Educating Nannies about Food Allergies

by Kelley Lindberg


Part of what makes living with food-allergic children challenging is trusting the people who care for our children when we are away. Teachers, day care workers, babysitters… they all hold our children’s lives in their hands and act as surrogate parents when we are unavailable.

Making sure those caregivers are informed about how to avoid your child’s food allergens and prepared to act quickly to an accidental exposure is critical. Fortunately, awareness has been growing dramatically over the last decade, to the point where food allergies are becoming an important topic even in online communities that aren’t food-allergy-centric.

For example, I recently met Sarah Tucker online, who runs a blog for nannies: www.4nannies.com. She let me know about a blog post she wrote last week that instructs nannies on the importance of learning about their charges’ food allergies. She also includes several helpful tips on avoiding allergens not just in the child’s home, but at playdates or restaurants, too.

You can read her post at “What Nannies Need to Know AboutFood Allergies.”

People like Sarah are helping keep our smallest generation of food-allergic loved ones safe by making sure that nannies everywhere are informed and prepared. If you know a nanny, babysitter, or day-care provider, be sure you let them know about Sarah’s blog. It’s an extra helping hand for a stressful situation, and we can all appreciate that!