Tips for Cooking for Children with Food Allergies
Parents of children with food allergies or celiac disease soon learn that the kitchen is their best friend. If you prided yourself on never cooking before you had children, or being a take-out mom even after you had children, this will change if you discover that your child/children suffers from food allergies, food intolerances or celiac disease.
Following are some tips to help you handle your new reality. The sooner you adjust to it, the healthier, safer and happier you and your child will be.
Research: When dealing with children with food allergies, research is your best friend. This is especially true if you’ve never suffered from food allergies. It’s akin to being plopped in a foreign country. You have to first learn the language in order to be able to navigate your new surroundings.
Of course, the internet is an invaluable resource, but so is your child’s physician/allergist. Never forget that this disease is something you both suffer from, in a sense. You are your child’s advocate. So, ask as many questions as you need to in order to gain a firm understanding of what children with food allergies and celiac disease are at risk of.
Food Allergy Cookbooks: Once you have a full understanding of what to stay away from and what can safely be included in the diets of children with food allergies, buy a food allergy cookbook. This is particularly helpful if you have children who suffer from different food allergies.
Food allergy cookbooks invariably offer tasty recipes for the whole family, in addition to in-depth preparatory instructions and mouth-watering photos. Have your kids help you prepare their meal. It will give them an even greater appreciation and understanding of their affliction, as well as create some bonding time for all of you as a family.
The Alternative to Eating Out: When many parents are in a hurry or don’t have time to prepare meals, they invariably order takeout. When you have children with food allergies, this is not an easy option, unless you happen to know of gluten-free restaurants that offer quick and easy takeout options.
An easy alternative is to prepare and freeze meals. That way, you can still pop it in the oven and have dinner on the table in about the same time as it would take to call it in and have it delivered.
While children with food allergies have special dietary needs, it needn’t be a burden or hindrance. It’s really a matter of perspective – eg, changing how you eat to best benefit the health of your child. Nothing more; nothing less.
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