Children's Allergies and Family Pets Does a diagnosis mean Fido and Fluffy have to go?

When our youngest first exhibited pulmonary issues, we thought it was related to the new dog we bought so we immediately found him a new home.  This article sheds light on whether or not you really have to get rid of an animal due to asthma and allergies.

Cats and dogs are among the most frequent causes of allergies. If your child is sensitive to other allergens, it is likely that with a pet--especially an indoor pet--in the home, he or she will develop an animal allergy sooner or later.   Contrary to what many people believe, it's not just animal hair or fur that causes asthma and allergies in sensitive youngsters. While hair or fur may be a problem for some, dander--the fine scales of dead skin that animals normally shed--and saliva can often be more potent sources of difficulties. Cats and dogs lick people who pat them, thus passing on loads of allergens. They also groom themselves by licking and nibbling, leaving an allergenic saliva coating on their fur. Cats are commonly more allergenic than dogs. Although certain breeds of dogs are said to be less allergenic than others, studies don't support this claim. Comparisons of dogs also show wide differences in allergenicity between individual dogs of the same breed. Reptiles, fish, and amphibians are not generally causes of allergy. When family history makes it likely that a baby or young child will develop allergies, it's best to postpone adopting a pet for several years until you are certain that your child is not allergic. However, in the case of an animal that has been part of the family since before the arrival of a child with allergies, decisions can be more difficult, especially when older children have formed strong attachments to the pet. Finding out that a beloved pet is a trigger for a child's asthma confronts many families with wrenching choices. The best course--although not a simple or a pleasant one--is to find a new home for the animal. However, for a child whose asthma is under control with medications and environmental controls, it may be enough to keep the pet permanently outside.  If this is not a practical solution, here are some other ideas to try to reduce shedding of allergenic particles and hair and keep saliva-coated hair and dander from collecting in the household dust: Sweep, dust, and vacuum frequently. Weekly bathing of the pet in warm water has also been shown to lower the allergenic potential of cats and dogs, including those that never venture outside. Frequent brushing may also help to make an animal less allergenic. Be sure to keep any pet strictly out of your allergic child's bedroom and play areas. Mattress covers, air cleaners, and carpet removal are also useful.

Dogs and cats aren't the only culprits. Small house pets such as mice, rats, rabbits, hamsters, and gerbils are occasional sources of allergens, contributing to the chronic airway inflammation of asthma. If you decide to keep any of these as a pet despite your child's allergies, confine theanimal strictly to its cage, clean the cage daily, and keep the cage away from your allergic child's room. A youngster with allergies should not take part in cleaning the cage or caring for the pet.   Be sure to let your child's teachers know of your child's animal allergies to avoid difficulties with small animals that are sometimes kept as school residents, or with animals that other children may bring on classroom visits.   A household pet may be unjustly blamed for causingallergy symptoms. Don't automatically banish Fido to the doghouse unless the results of skin testing or a specific IgE blood test (sometimes referred to as RAST) suggest that your child has an animal allergy. Occasionally, symptoms that seem to be caused by an animal are, in fact, caused by other allergies. What happens is that pets explore outdoors, then come back into the house with a load of pollens and outdoor mold spores on their coats. Every time the hay fever sufferer pats the pets, an invisible cloud of allergens is stirred up, triggering symptoms. So, while every family must make the decision about pets when a child displays allergy symptoms, make sure the pediatrician and/or allergist help you understand the options before getting rid of Fido or Fluffy. Michael J. Welch, MD, FAAAAI, FAAP, CPI, is the editor of Allergies and Asthma: What Every Parent Needs to Know, 2nd Edition, published by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Dr. Welch is co-director of the Allergy and Asthma Medical Group and Research Center in San Diego, CA, and clinical professor at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine. Read more about the book at www.HealthyChildren.org. ------------------------------- Allergies and Asthma provides the latest findings on food allergies and treatments -- along with new approaches for monitoring asthma control. Pediatricians who specialize in these conditions have extensively reviewed it to be sure it contains the most up-to-date information possible.

Air-O-Swiss Advanced Air Treatment Systems Review & Giveaway 3/21 WINNER CLOSED

CONGRATULATIONS TO ...

bwneyes100 AT hotmail DOT com

An e-mail was just sent!

Thanks to all those that entered!

