Peanut STOP Study - A month on and our lives have changed....for the better... update!

[BlueBumedFly]

Hello all

Long time no post from me. I must admit I got a bit despondent for a while with MN, too much fighting in the ranks for my liking. However, I do believe there is lots of good advice given too and thought I would update those of you who supported us so wonderfully through the last year.

So, to recap. Last time I posted DD had just passed through her nut challenge, 12 nuts in total. She is now on a daily dose of 5 peanuts a day and will be for another 5 months.

What can I say? It has changed out lives. We do not allow her to have any other nuts, 5 a day is enough, however, with a 7 nut 'buffer' she is now happily eating products with nut trace warnings, she can go to bakeries, she had a Thorntons chocolate! Her life has changed, she is relaxing finally and takes her dose without complaint even though she still does not like the taste too much.

So onward and upward. A new school in September where she will be an unknown, she is so looking forward to introducing herself as just another girl, and not having to feel she has to explain her life away. We still have the EpiPens, you can never ever totally relax.

We are really looking forward to her blood tests in April now and hoping for a really positive result.

Hello. Glad things are going well still. Not everyone here fights, I try to ignore all that. I have had invaluable advice and I have really appreciated your posts. I am so happy for your DD. She should be proud, her bravery may result in a real treatment for allergies.

Hi Strawberry - good to hear from you.

I know, I was stupid soft enough to get affected by a couple of people making me feel like we treated DD as a lab rat. Hey ho.

She is really proud of herself, it turns out she is the first girl in the country to complete the 12 nut challenge, I think we are most impressed of this fact than she is, she has just put Thorntons on the top of her Christmas List! How amazing eh?

Its not all about 'treat' foods but you should have seen the look on her face when I bought her and her sister a flake dessert the other day after good school reports, what a picture of delight!

Also, this has so affected her older sister for the better, after all, she missed out on lost of things to as we could not have them in the house or around DD2. So, I don't care what people say, it DOES affect the whole family, even if they are so used to it they are unaware it is actually happening.

BBF, I am so happy for you and your dd!

I don't think you were soft. People here do express strong opinions - I'm just glad you came back. As you know, we have enrolled DS on the leap study and I also worried about the same thing, more so because he's not old enough to choose, but I believe in what we are doing.

Re the rest of the family, my DD who is just 4 is already very aware of DS's milk allergy and he already gets upset when he sees he is eating something different to her. So it will definitely affect us as a family. I really hope he grows out of his allergies quickly, we are lucky he has ones that are likely to be outgrown.

How is the LEAP going? Are you happy with the treament, I hear Prof Lack/George du Tout are superb?

Thank you Daid!!

mornig to all allergy mums!

The leap is going well. We are in the avoidance group. We get a weekly call which has been good with DS being so unwell recently . We will be seen again next in the new year.

Sorry Strawberry, not been keeping up with any allergy threads of late, why has DS been so poorly, is he really struggling with his allergies? Bless, I know how hard it is and milk is such a prevalent allergen to have to keep avoiding. I really hope he grows out of it soon.

DD had to have steroids this week for asthma, a bad cold went wrong and the next thing you know it is serious.

Sigh< it is a good job there are some really great docs out there now, 10 years ago they gave us no information other than to avoid nuts and get on with it.

Actually, its more his chest than the allergies (although I know they may be related). He's had bronchiolitis then pneumonia then bronchiolitis again, and there are mutterings of asthma from the doctors. I guess its like your DD. Hope she is better now. Children are such a worry!

Bless you Strawberry, what a time you must be having. I know that most 'allergic' children do have the high chance of asthma but I am also confident that many kids grow out of it too.

Can I ask, have the docs suggested any good vitamins to help boost his system. My little one has had 4 rounds of antibiotics for tonsillitis and I am desperate to boost her immune system.

BBF I can't believe people have critcised your choice!!!!!! It's actually quite logicial to expose people with allergies to a control amount & build upward - they did successful work with it decades ago on pollen allergies (I had treatment) but they stopped because of very few anaphylatical reactions that resulted in deaths.

I am so happy for your dd & the family, lets hope that in the years that come everyone has access to it because you were prepared to take the risk.

Funny you should ask, I asked the Leap team this week about vitimins but they said no special recommendations, and its better just to concentrate on giving them a really good diet. , all very well but tricky when he can't eat dairy or eggs! If you get any good tips, let me know, I also feel he could do with a boost!

SleighGirl - I know eh? Some people are just so unhappy I think they pick a fight to make themselves feel better. I try to feel sorry for them.

I just want everyone to benefit, we have been so lucky to be involved, I am so excited for the future of allergy management. Thanks for posting, appreciate your support!

I wish I could get rid of my allergies! Haven't taken antihistamines for a fortnight as I've had sinusitus and was stupid enough to eat a pear (I'm allergic to them as it's linked to my silver birch allergy) - the itching & swelling was horrendous.

How I'd love to be rid of it all forever & mine aren't even life threatening.

Strawberry - a really good diet is hard enough with kids, let alone allergy kids! We are trying Dalivit at the mo, will let you know.

Sleigh - everything is relative, I really hope the research goes from strength to strength and you can one day be allergy free. Now keep off those pears!!!

yes the pears, apples, peaches, plums, cherries and in fact all my favourite fruits, I am so bored with bananas, melons 7 grapes!

Pineapple?

can't eat kiwi fruit either. Usually I'm okay because I have piriton daily so the reaction isn't enough to stop me from eating.

Doesn't the piriton make you sleepy?

how utterly bloody fabulous.

and even better that you can look forward to xmas without panicking I am sure.

sleighgirl.....I have tree-fruit allergy and silver-birch allergy too!!

mine is bad tho......went into allergic shock back in january after my DD's made me a dairy-free smoothie (also dairy allergic).....very scary and now have epipens for it!

tis boring isn;t it with just banana's and melons.

I am now getting symptoms with tomotoes too!

not at all (unfortunately) the pharmacist nearly had heart failure when I once pescribed heavy duty sleeping tablets!

Hi-jack away guys, sharing stories is the only way we learn and keep going forward.

psycho do you take any antihistamines, I just do all the time because I'm allergic to house dust mites etc etc etc etc. Mind you we had cats until recently I'd I'm allergic to them but I was less allergic once we got one of our own. I don't have asthma though.