Travelling with allergies

GCSEs and A levels are drawing to a close and the South West, UK is looking wonderful. You may be thinking about summer holidays, or your child may be off travelling without you for the first time. There are plenty of ways to mitigate risk and increase you and your child's chances of a wonderful trip.

For eczema, hints and tip are in the blog on summer skin, there are lots of ideas in the hayfever blog as well. It is important to start medications early and have your skin, nose and eyes in the best shape possible before travelling. This holds true of asthma as well. Please always may sure you have all your medications when travelling and that they are in date, you have plenty of them and are easily accessible.

Travelling with food allergies can seem overwhelming, but it is possible. There are some good resources out there from Anaphylaxis UK and Allergy UK.

If you have an adrenaline pen - make sure you have two, that they are in date and you have re watched a video or guide on how to use them. Here is an excellent video of how to use your adrenaline pen. Often the companies will be able to provide you with trainer pens to practice. Invest in an insulated adrenaline pen bag - this will keep it temperature regulated, but also are easy access and eye catching. Make sure another person on the trip knows how to use an adrenaline pen.

Speak to your airline company early if you are flying, ask about their food policies and if you don't feel reassured consider taking food with you. If you are flying contact the airline as ask about early boarding to be able to wipe down the touch points around your seat. There is evidence that wiping the surfaces around you is effective a decreasing risk of a reaction on a flight.

If eating out abroad, allergy translation cards can be vital to ensure good communication about your allergies. One good tip in any situation is to always take a small bite of any meal first, not rush and eat it all at once, and wait to ensure that there is no tingling or reactions. A smaller amount is better than eating all of it and then realising.

Pinch points to consider with food allergies are bakeries, buffets, confectionary where items can touch each other or become jumbled. Certain countries has higher food allergen use than others such as pistachios in Turkey, peanut in China and the USA.

Do please feel free to talk to an allergist prior to travelling to ensure your feel confident and comfortable travelling with your child. This is doubly important when a young person starts to travel solo. An individualised plan can be very useful.