Navigating Food Allergies: A Mother’s Story of Vigilance, Advocacy, and Hope
On behalf of Allergy Quebec, sincere thanks to Jeannine Cafaro for sharing her story and insight with us.
I was so excited to start introducing solids with our youngest daughter. As a second-time mom, I had nothing but fond memories of starting solids with our oldest son. We both loved the experience. Trying new foods together and discovering what he enjoyed (and what he didn’t!) was exciting and fun.
When I started solids with our daughter, we followed every single guideline and “rule” out there, just as we had with our son. We started at the recommended age, introduced new foods one at a time, waited a few days in between trying different foods, and made sure she tried all the common allergens early (peanuts, eggs, nuts, dairy, etc). We followed all the “rules” with our son and he had zero allergies, so we assumed by introducing solids with our daughter this way as well, we’d be in the clear yet again.
At first, everything went smoothly. She was an adventurous eater, happily sampling whatever we put in front of her. But a few foods in, we started noticing mild rashes around her mouth. We kept an eye on it, noted what she had eaten before each reaction, and booked an appointment with her pediatrician. Armed with a food diary and photos, we were referred to an allergist. Allergy testing confirmed that she was allergic to dairy and eggs, and we were prescribed an EpiPen.
From that moment, I became a label-reading pro. I avoided dairy and eggs completely, double-checked every ingredient, and kept feeding her everything else she had already tolerated well, including other common allergens. I knew the signs of anaphylaxis and tried to stay vigilant without becoming fearful.
Then one day, everything changed. At 11 months old, while eating foods she had safely eaten many times before, she suddenly went into anaphylaxis. Within minutes, her cheeks flushed, hives appeared, and she began coughing and vomiting. Her EpiPen was administered and I called 911. Paramedics arrived quickly, gave her a second dose of epinephrine, and rushed us to the ER.
I was in shock. Our list of two allergens (eggs and dairy) immediately grew by two more (hazelnuts and sesame), and we were now also on high alert for all other nuts.
That was almost six years ago and it’s been nothing short of a roller coaster ride ever since. About three years ago, we found a local doctor who offered Oral Immunotherapy (OIT), a treatment that gradually exposes a person to small, increasing amounts of an allergen to help build tolerance and reduce the risk of a severe reaction. Through OIT, she has thankfully outgrown two of her allergens (milk and eggs). While progress with her remaining allergens has been slower (with both steps forwards and backwards), it’s given us hope of a less dangerous future for our daughter – something we hold onto every single day.
Living with food allergies has taught our family more about vigilance, advocacy, and community than we ever could have imagined. It’s drastically reshaped almost every aspect of our life, like how we approach food, birthdays, travel, social events and just everyday life. But, it’s also shown us the incredible resilience of a child who refuses to let allergies define her.
Written by Jeannine Cafaro
