Customer Reviews

How to Manage Your Child's Life-Threatening Food Allergies: Practical Tips for Everyday Life

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
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I've been living with a severely food allergic child (milk, eggs, nuts, soy) for eight years, and have subscribed to the FAN newsletter all that time, so I am hardly a newbie when it comes to food allergies. And I just LOVE this book. I was pleasantly surprised by the wealth of completely practical information it contained. She has excellent ideas for traveling with a food allergic child. Her recommendations about making your home a safe zone and letting your child play at other homes are spot on. Her comments about school and outings are great. She doesn't miss a thing. And I gained lots of ideas, like having a separate section of the freezer for "Becca-safe" foods, that are making my life easier.

I love her tone, too. She is clear and easy to understand. She is so realistic, and so calm, "Don't expect too much from other people" is so true, because even well-intentioned people just make mistakes. Unfortunately, you always have to be on guard.

One option she did NOT mention regarding school lunches is for your child to sit at a tray table placed at the end of the cafeteria table. This is what my child is doing, plus they do not let children drinking milk or eating yougurt or "spillable" dairy products sit near her. So far, this has worked well for our daughter.

My daughter is now eight, and she is starting to seem depressed about her food allergies, and I would have loved more information about how to help her deal with the emotional aspects of food allergies. And perhaps more information about what to expect when she reaches puberty, the age when some kids start to be rebellious and to take risks. Although, the author was writing from personal experience and her son outgrew his dairy allergy at age 11.5 (so there is hope yet, dear Becca), so perhaps that is why the book ends where it does.

Anyway, this is the number one book I will recommend to parents of children who are newly diagnosed with food allergies - and even those who have been dealing with it for a while but want some new ideas or advice about specific problems.

I'm a mother of a severely allergic child. My son has no less than 8 food allergies. As you can imagine, life has been quite a challenge for us. He was diagnosed at 2 months of age, he just turned 2 years old a few months ago. The first book I bought authored by Linda Coss was her--What's to Eat-- cookbook. Our son now enjoys a variety of food, not just cheerios, chips and grape juice. :-) I liked that book so much, I bought this one, --How to Manage Your Child's Life-Threatening...-- It has everything you'll need to know so you can finally sleep peacefully at night. The prospect of a child with food allergies is VERY FRIGHTENING, but Linda's words, her advice, hers and others experiences, all were calming to read. I know I'm not alone, and that --Miracles Do Happen--. The advice ranges from recognizing anaphalaxis to what to tell the school when your child starts school. Her knowledge is extensive in this book, and she speaks from experience--she has allergic children of her own.
I really like that I feel more empowered to help, maybe even save my son now that I've read her book. My pediatrician is great, but has no --practical-- experience, and I don't really know the right questions to ask. Linda has covered EVERYTHING, I may even buy this book for my pediatrician!!! My babysitter, all the grandparents and all aunts and uncles who HOPE to care for Alek someday all have a copy. :-)
I can't say enough about the impact Linda Coss's books have had on me and my family. THANK YOU LINDA!!!

This is the best book I have read about daily management of life-threatening allergies.
A truly amazing source of information, including tips to make life easier for the parents of children with anaphylaxis. It was very affirming, and great to hear confirmation of the precautions that need to be taken.
I reccommend this book with the highest praise that I can give..it is a must read for all the caregivers of my child.
It really helped me teach myself and my son about his allergies, there were several ideas for teaching him in a way he could understand. I can't thank Linda enough for gathering all this information through her years of experience as a mom of a child with anaphylaxis. Her book is a continious source of refference for our family.

As any parent in this situation can tell you, managing a child's life-threatening food allergies is a monumental and often frightening task. Where do you start? What do you do? The answers are all in this book. Ms. Coss explains everything - how to make your house "safe" (and keep it that way); how to handle social situations; what to say when talking to the school principal, restaurant manager, babysitter, etc; hidden dangers to watch out for that you probably didn't think of; and so much more. All of the practical information you need to keep your kid safe is here. This book should be "required reading" for every parent who has a child with life-threatening food allergies!