I've noticed by comments and visiting other blogger's sites, there are a lot of bloggers that have children with chronic medical conditions just as I do.  Having clean air is essential to those with allergies and asthma which my youngest has in the most severe form.  A little over a year ago, she almost died due to an unknown pulminary issue that resulted in the wonderful doctor down in Savannah saving her life and getting us connected to another wonderful doctor in Augusta.  Subsequently, I try everything I can do ensure she doesn't crash and one area I've been in a deficit on is the air in our house.  I clean and remove the dust as best I can and frequently wash bedding in the hottest water temperature possible but there is more I can do such as cleaner air.

I found Air-O-Swiss online and found that they are a brand that I was impressed with due to the level of expertise they have available on their site.  An entire page is devoted to the Benefits of Humidification. 

• Reduces discomfort, tiredness, sickness
• Reduces to suspectibility to colds - This one is very important to me because colds are inducers to her asthma attacks.  My six year old doesn't fair well when she has colds coupled with her epilepsy.
• Reduces chapped lips, dry eyes and dry, itchy skin
• Helps babies sleep and feel better - My oldest is expecting a baby so this will be very helpful for him/her.
• Helps to recover quicker from a cold
• Reduces damage to wooden objects
• Reduces levels of dust

There are other benefits and to learn more, just go here.

There are also interesting facts relative to clean air such as:

• The air in a busy street is 20 times cleaner than the air in your office
• The number of asthma sufferers rise dramatically as air pollution rises

You can read many more interesting facts about air here.

About Air-O-Swiss:

Air-O-Swiss products have been available in North America since 2001.  They have 50 plus years of experience and originated in Switzerland.  Since 2001, the Plaston International Corporation, a whole subsidiary of Plaston Holding AG, has been a leader in the high performance air humidification and purification market in North America.

Their strategic success can be attributed to their focus on a few core principles:

• "A Close Customer Relationship - We understand our customers' needs as they relate to our technology and we act accordingly.
• Quality - We fulfill even the highest of demands. Our goals are zero-defect products and continuing business excellence.
• Innovation - We are geared to meet our customer needs. This concept encompasses the entire design and innovation process we employ.
• Innovation along with Quality are the result of the understanding of our products as they relate to our customers' needs."

Air-O-Swiss have many products to choose from to help maintain healthy air.

Check out the selection at Air-O-Swift.

AOS 7146 Travel Ultrasonic

Humidification System

Now you can take AIR-O-SWISS quality with you wherever you go and enjoy healthy air anywhere! The Travel Ultrasonic AOS 7146 is compact enough to fit into your travel bag. Just add your own water bottle, plug the unit in and enjoy clean, moist air in your room. With the AOS 7146 you can ensure room humidity is just the way you like it. Efficient ultrasonic technology uses high-frequency vibrations to generate a micro-fine cool mist, which is blown into the room where it immediately evaporates.

Stay healthy and be more productive at work. Set the Travel Ultrasonic on your desk or in your office and enjoy clean, moist air throughout the day.

Thanks to the transcontinental AC adapter and exchangeable plugs the Travel Ultrasonic can be used throughout North America and Europe. The adapter means you can use your personal unit on both sides of the Atlantic.

The Review:

The Travel Ultrasonic is perfect size for those that travel a lot or need it at the office.  It's extremely compact and portable, has a little carrying pouch and allows the use of any size water bottle to be inserted for use.  I found that I shouldn't fill the bottle all the way up as the air doesn't fill the bottle back up and it caused the bottle to collapse and not work.  I was amazed at how much was emitted given how small the Ultrasonic is but it's a little powerhouse.  When it's working, it lights up blue and when it runs out of water, it turns an amber glow. 

I had my regular size humidifier set up next to the Travel Ultrasonic and watched  in comparison with little difference.  The normal size one required less refills but that was expected.  The same amount of mist was emitted from both devices. 

It arrives with a brush to clean it, instructions, the pouch to carry it and two power adapters for use in any country.

I would recommend the Travel Ultrasonic if you travel a lot, require one in a small area for a few hours or don't need one frequently.

The Giveaway:

An Air-O-Swiss Travel Ultrasonic!

To Enter:

Visit Air-O-Swiss and leave a comment on what product you would like to try and follow my blog.  This is mandatory and if you do not visit Air-O-Swiss and follow my blog, your entry will be removed.

