as early as possible
• If someone doesn't consider your allergy when planning a date - then maybe they aren't right for you
• How using humour can help when introducing your allergies-
• Rules about kissing?
• How parents can help make young adults who are vocal about their allergies.
• Over 60% of teenagers feel embarrassed to speak about their allergies - how can we change this?
• Things that you need to think about as you transition from living at home to living on your own in college.
• How having close friends who know your allergies and situation can make a big difference.
• Why you should teach your friends how to use your epi device.
• The importance of building a new safety net at college.
• How to navigate drinking safely
• How alcohol might affect your reaction to foods.
• Allowing your partner to have allergens or not?
• Did you grow up in an allergen-free home or not?

Additional resources: https://www.itchpodcast.com/post/episode-24

#23 - The Immune System

How do you know if you have an under reactive immune system?

Did you know Dr G is an allergist-immunologist. This episode explores the function of an immunologist, what they treat patients for and how they go about it. But to fully understand immunology, we first have to know more about the immune system and what can go wrong with it. 

What we cover in this episode:

 

• A brief overview of the immune system

 

• • What can go wrong with the immune system: Overreacting - allergies & autoimmune disease, Under reacting - immunodeficiency disorders
  • What causes an immunodeficiency?
  • The basics of how to recognize an immunodeficiency and diagnose it
  • How immunodeficiencies are treated
  • Types of immunodeficiencies

 

• Difference between allergy, autoimmune disease and immunodeficiency
• Listener question: How can someone have both an under reactive and overreactive immune system?

 

Resources:

• https://primaryimmune.org/
• https://www.aaaai.org/conditions-and-treatments/primary-immunodeficiency-disease

Episodes on allergies: 

• Ep.1: What is an allergist & when should you see one?
• Ep. 2: The science behind an allergic reaction & why are allergies on the rise?
• Ep. 3: Managing food allergies as an adult & tips on dining out and traveling with allergies
• Ep. 5: The types of food allergy testing & why they can be so hard to interpret
• Ep. 18: The questions that arise after a food allergy diagnosis: Part 1 - the medical questions
• Ep. 19: The questions that arise after a food allergy diagnosis: Part 2 - Lifestyle changes

 

#22 - Food Allergy Myth Busting

What better way to start 2020 than to bust some food allergy myths?

 

We asked our listeners what food allergy statements they wonder are a myth. Dr G sheds some truth on common misconceptions that circulate the food allergy community.

 

The myths tackled in this episode:

• Only kids are affected by food allergies
• Each reaction is worse than the last
• Exercise can make a reaction more severe
• Aspirin and alcohol can also increase your chances of having an allergic reaction to food
• The absence of a protein makes an item/ingredient completely safe
• Peanut oil is safe for people with a peanut allergy.
• People with milk allergy are fine with lactose-free food
• Everyone grows out of their milk allergy
• You can have an allergic reaction to airborne peanuts
• You shouldn't worry about peanuts on planes
• You can have an anaphylactic reaction by only touching food
• You can't be allergic to corn or rice
• You can't be anaphylactic to fruit or vegetable
• Foods caused by oral allergy syndrome are not considered a true allergen
• If you use your EpiPen, you have to call 911 and go to the hospital
• If you use two adrenaline auto-injectors, they need to be administered in different thighs

End with this question: What would happen if you do epi to the neck or chest like in the movies

For more resources go to https://www.itchpodcast.com/post/episode-22

#21 - Interview with Gina & Jill - Passing the torch to your allergy teen

How do you start giving your allergy kid more control in managing their food allergies?

 

Live from the Food Allergy Bloggers Conference! Dr. G and Kortney interview mom and daughter pair Gina and Jill as they share some of their presentation about self-advocating and the steps that a family can take in managing their food allergies or any other medical condition. 

 

Gina Mennett Lee, M.Ed, works nationally and internationally as a food allergy consultant and educator through her business, FoodAllergyConsulting.com. Her daughter, Jill, has multiple food allergies and shares her life managing allergies on Instagram.

 

Learn how they developed a four-step plan that helped Gina lead the way and then slowly give up the reigns on managing Jill's allergies. 

What we cover in this episode

•  The four steps that Gina used to help Jill start to self-advocate:Modelling, Small step advocacy, Supported advocacy, and Independent advocacy 

•  Examples of how to use this process and how Gina has helped Jill become an independent food allergy teenager. 

• The hardship of giving your allergy kid more control and finding their independence. 

Find the slides to Gina & Jill's presentation and more helpful links here: https://www.itchpodcast.com/post/episode-21