Back to school, here we go!

Happy August! Is it just me or does it seem like summer FLEW by…AGAIN?! O starts a new school in a couple of weeks, so it feels like fall is upon us. But we still have a few summer weddings coming up this month, so I’m going to be in denial for just a bit longer and tell myself that summer isn’t over quite yet. I mean, the official end is Labor Day weekend, right? There’s still time! 🙂

Well, with the start of school around the corner, we have to of course start getting into the back to school planning. For those of you with kids with food allergies and asthma, remember to schedule those appointments with your allergists to get those epinephrine auto-injector refills and update the school forms. Those school forms are so important. I know as moms we get LOTS of paperwork to complete. But these forms communicate critical information to your children’s teachers and school nurses.

Here’s a snapshot of what the FARE action plan looks like. Many schools have designated forms but this one is great if yours does not have a designated form.

Here’s a snapshot of the Asthma Action plan from the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.

And then the medications. Don’t forget to refill the epinephrine auto-injectors and designated school rescue inhalers. For the epinephrine auto-injectors, because of the EpiPen shortage, many have turned to Auvi-Q instead over this past year. Both are epinephrine. Both are life saving. But they are a little different in technique. So, make sure you familiarize yourself and your child’s school with the device that will be kept on hand for emergencies.

And for asthma, remember that if your little one is not yet old enough to carry their own rescue inhaler + spacer, he/she will need a designated rescue inhaler + spacer to be kept at school. Most pharmacies are happy to prescribe 2 inhalers, one for home and school.

One final word, remember that if a food allergy diagnosis is in question, your allergist may want to complete an oral food challenge soon. Oral food challenges are incredibly informative, but they take time in the office. Ours often take 2-3 hours to complete. So, now is a good time to schedule that challenge before school starts back up in a few weeks.

Ok. Whew. The to-do list has started. You’ve got this! We are here to work with you and help make this a great and safe school year for your little one. See ya’ll soon!

-Dr. G

Friday update: OIT

Happy weekend, everyone. How is it already mid-July? I just realized that O starts her new school for pre-K in exactly one month. Whhhat? I know it’s so cliche, but truly, time flies so very fast. Trying to soak up all the special moments with these kids!

I’m sorry it’s been a while since I’ve posted. We have been a little busy both at home and work recently so I haven’t been as faithful on here as usual. I appreciate your patience and understanding because sometimes, believe it or not, I would rather be making memories with those kids than spending time on the computer. It’s a balance and I’m working on it! 🙂

Well, today is a big day for us. As you are reading this, I am taking O up to Dallas for an introductory visit about oral immunotherapy (OIT). If you have a child with a food allergy, you probably know what OIT is. If you don’t, let me explain. I’m sure most of us are aware of allergy shots. You, your mom, your grandmother or your neighbor down the street has probably been on or currently is on allergy shots. What and how does that work? The concept behind allergy shots is to gradually introduce allergen to your body and teach your immune system to develop “tolerance” to that allergen. It is very standardized, and we base it on FDA established guidelines for dosing and scheduling until you reach a “maintenance” dose that you will continue for about a 3-5 year duration, again based upon evidence supported recommendations.

Well, what about OIT? OIT is using the same concept of allergen immunotherapy (or allergy shots) to gradually develop tolerance for food allergy. This is obviously a very exciting approach for those with food allergy. Unfortunately, OIT is not yet standardized as research is still ongoing to establish that standardized dosing and scheduling. In fact, my training hospital of Texas Children’s is one of the academic sites that has been very active in OIT research. Click on these links to read about one of the drugs in process for FDA approval with AI immune and the peanut patch study . But there are many private allergists who have been trialling the concept of OIT in their practice for many years and with good success. One of those allergists is in the Dallas area, and so that is why we are headed up there this morning.

So, yes, this allergist is going to see another allergist for her daughter’s food allergy. The reality is that I may not have all of the answers yet for O. But I will work hard to get there. I’m also not sure this is going to be the best approach for O or that she will be a good candidate for OIT. But all I can do is educate myself. I would also like to see if we can incorporate any of the OIT into my practice here in Waco. So, stay tuned, Waco. You know that I only will pursue what is supported by evidence and beneficial to our patients. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for sure!

