UFAN Food Allergy Conference a Success!

Last Saturday, I attended the third annual Food Allergy Conference in Salt Lake City, put on by the Utah Food Allergy Network. The half-day conference was jam-packed full of information and ideas – after a dozen years of dealing with food allergies, I still found myself taking lots of notes and learning new things.

Dr. Robert Silge, from Salt Lake City and Taylorsville, gave a presentation that just about blew my socks off with the amount of information he crammed into a single hour. He started off by discussing skin and blood tests, how they work, and what they mean. He reminded us that those tests can tell you the chance that you’ll have a reaction, but not how severe the reaction will be. So just because your score is “low” doesn’t mean you won’t have a severe reaction to that food someday.



I lead a discussion on eating out and traveling with food allergies

Dr. Silge also talked about the role platelet activating factor (PAF) plays in reactions, and how epinephrine works. He summarized EGID and how those diseases differ from a regular food allergy. Then he moved on to talk about the various treatments that are currently being studied, and how many of them are promising, but there is no long-term evidence to show how effective any of them are long-term yet, and that the results so far show widely varying results that are highly individual for each patient. And that’s just a sample of the topics he covered. (And I was left wondering if any research is being done into how to boost the enzymes needed to break down PAFs in our bodies, so that we don’t experience anaphylaxis. I’ll have to look into that soon.)

In addition, there were other presentations on eosinophilic disorders (EGIDs), how to handle food allergy plans for school, feeding and swallowing therapy, creative cooking with food substitutions, tips for handling social situations, how to live well with a chronic health condition, and tips for adults living with food allergies and EGIDs.

I was even invited to lead a discussion called “Eating Out & Traveling with Dietary Restrictions,” which turned out to be a lot of fun, and I hope helpful for everyone who participated.



Teens like my son and his friend had their own sessions.

For the first time, the conference this year included a teen track, where teens spent their half-day entirely in their own rooms discussing topics related to their unique needs. My son and his friend were able to attend, and my son even gave a short PowerPoint introduction of himself and his allergies as an icebreaker. Although neither my son nor his friend were sure they needed to attend (“I know how to handle my allergies, Mom!”), they both seemed to have a good time and even thought of friends they should have invited afterwards. So I think the teen track was a success and will be an important part of next year’s conference.

Many thanks to UFAN board members and volunteers for putting together this amazing half-day conference. I’m already looking forward to next year!

Utah Food Allergy Conference is June 22, 2013

by Kelley Lindberg


Whatever your plans for the summer, be sure you make time to attend the third annual Utah Food Allergy Conference, hosted by the Utah Food Allergy Network (UFAN)! It’s only a half-day long, and tickets are only $10 (yes, that’s right, just $10), so you definitely don’t want to miss out!

Here are the details:

Date: Saturday, June 22, 2013

Check in: 8:00am

Conference: 8:30am - 12:30pm

Location: Doty Education Center, Intermountain Medical Center, 5121 Cottonwood St., Murray, UT 84107

Educational topics include:

·         Food allergy 

·         Research updates

·         Eosinophilic disorders 

·         Nutrition with dietary restrictions

·         Eating out & traveling

·         Epinephrine & anaphylaxis training

·         How to advocate and communicate effectively

·         Psychological implications and living well with a chronic health condition

·         Special topic TBA

·         New this year - Teen session track for ages 11-17!

Speakers include:

·         Board Certified Allergists

·         Gastroenterologist

·         Dietitian

·         School Nurse

·         Psychologist

·         FARE Education Manager (Teen sessions)

·         Special guest speaker to be announced soon! 

You can register online right up until midnight the night before the conference, but do it now while you’re thinking about it. (That will also help UFAN organizers plan for seating, etc.) I’ve already registered myself and my teenage son, who is looking forward to meeting other teens and sharing ideas and stories for navigating these crazy teen years with food allergies.

 

Click here to register for the 2013 Utah Food Allergy Conference. See you there!

Utah Food Allergy Conference: June 23, 2012

by Kelley Lindberg


If you or a family member has food allergies, you won’t want to miss the upcoming Utah Food Allergy Conference, on Saturday, June 23, 2012.

Hosted by the Utah Food Allergy Network (UFAN), this annual conference is THE place in Utah to hear from experts on the latest news and research, learn about available resources, pick up helpful ideas and tips, and connect with other people in our food allergy community. It will be held at the Doty Family Education Center in the Intermountain Medical Center in Murray, UT.

