How "protective" Are You

[vanillazeis]

OK, protective is probably the wrong word, but for lack of a better one, there it is! What i mean is, not that any of you let your kiddos eat gluten, but how careful are you to prevent it? Are you okay with food produced on equipment that produces gluten? Made in a facility with gluten? What about restaurants, do you even let them eat things that should be gluten-free, for example veggies, salad, maybe grilled chicken? I find myself letting my obsessive side get the best of me. I've decided that it is too risky to let a restaurant prepare her food. Anytime we go out i take her a sandwich, fruit cups, veggie cups, et cetera. I am also freaked out by things that appear gluten free, but when i call them they say that they cannot guarantee a gluten status, they do clearly mark WBRO. I don't know why thats not good enough for me. We are down to a fruit/ veggie/ meat/ box marked gluten free diet. My little one is only 3, so i feel like she wont be able to tell me if something is making her sick. My plan is to start adding things back in (yogurt, cheese, everything else etc.) slowly after 6 months or so. She has only been gluten-free for a month. Am i being unreasonable? She's a good eater, and she's happy! Anyone else this obsessive!?

[Juliebove]

My daughter has allergies to wheat and gluten so not exactly the same as celiac. But I am still careful. In a restaurant, there are certain things I would not let her order unless I were certain they were safe. Grilled chicken is one of them. I've seen too much frozen or otherwise pre-made grilled chicken that contains either wheat or one of her other allergens. We've had better luck ordering a plain hamburger patty. Of course the problem there is if they start to stick it on a bun, realize the mistake, then pull it back off. That has happened. I look for restaurants that have chopped sirloin. That's usually a safe bet unless they normally put gravy on the meat. And generally, restaurants that cook from scratch. Since she has numerous food allergies, she is really limited as to what she can eat.

Salad is iffy. One place has a habit of not being careful with their croutons. Or their cheese. We will not get salad there. But they do have canned peaches and pears. These, we do get. I know. We could easily get these things at home and for less money. But... We know they won't make her sick.

Some restaurants have a book in the back that lists all the foods and potential allergens. There is a local chain here with such a book. We determined that one of their chicken salads was safe, minus some of the ingredients. Or we could get a burger patty with lettuce and tomato and a side of fries. They also have some "kid" starters of raw vegetables or fruit that are safe.

As for buying things made on shared lines or in facilities that process foods she is allergic to, that's really iffy. I prefer not to buy such things. In most cases there is usually a similar food that is safe. I will always look for better alternatives. She does have a peanut allergy, but I do allow her some portion packs of almond butter that are made in a plant that processes peanuts. Her allergy is not a life threatening one and the main symptom she has is nosebleeds. So far she hasn't had trouble with the almond butter.

I am not allergic to peanuts but am allergic to almonds. I have been able to find peanut butter that is processed in a plant that does not handle other nuts. Have not found other nut butters that are made this way. I figure if I give her a nut butter, there is always a risk of cross contamination. But if I give her the portion packs, at least I am sparing myself from coming in contact with my allergen.

[gfgypsyqueen]

I am always trying to keep the obsessive part of me in check

We have several allergies in different people. So the house is mixed. It is hard, but so far keeping everyone healthy is working.

My 2 yr old has celiac, dairy allergy, and shellfish allergy. For her, she rarley gets fish or shellfish of any kind. Unless we catch the fish, she doesn;t get it. Dairy is my biggest problem food right now. Chicken is very risky. Frozen chicken purchased by restaurants frequently has dairy and more injected before frozen by the manufacturer. Quite frankly I am equally concerned about any meats at this point. Lower priced restaurants tend to buy these meats. Higher priced restaurants tend to buy fresh meat and season it themselves.

I am also a Celiac, so I try to order my meal and hers gluten-free/CF. Keeps the chaos in the kitchen to a minimum. I hope I try to buy only CF/gluten-free boxed foods. This limits some of the choices. I only buy products made on shared equipment with wheat IF I called the manufacturer and they clean the lines and use safe manufacturing practices. My problem is that quite a bit of gluten-free food is either processed on shared equipment with nuts, or conatins nut products. These I try to avoid. My problem is sometimes I have no other options. So we have a few items in the house that have been made on equipment that also processes nuts.

The reason for the concern about the nuts is my older child has an anaphylactic nut allergy. She is not allowed to eat, touch, smell anything that contains a nut of any form. She is not allowed anything made on shared equipment with nuts. If the label just states shared equipment, but not exactly what it was shared with, she still does not get the food. Eating out is easy. She is picky, so not many concerns. (Pizza, chicken finger, hot dog, corn dog, pasta). If the restaurant has any nut meals that are deep fried, she can't have anything from the fryer. Overall, if the restaurant has too many nut filled meals, we find somewhere else to eat.

Usually I try to find one safe meal at a restaurant before we go. As long as there is one safe meal for all of us, we will go. I have been known to bring entire kids meals into some smaller restaurants that have nothing the kids can or would eat. I buy them drinks and leave a tip as if the kids ate. I also bring fruit cups, apple sauce, soy sauce, bbq sauce, chips, cookies, etc with me into restaurants when I am not sure of the menu.

Obsessive...just a bit...over the top on some days

[vanillazeis]

Thanks for the replies ladies! It's great to hear how other mom's handle the same situation. Makes me feel a little less crazy Thanks again ya'll!!!

[dandelionmom]

I'm about as obsessive as you.

I check and double check everything. I try to stick with mostly whole foods or things that are clearly labeled gluten-free. I get really anxious about CC (especially since our household isn't totally gluten-free).

I'm glad to come to this board because it reassures me that I'm not as crazy-paranoid as some family members have made me feel.

[jen2be2]

Oh yeah. I go so far as to make sure that my 5 year old at school has her own gluten-free soap( that only she can use). I have also provided the school with her own gluten-free papertowels, napkins and paperplates! Oh and I checked to make sure that the bandaids that they have at school are gluten-free as she also breaks out in rashes from it at times.

The only place that we eat out is the sit down resturants at Disneyland. They have chefs that come out and talk to you and let you know exactly how they are going to prepair the food.