Have a fabulous weekend everyone. I may take O for some shopping after our appointment. What’s a Dallas trip without a little shopping, right? 🙂 See you again on here soon…hopefully next week! 🙂

-Dr. G

E’s Allergy Story

Happy Friday! Hope ya’ll had a great week. I am so looking forward to spending some extra time with the family this weekend. So thankful for these precious little angels and the family God has given us.

Well, as promised, I wanted to talk about our experience with E and his food allergy. Now, because of big sister’s tree nut allergy, I had my radar up in regards to the tree nuts. I followed the recommendations from the LEAP trial in how I approached food introduction for E. Prior to introduction of the nuts, I did have E allergy tested to the nuts. I did this due to the immediate family history of allergy as well as his history of mild eczema. He had some positive skin testing findings, particularly to peanut and almond. But what I know as a board certified allergist and what I stress so much to my patients and to you, my readers, is that a positive skin test does not necessarily mean allergy. Since E did not have any exposure yet to the nuts, this positive finding correlated with sensitization only. Around 7-8 months, I did go ahead and introduce him to peanut, and guess what? He remained completely symptom free. He later had honey nut cheerios, almond butter as well as almond milk and had no reactions. He still LOVES peanut butter and is regularly exposed to the nuts. I’ll be honest in saying that he has not had much pistachio or cashew exposure, simply because none of us really eat those any more because of O’s allergy.

So, success story with the nuts. Unfortunately, we still discovered a food allergy for E. At around 4 to 5 months old, we introduced E to egg. Again, early introduction. I didn’t skin test him to egg first because, quite frankly, I had no concern for egg allergy. I made him soft boiled eggs almost every morning, and he did great with it. A little later (and now I can’t recall how old he was exactly), my sitter called me frantically shortly after E had eaten breakfast. She had served him scrambled eggs, something I had also served frequently him. About 15 minutes after E had eaten the scrambled eggs, she had found a few hives on his skin, and he had become more fussy and started rubbing his eyes vigorously, almost as though he was already ready for a nap — an hour and half after waking up. Of course, I asked her to give him some benadryl and rushed over from clinic. I got there within about 15 minutes. The hives had improved but E was truly sleepy. He otherwise looked fine — no swelling, wheezing, vomiting or any other symptoms. So, I laid him down early for his nap and he slept normally. He did fine the rest of the day.

Egg allergy? Really? No way. But he had eaten eggs SO MUCH. I waited a week or so and tried the scrambled eggs again…two more times, actually. He got hives both times and sleepy again with one of those events. So, we stopped the scrambled eggs, or what we allergists call “unbaked egg”. He was still doing great with baked goods containing egg, so we continued that. I finally had E allergy tested and sure enough — egg allergic. Just as I had sadly suspected.

Now, the statistics for outgrowing egg allergy, particularly if a child is already tolerating baked egg products, are very good. So, I don’t have that gut wrenching feeling that E will carry this diagnosis for the rest of his life. But I won’t lie…it still is frustrating. Nevertheless, I’m definitely counting my blessings for being in my field of Allergy and Immunology. So, we are strictly avoiding unbaked egg and moving forward for E. Every year, we will re-address his allergy to see if he has outgrown it. But for now, strict avoidance.

I had hoped to share some pictures of the testing process yesterday, but I didn’t get to snap any photos with both kids getting pricked at the same time. Yes, O was pricked again — but this time for environmental allergies. I’ll share about that soon. If you check out my clinic’s Instagram page (@aacow), look at the highlight story for allergy testing. It’s quick and simple. If you’re in the Waco area, we would love to see you and help you diagnose and treat those allergies.

Well, have a wonderful weekend, friends. Planning on enjoying the warm weather again this weekend with these kids. Enjoy your littles, and see ya’ll next week.

-Dr. G

Fresh Friday: Summer Okra

Ok, so the short work week threw me off and I’m posting on a Sunday instead of a Friday. Sorry, friends! Hope ya’ll have had a great weekend. My sweet O has been with her grandparents and aunt all week. It’s been nice getting to have some one on one time with E but we sure do miss our baby girl! Can’t wait to see her today!

I went grocery shopping yesterday and found these beautiful okra. Yes, you heard that right, okra. In Arabic, the word is “bamyeh”. We typically use the small, bite site okra, but you can typically only find those in Middle Eastern groceries, which surprising as it may seem, are a rare find in Waco, Texas. 🙂 These big okra are a summer staple, particularly here in the South. Now, I know they are delicious battered up and friend, but I want to share a fresh recipe that I think you’ll love.

