If I’m Allergic To Penicillin, Can I Eat Blue Cheese Made With Penicillium Mold?
I received an interesting inquiry the other day. A woman with a known allergy to penicillin had an allergic reaction (rash and swelling) after eating a product made with real blue cheese. She wondered if blue cheese contains penicillin since it contains mold, which led me to do a bit of research. Blue or bleu […]
Epinephrine Saves Lives For Anaphylaxis AND Severe Asthma Attacks
By Dr. Paul Ehrlich** Several of our American readers responded quickly to an article in Monday’s British Daily Mail to news that a 14-year-old girl, Naishel Kelly, died very soon after reporting difficulty breathing. “She was taken to the school nurse’s office where she collapsed. Paramedics rushed her to the Royal Sussex County Hospital but […]
Gluten Free And Hypo-Allergenic Nutritional Supplements
Recently, I was asked to recommend high calorie drinks for an adult who had extreme weight loss and digestion issues following colostomy surgery. I have the most incredible and knowledgeable Facebook community, so I asked them for advice, and the answers came flooding in. All of these products are gluten-free, and some are hypo-allergenic. Elecare […]
1290 CJBK Interview – Allergies Part 3
I connect with people worldwide as a food allergy expert through my blog and the Onespot Allergy Facebook group. Because I’m also a Canadian lawyer, I’m often asked to comment on legal and policy issues affecting people with food allergies. Andy Oudman of 1290 CJBK radio asked for my opinion about WowButter not being allowed […]
1290 CJBK Radio Interview – Allergies Part 4
Recently, Andy Oudman of CJBK 1290 had me on his talk radio show to discuss allergies and gluten sensitivity. Doing the show was a complete pleasure, and I look forward to being on it again soon. I comment as a food allergy expert and as a lawyer with an interest in policy and legal issues. […]
ELISA/ACT Blood Test For Delayed Allergic Reactions
I have heard many parents of children suffering from delayed allergic reactions refer to the ELISA/ACT blood test. I wanted to find out more about the test, and since I’ve felt odd after eating the past few months, I decided I would get tested. The symptoms, an upset stomach that became worse as the week […]
How do we know when peanut and tree nut allergies have resolved?
I subscribe to Allergy Notes, an excellent allergy and asthma blog written and updated daily by Dr. Ves Dimov, an Allergist/Immunologist and Assistant Professor at the University of Chicago. I received this article from Allergy Notes today, which is reprinted with permission: Peanut (PN) and tree nut (TN) allergies cause 50% of all deaths from […]
Better Peanut Allergy Tests Available!
I attended an allergy medical conference in the Spring, where there was a lecture about molecular allergy diagnostic testing for peanut allergy, also called component resolved testing. Automatic analyzers perform these tests, and the brand that caught my eye was the ImmunoCAP by Phadia. Peanut has now been separated into 13 allergenic components, and using […]
Notes From Allergy Update 2011
I attend the annual medical conference presented by the Allergy Asthma and Immunology Society of Ontario. It’s always an incredibly informative event. Here are my notes from the 2011 conference: Mention was made of a black box warning for Xolair. The FDA reported anaphylactic reactions, which were sometimes delayed. I believe its primary use is […]