Extra Entries (two entries each unless otherwise noted):

• Subscribe to my blog.
• Follow me on Twitter.
• Tweet about this giveaway (can be done daily).
• Blog about this giveaway (five entries).
• Enter any of my other giveaways (five entries).

Giveaway ends 3/21 at midnight (EST).


Winner will be chosen via random.org

* Disclaimer:  The opinions based in this post are of my own.  I will receive the product listed by the sponsor company in exchange for my review of the product.

Military Medical Care, My Children's Chronic Medical Conditions & An Etsy Seller Medical Alert Buttons

At long last, the girls were able to experience snow!  The two year old never has seen it in person and the last time my six year old had, it was four year's ago when we lived in Indiana.  We moved from Indiana and spent one year in Hawaii post my husband's deployment to Iraq and then to Georgia.  This summer, will mark our third and hopeful, last year.  While hubby deploys to Kuwait in May, I get the task of selling the house and moving to our next location.  Anyway, we received 6-7 inches of snow and it was glorious except for our six year coming down with a severe ear ache and congestion.  The only thing that provided her any delight was the snow so we had to let her go out both yesterday and today, completely bundled up and not for long.  She's not speaking due to the pain and since she already has epilepsy and migraines, I didn't want to prolong it in case it did end up being H1N1 for both gir's sake.

In June 2008, within two week's of one another, both girls were diagnosed with Benign Rolandic Epilepsy and some unknown pulmonary possible immune system issue.  Both girls were healthy and had no issues until post vaccinations. Coincidental? Perhaps but I have no idea so I move forward focusing on care and treatment.  Both instances landed my girls in ambulances from the local military hospital to the local children's hospital because they quite frankly, are unable to treat chronic conditions in children.  There is a long story on the trials and tribulations I've suffered at the military hospital but I'm not focusing on the past.  Today, I'm focusing on what happened today.

We arrived, no one else was there so that was a nice surprise as the wait can be long as anyone who visits an ER knows.  We are sent back for vitals and the intake person, possibly a nurse, doesn't know what Benign Rolandic Epilepsy is so I explained and provided the medication along with her newly diagnosed medication for pediatric migraines.  I was alright with that as it wasn't the doctor so it would be fine.  Upon being shown to our exam room, the doctor came in.  He was a very nice, polite and professional doctor who I liked.  He asked what the medications were and I said "Benign Rolandic Epilepsy."  He said he never heard of it.  I suppose it might be an uncommon condition but from all that I read, quite a few children are diganosed with BRE and with luck, they outgrow it when they reach puberity.

My summation to today was since the medical facility had no idea what BRE was, found no problem with my daughter's pain and congestion other than "perhaps a virus," I'm not comforted and am still sitting by her side with worry.  It's hard trying to keep the two separated as they spend so much time together.  I'm assuming it's not H1N1 since they weren't worried over the ear pain, fever and congestion.

This is a picture of her during her last EEG to monitor the electrical waves in her brain to help determine type of seizures she is having.  In spite of a scary situation, we had a great two nights together playing, coloring and just having some "mommy and daughter" time.

The other purpose of the post is to draw attention to a fantastic Etsy and Ebay seller who creates and sells buttons highlighting certain medical conditions.  Based on my interactions with her, she created epilepsy awareness buttons and buttons to warn others that the person has epilepsy.

Her shop is Creative Clam and I'm overlooking her New Orleans Saints' Who Dat button (I''m a Colts Believe diehard fan).  Here are two of the new epilepsy buttons:

She has all my children's medical conditions covered: Epilepsy, Asthma and Allergies.  There are so many and they are inexpensive which is why I included the post.   I like the idea of the buttons if my six year old is on a school field trip or participating in an event away from me as it draws immediate attention to her condition.

There are many other non-medical products too and being a military wife, I'm excited to see some future military buttons coming out!

Importance of Vitamin D in Children: Get Out in the Sun!

I have posted before about my two youngest, who have chronic medical condition, and it was nearly a year ago on Halloween that my then, one year old caught a cold trick-or-treating and ended up intubated and on her death bed two hours away in Savannah, Georgia. Her condition still baffles her doctors and her every day medications are troubling to me as I can't fathom how it can be good for her to be on a twice a day inhaled steroids and a once a day dose of Singulair.  The six year old is on Keppra for Benign Rolandic Epilepsy. 