Ingredients:

• about 2 pints of okra, chopped into large pieces
• 1 bunch fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• 3 tomatoes, chopped into large pieces
• 5 garlic cloves, finely minced
• juice of 2 large lemons
• olive oil
• salt, to taste

Directions:

1. Drizzle a large pot with olive oil and saute the garlic until it becomes fragrant.
2. Add in 2/3 of the chopped cilantro and cook for 2-3 minutes until the cilantro becomes more dull in color.
3. Add the tomatoes and cook down until the juices begin to come out of the tomatoes. This may take about 10 minutes.
4. Add the okra and very gently toss with the tomato/garlic mixture n the pot. Be careful not to over-mix as this will make the okra mushy and you want to try and retain their shape.
5. Add just enough water to cover about 2/3 of the way to the top of the okra/tomato/garlic mixture. Reduce heat to medium, cover and let it cook down. This may take about 15-20 minutes.
6. Once the okra is almost cooked through, add in the lemon juice, salt and the remaining cilantro. Leave the pot uncovered and allow all of the liquid to be cooked off. This will take about 10-15 minutes.
7. Remove from heat and enjoy warm with some pita or is equally as delicious cold as an appetizer.

Saute the garlic and cilantro

Add tomatoes

Add the chopped okra and gently toss

---

Add just enough water to cook the okra

Okra almost done. Now add lemon juice, salt and cilantro and cook the liquid down

Voila. All done. Fresh, delicious, healthy summer meal.

I hope you’re able to enjoy this delicious meal. It used to be one of my favorites from my mom growing up. This same idea is used to make an okra stew with cooked beef or lamb in more of a rich, thick tomato sauce. I prefer this lighter version in the summer when the thought of a stew is a bit overbearing. My little ones aren’t big fans of okra quite yet. But I’m crossing my fingers that they change their minds soon!

See ya’ll next week. I’m hoping to do a recording on Instagram this week about what real-time allergy testing looks like. So, keep a lookout for that coming soon. And I promised more of an update on E’s egg dilemma. We’ll talk about that and more next Friday. Have a wonderful day, all, and thanks as always for checking in!

-Dr. G

Food Allergy and Traveling Abroad Part 2

Happy Friday, ya’ll. Well, we made it back! We can officially say that our children are professional world travelers now. Long airplane rides, different time zones, long days of the double stroller, new foods and customs…we got this! 🙂 Thank you to those who prayed for us and sent your love. The kids truly did so well, and we had a beautiful time together as a family enjoying such a breathtaking place. Italy, you are already missed!

So, the burning question of course is how did we do with O’s food allergy? Thankfully, everything went very well AND we were able to have gelato <almost> daily. Here are some of the things that made navigating around O’s food allergy successful in Italy.

1. The chef’s card. This card, written in Italian, was truly a life saver. We presented that EVERYWHERE we went. It told the waiter/restaurant owner/chef about O’s tree nut allergy and to ensure that all work surfaces were cleared for possible cross contamination. If the restaurant was not comfortable due to risk of cross contamination, we simply didn’t eat there.
2. When eating out, keep it simple. For meals, we did a LOT of margarita pizza and plain marinara spaghetti. For the gelato, we predominantly stuck to the “fragola” flavor — strawberry sorbet. The nut flavored gelatos are made with dairy so by sticking to the sorbets, we were much safer for the risk of cross contamination.
3. Have safe snacks on hand. I think I became known as the “snack auntie” during the trip because no matter where we went, I had a stash of yogurt puffs, apple sauce pouches, crackers, pretzels, a PB sandwich, etc with me. I think the only thing worse than a hungry, traveling child is a hungry, traveling child who can’t have the available food because of his/her allergy. How depressing would that be?! So, I had a safe stash in my backpack at all times, just in case we didn’t find a pizza shop or a little restaurant for lunch that had safe food for O. Thankfully, that didn’t happen often, but we were ready just in case.
4. For packaged foods, read the labels. We learned what tree nuts was in Italian — “frutta de guscia” and we looked for that on all the packaged snacks. When we were traveling on the trains, they provided so many snacks for the kids. So sweet, but sadly all of them either contained or were made in the same facility as tree nuts. So, O couldn’t have any of those. But that’s where mom’s stash of safe snacks came in handy as well.
5. Keep that epinephrine and Benadryl handy. Thankfully we didn’t have to use either. But having that with us at all times was a such security as we traveled around and tried different foods.

