New Year's Eve something monumental happened in terms of Tyler taking more ownership of his peanut allergy. And, let me tell, nothing could make me have a happier new year!
As our family gathered that evening to indulge all the treats that saying goodbye to the previous years brings, my mother-in-law asked Tyler if he wanted a cookie. She is very, very allergy aware and has my permission to offer him food without asking me first.
When she offered him the cookie, the following conversation occurred:
"Did you read the label on these cookies, Grandma?"
"Well, Tyler, I made them from scratch. They are safe."
"Oh, thank you Grandma!"
Now, for some people, this may not sound like much, but it was better than any Christmas present I could ever receive. One of my greatest fears has always been that someone would offer him something unsafe without me around. My goal since his diagnosis nearly 3 years ago has been to have him ask the questions himself.
This didn't happen overnight, of course. We have several conversations in the course of every week of how to stay safe. One thing I always mention is asking people about the safety of a food before he eats it.
We will still continue to work diligently to train him of how to take more ownership of the allergy himself, but this was a BIG step forward for me. He, not me, asked the question!
As our family gathered that evening to indulge all the treats that saying goodbye to the previous years brings, my mother-in-law asked Tyler if he wanted a cookie. She is very, very allergy aware and has my permission to offer him food without asking me first.
When she offered him the cookie, the following conversation occurred:
"Did you read the label on these cookies, Grandma?"
"Well, Tyler, I made them from scratch. They are safe."
"Oh, thank you Grandma!"
Now, for some people, this may not sound like much, but it was better than any Christmas present I could ever receive. One of my greatest fears has always been that someone would offer him something unsafe without me around. My goal since his diagnosis nearly 3 years ago has been to have him ask the questions himself.
This didn't happen overnight, of course. We have several conversations in the course of every week of how to stay safe. One thing I always mention is asking people about the safety of a food before he eats it.
We will still continue to work diligently to train him of how to take more ownership of the allergy himself, but this was a BIG step forward for me. He, not me, asked the question!
3 comments:
I just wanted to thank you for a wonderful site. My 15 month old daughter was recently diagnosed with PA. I am a nurse and was just doing my own observations with products. Pepperidge Farms produce a goldfish with peanut butter. However, their products does not have the disclaimer. I have composed and delivered an email to the company. I am waiting to hear back from them. I wanted to know why they do not include a disclaimer on their product and hopefully opened some eyes at the company. As a new year resolution, I plan to contact two companies a month that should have a disclaimer. Again, thanks so much for the site. I will keep you posted on my progress if you do not mind. Sincerely, DIZZY
This is great. My daughter is 6 and it took a while, but now if we are out and someone offers her something, she asks does this have my allergies? That was a goal of mine, to get her to understand how serious her allergies are without scaring her.
Linda
Howdy all, this is the response email from Pepperidge Farms regarding peanuts. I will work on another one for January. Hope this information is useful for everyone. Sincerely,
DIZZY
Dear Mrs. Torres,
We received your message and appreciate your taking the time to contact Pepperidge Farm regarding our Pepperidge Farm Goldfish.
Product recipes change frequently and ingredients are periodically added and replaced. This makes it difficult to maintain an updated list of products that either contain or lack a particular ingredient. If you have questions about a specific product, please refer to the ingredient label on the package for the most current information.
Pepperidge Farm follows all government regulations regarding the labeling of our products. In the case of the top 8 allergens (peanuts, tree nuts, dairy, eggs, fish, wheat, soy and shellfish) we list those ingredients in the product ingredient statement, no matter how small the amount might be. We do not include any of those items under the broader listings of "spices" or "natural flavors". We recommend that consumers always check the ingredient statement and evaluate the product based on the statement.
We know many consumers have come to trust our Goldfish crackers to be nut/peanut free. With the exception of one specific seasonal item – the Chocolate Dunked Pretzel Goldfish - we currently produce our Goldfish crackers on production lines that do not use nuts/peanuts.
We work hard to clean and sanitize production equipment to minimize the risk of cross contact with any allergens (e.g., peanuts). We use a "may contain" statement on any products when we feel, despite the application of good manufacturing practices, there is a small risk of cross contact. Our decision to use a "May Contain" statement is made on a product-by-product basis with the consumer's safety being the ultimate goal.
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