Both incurred the onset of these conditions in June of 2008 within two week's of one another so I've learned a lot about both conditions and in pursuit of finding out how to stop my littlest one from crashing everytime she got a cold, we kept up with our routine doctor visits and followed all advice.  One of the important orders he prescribed was Vitamin D exposure.  He told me to take BOTH of them outside for 15 minutes a day.  He told me how Americans are in a deficit for Vitamin D and especially children which can lead to all sorts of health implications. 

He explained with all the scares behind skin cancer and the use of sunblock and our growing inactive lives, we stay indoors more which makes sense as I remember being brown all summer long from the hours of play outside.  Unfortunately due to the fear of bad people, I never let them play outside alone and I certainly don't have the time to do so which 15 minutes minimally is a great compromise.

I think this exposure to the sun has helped as we have had no trips to the ER or hospitalizations.  This has been a GREAT relief because in the past year, we had well over 10 visits to the ER or were hospitalized between the two.   Vitamin D is a great defense against colds and boosts the body to ward off things or harsher symptoms with the flu or H1N1.

Here is a great article that just was released today on Vitamin D and the need for it to promote healthy kids.

Medical Alerts Necessary for Children with Chronic Conditions

Within two week's of each other, our two and six year old were diagnosed with asthma/allergy/unknown pulmonary issues and epilepsy, respectively.  This was in 2008 so we have had a lot to deal with in a short amount of time especially when it involves two children.

The six year requires twice a day medication for her epilepsy and the two year old receives twice a day Flovent and once a day Singulair for asthma and allergies. Both also require us to carry around rescue medications. 

We've had numerous hospitalizations and one near death experience with the two year old intubated for over a week and in the hospital for two weeks with and no known reason why she crashed so hard by numerous experts.

Since this time, I've learned a few things about how necessary it is to have records of visits, hospitalizations, procedures, diagnosis, medications and so forth.  I created a folder and indexed it by the date so I could easily pull out the medical records for the doctors. 

Being that we are Army, we are required to utilize those facilities and we just happen to be in one location where they are inadequate for providing services to children so our children are referred to a local children's hospital (which is a pain in itself to get referrals and I won't even discuss my nightmare over cervical cancer and the government's health care program). 

Given that, they have been to a couple of different places which makes understanding the medical history harder.   The folder really seemed to help the doctors with each hospitalization so I continue to build on this.  I even created one for my elderly father who seems to be a little on the forgetful side.

I was very excited to see that American Medical ID now has a USB e*MedTAG that easily stores all this information so the doctors can just download.  They also have a dog tag version coming out soon.

Portable personal health file contained on a compact, easy to carry USB thumb drive.

An ideal companion to a Medical ID bracelet or necklace, e•MedTAG offers extra space for medical details not engraved on the ID. Use e•MedTAG to better organize and easily access your medical information. Pre-loaded forms make it simple to set up and update. No CDs or online installation is required.

It's so portable you can even put it in your glove box, purse, briefcase or backpack.

• Doctor Visits
• Pharmacy Consults
• While Traveling
• In an Emergency

I have bought two types of medical IDs for the six year old in school. I bought the necklace version at first but worried about it getting caught on playground equipment. I then switched to the sports bracelet since it's appealing to kids. American Medical ID has very nice products to choose from and specials if you buy more than one.

The necklace choice for kids allow for them to show some style but also allows them to have a choice which means a lot for some.  They have versions for boys and girls and you can select the chain length.

They have hundreds to choose from, free personalized engraving, an online medical registry available 24/7, no membership fees, a free engraving warranty and the option to receive helpful medical updates via e-mail.

Our Day at the Riverbanks Zoo in Columbia, SC

Make a Smilebox slideshow

We decided to go to the Columbia, SC Zoo today since we hadn't done anything special with the girls since my husband returned from Iraq.  The zoo is small yet very nice.  One of the things I like the most is that everyone is so polite and nice and you get to get up close to many of the animals.

Back to the zoo .... the girls had a great time feeding the giraffes, riding sculpture animals, seeing all the animals and riding the ponies.  I can't think of a better time than to see the shear joy on children's faces!