Overall, we truly had a blast and could not be more thankful for that special opportunity to travel the world as a family and experience such a rich culture. Italy, thank you for a great time and thank you for being so food allergy aware!

Have a wonderful Memorial Day weekend, everyone. We’ll see ya’ll again next week.

-Dr. G

Food Allergy and Traveling Abroad Part 1

As I mentioned in last week’s post, in a few days, we are taking a “grande” family vacation to the country of Italy. And yes, because we are crazy, we are taking the kids with us. We have been dreaming of a vacation like this for some time and, well, we couldn’t imaging being that far way from the littles, so naturally, they are coming along. We really can’t wait to get some down time together as a family and experience la dolce vita. Part of that dolce vita is eating the incredible food of Italy. Pizza, Pasta and of course, Gelato. What is life without those amazing things, right?

Well, when you have a child with a tree nut allergy — specifically to pistachio and cashew — you get a little extra worried about accidental exposures with all foods of course, but particularly when you are traveling abroad, where English is not the main language, and were tree nuts are used in many dishes including gelato and pesto. But what I stress to my patients and to ya’ll is that a child with a food allergy or asthma really should be able to live that dolce vita without being paralyzed by fear and certainly not be limited to their exposures because of their allergy. So, what can we do? Preparation. It’s key. I’m sharing the few pieces of preparation I have made for our upcoming trip. And when we get back, I’ll be sure to share how it went in real time for those planning a trip to Italy or otherwise traveling abroad.

One of the first things I did to prepare was turn to…what else…google. “Traveling to Italy with a food allergies”. Boom. Great information was just one click.

1. FARE, Food Allergy Italia and IFAAA (International Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Alliance), have jointly created a fabulous document that I would highly recommend. Check it out here .
2. The Food Allergy Italia site is FULL of very useful information. I learned what the emergency number is in Italy (1-1-8), what the Italian word is for epinephrine (Adrenalina), what the Italian equivalence for the “EpiPen” or “AuviQ” is (FastJekt or Jext) and how to say “tree nuts” in Italian (Noci or Frutta a Guscio).
3. Chef’s Card. Somehow I am not finding this on the Food Allergy Italia site anymore but FARE has published its own version. This is a card in Italian that I will present at all restaurants indicating O’s allergy and instructing special care to ensure absence of tree nuts as well as cross contamination by washing all work surfaces and utensils thoroughly when preparing her foods.

Top is FARE version and bottom is the Food Allergy Italia version.

The Food Allergy Italia version has an English translation on the back.

Of course there is the general preparation that we would always recommend as well…

1. ALWAYS carry an emergency epinephrine device. I will have 2 2-packs of Auvi Q with me at all times.
2. I have also packed Benadryl for any mild reactions.
3. Reading ALL labels for packaged foods and presenting the chef’s card at ALL restaurants. This is not the time to take risks.
4. Packing non perishable snack items. We will be traveling with plenty of safe snacks, just in case we have any trouble when eating out.
5. We are staying in Airbnbs during our stay. So, we plan on doing some simple cooking at home if needed. I plan on hitting some of the fresh markets and stocking up on fresh fruits as well to keep healthy and safe snacks while we are out and about.

So, that is just a little bit of the preparation we have already done. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t still a little nervous. But I am trying my best to trust God and that our preparation will serve us well during our trip. I’ll be sure to share our real-time tips when we get home!

Have a great weekend, all! I’ll be taking a break from blogging while away. Ciao for now! 🙂

-Dr. G

Food allergy and Birthday Celebrations

We had a really great weekend celebrating our precious Olivia and Ethan with our family and friends. What a joy it is to be their mom and watch these babies grow. I love seeing their personalities develop and seeing more of that little person come out. 🙂 My sister shared something so sweet this week on her Instagram. As she was watching my niece open her birthday gifts (because, yes, her birthday is this week too!), she heard God whisper into her ear that He loves to see us receive sweet gifts too. How precious, friends. May we joyfully accept every blessing, including these sweet little angels, that we have been given.

This year was the first birthday party for O after her tree nut allergy diagnosis that I finally felt comfortable enough to have some outside food present at the party. This mainly was a result of O asking for a unicorn birthday cake for her party. There are many things that I can do. A unicorn birthday cake is not one of them…or not well at least. So, I searched to find a bakery that could make my girl’s birthday dreams come true AND keep her safe from any accidental exposures.

