Food Allergies affect 70,000+ Clark County residents
It takes a team effort to care for the approximately 15 million Americans, including 6 million children, in the U.S. with food allergies. During Food Allergy Awareness Week (FAAW) May 13-19, the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) acknowledges individuals who do so much to protect those with food allergies. One of the first to take the lead is the Nevada Governor, Brian Sandoval. Governor Sandoval has formally recognized FAAW this year by issuing a proclamation.
Food allergy is an often misunderstood, potentially life-threatening medical condition for which there is no cure. Spencer Peterson was just 12 months old when they found out he had food allergies to dairy, eggs, soy, fish, shellfish, sesame, avocado, peanut, and tree nuts. “After Spencer’s Food Allergy diagnosis, we became hyper-vigilant about knowing what was in the foods we fed him. We nicknamed Spencer our “Bubble Boy” because his skin would also react to food allergens in his environment and he’d get hives and blisters from touching surfaces that had trace amounts of food allergens. We try to control Spencer’s environment as much as possible to reduce the chance of anaphylaxis. We carry epinephrine with us at all times and wipe down all surfaces.” says Alexandra Peterson.
Spencer is the 2012 FAAN Walk for Food Allergy in Las Vegas, Nevada Honorary Youth Chair.
This free to register family charity event will be on Saturday, October 6 at The District at Green Valley Ranch. “It is very important for our community to host a FAAN Walk Event”, says Dana Gordin the volunteer FAAN walk director of Nevada. “Because of the incredible success of the 2011 Las Vegas FAAN Walk, FAAN has awarded our community with some amazing grants.
FAAN staff is coming to Las Vegas to present training sessions at no financial expectation for Nevada. The event is called Educate Las Vegas, which will advance food allergy awareness for all CCSD schools, some local restaurants, and ER medical facilities.