Parents of the three million or so kids in the US who have been diagnosed with food allergies whose kids have severe food allergies know they can’t be too careful. One bite of the food they are allergic to could be deadly. Indeed, according to the CDS, more than 200 people with food allergies die every year as a result of anaphylaxis.
Now, Michele Walsh, a mother of three from Baltimore, has created SafetyTat to help remind teachers, classmates and babysitters to be extra careful.
The safety tats are brightly colored temporary tattoos or long-lasting write-on stickers that can be placed prominently on a child’s arm, with information such as “ALERT: NUT ALLERGY” or other critical information.
When you leave a child in someone else’s care at school or camp, “no matter how many times you fill out the forms, you’re still taking a leap of faith,” Walsh says. “This is like my voice with my son when I’m not there. It’s almost like teaching them ‘stop, drop and roll…’ They know exactly what to do.”
Another company – Allermates offers allergy education tools, stickers, alert bracelets and other products for kids. Allermates was created by Iris Shamus, inspired by her son’s multiple allergies and an incident at school. “When you have a child with a food allergy, you’re always worried. It’s just part of your life,” she says. “I wanted to have something a little more personalized for him to remind teachers and babysitters.”
It began with a fun necklace, then a wristband and a large selection of products accompanied by cartoon characters such as Nutso, a charming peanut, to help her son understand, remember and confidently discuss his allergies.
“It makes me feel so much more secure,” she says. “I know you can’t be there all the time when you’re a mom, and this gives you peace of mind.”
“Anything that can help educate the patient about their problem and continue to make them aware about it is helpful whether it’s a temporary tattoo or a warning bracelet,” says Stan Fineman MD, immediate past president of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. “The important thing is for people to accurately find out what they’re allergic to and then make sure to take the appropriate precautions,” Fineman says. He says parents of kids with severe allergies should keep EpiPens on hand, check school policies, talk to school officials and bring in treats their kids can eat for special events.
Betsy Shea of Chicago says both of her boys, 4-year-old Colin and 2-year-old Emmet, have nut allergies, and Colin wears Allermates’ green snap-on wristband featuring Nutso. She’s thinking about trying temporary tattoos for Emmet.
Having allergies herself, she remembers having to wear the traditional metal medical alert band, which made her feel different and self-conscious. But Colin “loves that band. He wears it with pride and thinks it’s just so cool. We couldn’t get him to take it off for a while,” she says.
We thinks it’s pretty cool too!
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