What’s the risk? Well, remember that for an IgE mediated food allergy, any exposure, even cross contamination, can potentially result in a life threatening reaction. So, a cake that was baked with the same uncleaned bowl, spatula, or pan as a cake using tree nuts could potentially be bad news for our girl. What were the questions I asked the bakery?

1. Do you use any tree nuts in your cakes? If so, which ones? If the bakery used pistachio or cashew, I did not use it as those are her highest allergens.
2. How can you ensure that there will not be any cross contamination of any other cakes with my cakes? The bakery I chose said that they would make the cake the very first thing that day with completely clean baking equipment and surfaces and then separate that cake from the others once completed.

I was very happy to find a bakery that accommodated my requests. O certainly loved her cake. But you better believe that I still watched her like a hawk the whole time, making sure that she did not have any adverse reactions, because you can truly never be too sure. And yes, that Auvi-Q was close by. Thankfully, the weekend celebrations proceeded without any food allergy reactions and all had a great time!

When planning a party for your little one with a food allergy, remember these helpful tips. It is possible to have a wonderful celebration but it just takes a little planning and checking.

Well tomorrow is O’s actual birthday. Four year old. Wow. We are headed to San Antonio for the weekend to celebrate. Fingers crossed that the weather stays good so we can enjoy the river walk and have fun celebrating our little girl!

-Dr. G

oh hello, spring

Well, spring has officially sprung in Waco. The pollen has been so strong recently that I am finding that yellow pixie dust everywhere. Specifically, the counts for trees and grasses have been pretty high this week, and with the busyness of this week’s clinic schedule, I know that people in central Texas are really starting to feel it! Where do you stand with spring allergies?

Poor O has been waking up every morning for the past week, with big puffy, itchy eyes, sneezing and coughing. But have you ever seen a cuter, puffy eyed almost 4 year old?

I know we talk a lot about O’s food allergies on this blog, and that is largely due to <thankfully> being the only real diagnosis that my little girl has so far. However, as time progresses, sneak peeks of the atopic triad are presenting themselves. What is that atopic triad?

Asthma. Allergy. Eczema.

These three diagnoses like to work together. If you’ve got one, there’s a really good chance that you’ve got one or both of the others. As we know, O has a tree nut allergy. So, I’ve kept my ears open to those subtle signs that may mean that O will develop one or both of those other diagnoses.

What are those subtle signs?

So, for, allergy, it’s pretty easy. In fact, O is the walking poster child <sorry, baby> for it. Puffy, itchy, red eyes. Sneezing. Itchy, watery nose. And sometimes cough. We treat it with antihistamines and nasal steroid sprays to target the histamine driven symptoms (itchiness and sneezing) and the nasal congestion (runny nose), respectively. And when that doesn’t cut it, your allergist will likely consider immunotherapy aka allergy shots.

What about asthma? Well, that’s a little harder, but there are some signs that you can look for. Night time cough. Exercise limitation due to cough or complaints of difficulty breathing. If you see them, talk to your child’s doctor. The sooner that asthma is addressed, the better your child will do in the long run.

And, eczema is that itchy, dry, sensitive skin. Babies are definitely more prone to having sensitive skin, and as they grow, some children will hold onto that eczematous skin and continue to have patchy areas of dry, scaly, red and very itchy skin. It’s tough. Work with your child’s allergist closely on managing the eczema. E has had a few patches of eczema, and I’ll be showcasing a post on eczema care very soon.

So, that’s the triad. And if you are my patient with one of those diagnoses, that’s why I ask about the others. I promise it’s not to bug you with more questions! 🙂

If your spring allergies are not well controlled, remember to check in with your allergist so he/she can better help you manage your symptoms. That’s what we are here to do!

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone! My best friend from high school <won’t comment on how long ago that was!!> is in town with her little baby boy, and I can’t wait to spend time with her and show her around Wacotown!

-Dr. G

Allergy friendly treats

Happy weekend, friends!

Can you believe we are already less than 1 week away from Thanksgiving? This is such a special time of the year as we gather around the table with our family and friends and give thanks for our rich blessings. This year, I’m thankful for you and for the growing awareness on food allergy. The message is getting out there, friends, and more and more people are taking seriously the reality of living with a food allergy. I am thankful for teachers who pause to consider every-single-bite that my little O may take at school and how it may affect her body. I’m thankful for the family friends who think twice before offering a treat to O while she is at a playdate. I’m thankful for a community that painted teal pumpkins for Halloween and offered non-food treats for our little girl when she went trick or treating. These things make my momma heart so happy!