And best of all – it’s free!

The conference is only a half-day long, so it won’t take up your entire Saturday, but you’ll get a ton of useful information in that short time-span. The planned conference schedule is below.

Even though it’s free, you need to register to attend so that UFAN will know how many people to accommodate. To register, go to the UFAN website at www.utahfoodallergy.org, click on the link to the Conference, and then click on the registration link. The registration form just takes a minute to fill out (don’t forget to choose which breakout session you want to attend), and then you can print your own tickets!

The conference promises to be educational, helpful, and fun! If you have any questions, contact support@utahfoodallergy.org. See you there!

Conference Schedule:

2^nd Annual Utah Food Allergy Conference

Saturday June 23, 2012
8:30am – 1:00pm
Intermountain Medical Center - Doty Family Education Center
5121 Cottonwood St, Murray, Utah

8:30 – 9:00 am            Registration

9:00 – 9:10 am            Welcome
                                    Michelle Fogg, President – Utah Food Allergy Network

9:10 – 10:10 am          Food Allergy, Anaphylaxis Management, & Research

                                    Rafael Firszt, MD, MBA – Allergy & Immunology

10:10 – 10:20 am        Break

10:20 – 11:20 am        Concurrent Sessions (choose one to attend):

                                    * Allergy and Asthma Safety at School and at Home

Andrea Johnson, CHES - Environmental Health Educator, Utah County Health Department, and mother of a son with food allergies and asthma, will address strategies for creating a safe environment both at home and at school. Topics to be covered include basics of setting up an allergy and asthma friendly home environment, working with school personnel to establish an allergy and asthma friendly school environment, and Utah laws and resources that can be used to aid in accomplishing both of those goals.

                                    * Developmental Stages of Kids with Food Allergy

Kristen Kauke, MSW, LCSW. Understand how children accomplish tasks and growth at each developmental stage and how food allergies can impact this. Gain strategies to cope with bullying and how to be a supportive adult along the way.

                                    *Eosinophilic Gastrointestinal Disorders (EGIDs)

Jan Bernhisel-Broadbent, MD – Allergy & Immunology, and Kathryn Peterson, MD – Gastroenterology. Learn the fundamentals of EGIDs and how they relate to food allergy, current treatments, studies & research findings, and support/resources available.

11:20 – 11:30 am        Break

11:30 – 12:15 pm        Avoiding Food Fights

                                    Kristen Kauke, MSW, LCSW

12:15 – 12:50 pm        Question & Answer Discussion w/ Panel of Presenters

12:50 – 12:55 pm        Awards Presentation

                                    Tiffany Scherbel, Vice President – Utah Food Allergy Network

12:55 – 1:00 pm          Closing Remarks

Plan to Attend the Free UFAN Food Allergy Conference

by Kelley Lindberg


Have you registered yet for the first annual Utah Food Allergy Conference? It’s going to be held on Saturday, June 25, 2011 at the Intermountain Medical Center in Murray, in the Doty Family Education Center (5121 South Cottonwood Street, Murray, Utah).

And it’s free!

Hosted by the Utah Food Allergy Network (UFAN), the one-day conference will be the first in Utah to focus entirely on food allergies. You’ll hear from a truly impressive line-up of local and national speakers:

• Richard Hendershot, MD, president of the Utah Society of Allergy & Asthma
• Eleanor Garrow, VP of Education and Outreach for FAAN (the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network)
• Gina Clowes, from AllergyMoms
• Sharlene Coombs, Registered Dietician
• Jan Bernhisel-Broadbent, MD, allergist
• Molly O’Gorman, MD, pediatric gastroenterologist
• Kathryn Peterson, MD, adult gastroenterologist

The conference runs from 9:00am – 1:00pm, and includes a Q&A session at the end. You won’t want to miss this event.

The conference is already filling up fast, so don’t wait to register.

Go to UFAN's website at http://www.utahfoodallergy.org/ for more information and to register online. Do it now, while you’re thinking about it!

We’ll also be announcing our first annual UFAN Excellence Awards at the conference to recognize people who’ve made a difference for the food-allergic community in Utah. Know someone who deserves an award? Nominate them by June 10th clicking the UFAN Excellence Awards 2011 Nomination Form here.

See you there!