This book is a life saving book. It contains such a wealth of infomation that you need to read it slowly, to make sure that you do not miss something. Linda does not leave a stone unturned, and she is so full of common sense! I wish that each doctor who deals with allergic children had a copy of this book in his office. It is very well written and it is easy to read and to understand. How much I wish that I had a copy when I had that dreadful conversation with my doctor. I had to learn all that by trial and error and endless hours of researching. And here,finally, is a book that talks about all of the aspects of treating allergic children. Travelling, going for a visit, eating with other children, "unbelieving" friends/family members, the school lunches, and more and more. She talks about all of the practical aspects of life, and with such an insight and with great detail. But Linda does not stop there, she also talks about other sides of this issue - the emotional: teasing, how to handle it, what to do about it. What to do when you child feels "different", how to help other children to learn compassion. She analizes the challenges and dificulties of any age, including our older children - which is not often considered. Each time I open this book I find something new and interesting. I feel that this book should be a "bible" that we give to all of the family members and all of our friends. I know that I will! Thank you Linda.

I wish I had this book when I first learned of my sons food allergies. There are so many questions that the Dr.s can't answer or don't have the time. The advice and answers you get from this book come from a parent and parents who actually have food allergic children so you know they have been tested and are not just a theory. The book gives you practical advice on letting your child participate in activities such as going to preschool, birthday parties, restaurants, traveling, play dates, holidays, joining sports teams, etc. The book is very user friendly and you don't have to read the entire book to find answers to your questions. You will also find answers to questions you haven't even thought of yet, putting your mind at ease and preventing you from unnecessary stress...a common thread among parents with food allergic children.

I find this book very helpful as it contains practical everyday tips that a parent /caretaker of an allergic child needs to know. I have learned some of these on my own by trial and error and I really wish this book was available 7 years ago when my daughter was first diagnosed with food allergies. I use my book as a reference guide for whenever a new 'situation' comes up that I have not dealt with before. I am also planning on taking my book with me when I go away during summer vacation for reference 'on the road.' Additionally, my daughter, who is 10-years old now, is reading this book cover to cover because she enjoys reading. It is written in a very easy-to-read manner so even she can comprehend the content. I think it is a fabulous learning tool for her to re-inforce some of the dos and donts that I have been teaching her for the last 7-years. I highly recommend this book.

This is an outstanding guide for any family dealing with life-threatening food allergies. It is filled with practical advice on how to deal with every aspect of life with a food-allergic child - travel, school, outings, restaurants, cooking at home, and so much more. The book is extremely well-written in an easy-to-read, well-organized format. We have a preteen child with food allergies and I wish we had this book when she was younger - it would have made life so much easier!

I just got my copy of "How To Manage Your Child's Life-Threatening Food Allergies" and I am amazed by the amount of important and practical information contained in this book. My grandson, who has life-threatening allergies to peanut, nut, and egg, is coming to visit us this summer. I had been worried about all the little details of "what to do." Now, thanks to the information in this book, I feel confident that I will be able to care for him. Everything I need to know - how to make my home safe, how to figure out what foods are safe for him (although my daughter will help me with this, too!), things to watch out for if we want to take him to visit some of our friends, what to ask the managers of our favorite restaurants to figure out if we can take our grandson there, things to watch out for on outings (I never would have thought to look for food residue on the playground slide), etc. - it's all right there in the book. There's so much more information than what my daughter would have thought to tell me. Plus I'll be able to refer back to the book during my grandson's visit. This book is not just for parents - every grandparent of a severely food-allergic child should have a copy, too!

This book should be purchased by every parent who lives with a severely food allergic child, that is a given. What Linda Coss's title doesn't tell us, is that her book is a must read for any friend, teacher, family member, or caregiver who may also be in contact with their child.

This may seem like a tall order, but this book is actually quite interesting to read. The chapters are to the point. Linda Coss addresses every detail from how to use an EpiPen to grocery shopping and "play dates." Plus, to really send the message home, she includes stories and testimonials from dozens of parents throughout. These are fascinating eye-openers. Parents share their troubles and triumphs in dealing with their child's allergies and with the public. Any disbelievers will quickly be quieted when they realize the lengths that these parents must go to. The stories also provide some common ground and real world examples for parents of food allergic children.

It is essential for anyone who spends time with a food allergic child to understand how to create a safe environment and how to handle an emergency. Linda Coss's book frankly and thoroughly addresses the subject, and is certainly the best introduction to child food allergies that I have ever come across.