I’m also thankful for the American food industry who has opened their eyes and seen that we need more safe options for our kids with food allergies. We need fun treats too and don’t just want to keep telling our food allergic kids, “No, you can’t have that because it has your food allergy in it.” My sister tipped me off to YumEarth — a great brand offering all-8 free gummy bears, lollipops, licorice etc. We loved those lollipops at Halloween and have been loving the gummy bears. While cruising through Amazon today, I stumbled upon a few other companies who are now also offering all-top 8 free treats so that those who have food allergies can still enjoy a little treat here or there. And we are talking chocolate treats here. Check it out. I think you’ll love the options that are out there!

1. YumEarth. This is a gluten-free, nonGMO, organic and nut free candy supercenter. Again, we LOVED the lollipops and gummy bears. They even have some organic candy corn without all the fake stuff. Here’s an Amazon link for the candy corn. Looks delicious!
2. No Whey Chocolates. Chocolate ya’ll. Anyone who has a food allergy or a child with food allergy knows that chocolate is a hard one because either you are allergic to dairy OR there is such a great cross contamination risk that you just avoid all commercial chocolate candy/treats. Well, this is gonna change you game plan. These are amazing, offering options similar to Reese’ peanut butter cups, m&m’s, truffles, boxes of chocolate, etc. Seriously SO great.
3. My super foods company. These are nut-free and dairy free cookies. Still has many of the other allergens but it is a good snack option for those with nut or dairy allergies.
4. Free Yumm. All-8 free baked goods. Cookies and oat bars. These look amazing! I’m definitely going to have to place an order for those quick breakfasts in the car.
5. Enjoy Life. Another all-8 free source for delicious treats. We absolutely love these. Seriously so many delicious options.
6. Made Good. My sis also tipped me to this brand and we have loved the granola bars. Also, another all-8 free option.
7. Home Free. Another all-8 free option for cookies.

That’s my list for today. I’m sure there are so many more brands than what I have listed. If you have a company that you have used and love, please feel free to share in the comments below. Have a wonderful thanksgiving everyone and thank you, again, for your support and spreading food allergy awareness.

-Dr. G

The quest for the perfect scoop

Happy Friday!

A few weeks ago, we went on a family weekend getaway to San Antonio. If you haven’t been to San Antonio yet, I would highly recommend it. The downtown area has so many neat things to do with kids. We were pleasantly surprised to find a park just steps from our hotel complete with a sand pit, splash pad AND coffee shop. It was a perfect start to our day. And the riverwalk is such a fun experience. We love eating dinner and watching the thousands of people cramming through the maze of the riverwalk. We really love it down there.

Well, one part of our trip that was a little less than ideal was our post-dinner quest for ice cream. As you know, O has a tree nut allergy. Food allergies and ice cream stores are just so incompatible because of the risk of cross contamination. We generally try to avoid ice cream outings but when you have a 3 year old obsessed with all things ice cream  — no joke, she has several ice cream shirts, dresses and rompers as well as 3-4 sets of ice cream toys — AND you’re out and about in the Texas heat, you need a little ice cream to top off a vacation night. So, after our dinner, we went from one place to the next and asked about their policy for nut allergies. And time after time, we had to move on to the next ice cream store because they didn’t really understand how cross contamination works. Here are some things to think about when considering cross contamination and ice cream:

1. An ice cream scooper that is “cleaned” is often just dipped in hot water with all of the other scoopers — cross contamination nightmare.
2. The same scooper may have been used in a nut containing ice cream then immediately used to scoop nut free ice cream. That nut free ice cream bin is now contaminated.
3. The unknown part: how well is the machinery that is used to make the nut containing ice cream cleaned prior to making a nut-free ice cream?

Thankfully, we happened to find a CVS that carried Blue Bell ice cream pints. Blue Bell has been safe for us at home due to lack of nuts in the Neapolitan ice cream (O’s current fave) as well as lack of cross contamination. So, we finally had success and O was one happy little vacationer. 🙂

I stumbled across this list of food allergy friendly ice creams. Whether you have a dairy, egg or nut allergy, this list will be your go-to list for ice creams that will keep you safe. The creators of this list even researched the methods used by these companies for eliminating any cross contamination concerns. Big thumbs up in my book!

Enjoy your holiday weekend and happy ice cream scooping!

Love, MG