Frank Dicopoulos, Daughter Suffer from Food Allergies

Thos Robinson/Getty

Food allergies are serious business and is why actor Frank Dicopoulos took part in the FAAN (Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network) Walk for Food Allergy in Long Branch, NJ on Sunday, August 7th. The Guiding Light star is no stranger to the network, as he found out that he was allergic to the iodine content of shellfish when his "throat closed up" — while on his first date with wife Teja Anderson! However, what scares him most is learning that their daughter Olivia, 11, is allergic to shrimp. When exposed to it, Olivia "had trouble breathing," an experience which the actor calls "scary." It’s one reason that the 51-year-old decided to emcee the FAAN event.

"It’s bringing awareness to the community that for kids and adults who have food allergies, it’s a serious problem."

Frank and Teja are also parents to son Jaden, 14, who is allergic to grasses.

Source: APP

Does your child suffer from a food allergy? If so, how did you find out?

Comments

Amellia on September 13th, 2008

My youngest son Joshua is allergic to several foods. But even as a baby he wouldn’t eat bananas, but one day a couple of hours before dinner both boys were hungry and wanted candy, I told them no and handed each one a banana. Several minutes later Josh came to us and said his mouth felt funny. When we turned to look at him his lips were swollen really big and his asthma was kicking in a bit. Allergy testing also determined shellfish, carrots, celery, pears and nuts. It makes life interesting because you never know what someone puts in the food. Like at one function we went to we found out the hard way they put celery in their spaggetti sauce (I have never heard of anyone putting celery in spaggetti sauce before) when Josh had an asthma attack after eating some of it.

Elisabeth - Hudson's Mom on September 13th, 2008

My almost 2 year old son is allergic to eggs and nuts (so far). We found out quite early when, at two months old, he developed eczema. I was nursing – cut dairy b/c we immediately though milk allergy – at six months old we stopped bf’ing and went to hypoallergenic formula – only to finally discover (after allergy testing) the allergy to egg and nuts. We have to steer completely clear of eggs, all nuts, shellfish and other fishes until after his 3rd birthday. After that we’ll do food challenges in the allergist office. Sometimes it’s tough..but then I think of the families dealing with 40+ food allergies (a close friend!) and know that we are so lucky to only have a few.

Dana on September 13th, 2008

My oldest is allergic to milk. I was unable to breast feed and had to use formula. When she was about a week old, I took her to the doctor because she was having explosive bowel movements and had blood in her stool. The doctor informed us that she was allergic to milk and we had to switch formulas. We had to try 4 different formulas until we found one she could use, which also happened to be $20 a can (it came in liquid only). Not very fun at the end of her bottle days when she was going through a can a day!

Even now she can only have milk in certain forms– mainly yogurt and moderate amounts of cheese. No straight milk or ice cream.

Our youngest is allergic to penicillin and its various forms. She blows up like a balloon and gets hives all over her body. She had pneumonia this spring and the doctor prescribed her an anitbiotic with trace amounts of penicillin in it, even though they knew she couldn’t take it. We were unaware and ended up rushing to the emergency room with a child with a severe case of pneumonia and an allergic reaction.

SY on September 13th, 2008

Our youngest is allergic to eggs, we found out because of his eczema, we cut out actual eggs, but there are items that are egg based which are named different things. Skin testing found the allergy and we’re lucky it’s the only one. Now that he’s almost 5, he should be close to outgrowing the allergy and we’ll find out during his next skin test.

ang on September 13th, 2008

i have PKU(google it-it’s too hard to explain).it’s not life-threatening,but it still sucks.i feel for all kids who have such issues.

Dorkiee on September 14th, 2008

I dont have any children, but allergies i know of, i myself am allerigc to banana, it gets really annoying during the christmas trifle because people forget, then i cant have any.. or they dont put it in and other people complain it doesnt taste the same. and its not food.. but silver.. any time i wore silver jewellry i got itchy and rashy, and earrings can be tedious at the best of times but all silver earrings into them and well.. i wasnt a happy teenager.

My brother is allerigic to penicillin, which nearly killed him due to a nurse who didnt check his chart during a hospital visit

SH on September 14th, 2008

I didn’t realize that eczema could be a sign to a food allergy? Does the eczema go away when you change the food? (for the people who have experienced that with their children…)

lele on September 14th, 2008

my daughter was allergic to milk at birth. blood in her diaper. she outgrew that allergy and has milk everyday. at 2 after getting the okay to try peanut butter i did so and she got hives where the peanut butter had touched her face. (she had eaten peanut butter pretzels before with my husband and nothing happened). she has very sensitive skin and reacts to a lot so i figured it was more skin than allergy and waited a year before trying again. at the time i did not know how serious the allergy can be.

at three i smeared some on her face and sure enough hives, but less hives. i called the allergist and found out after a blood test she did indeed have a peanut allergy. they give you a number 1-100. she was a 7. but the doctors tell you the number can indicate severity but kids with low numbers can have terrible reactions. luckily we have never had a serious reaction, but we do carry an epi pen. we pray she will outgrow it. we discovered the cashew allergy after she had some pasta with cashews in it by accident. her number for cashew was much higher 25.

it is really difficult. i am trying to find a peaceful place and live with the allergy best i can. i am much better now… it helps talk to others and hearing stories! i am so glad he is bringing awareness. i hope they figure this allergy stuff out! my little girl started preschool for the first time and it has been horrible worrying about her. there is another little girl in her class of 13 that has a peanut allergy so that has been great.

does anyone on the CBB staff know of other celebrity children with food allergies? i read that sarah jessica’s little james and heather lockler’s ava both have peanut allergies. would love to know if that is true.

SY on September 14th, 2008

SH– Eczema is an indication of food allergies, but not always. The eczema might be the body’s way of telling you there is something wrong, or it simply might be a reaction to something in the air, etc. My son had the eczema from about 2-3 months on his face until he was a little over 1. The Dr thought he outgrew it, but he started getting the rashes behind his ears, which according to my allergist is an indication of a food allergy…

lele on September 14th, 2008

eczema is a sign of allergy. most kids with eczema will have an allergic type of system. it might not be a severe peanut allergy, but it does indicate allergy. however, my little one’s eczema did not get better until she got older and she was not having what she was allergic to… maybe it would have been much worse had she had milk all those months as a baby. now she hardly ever has flair ups.

Cait on September 14th, 2008

Lele – Trace Adkins youngest daughter Brianna has a severe food allergy. I believe it’s to nuts, but it might be more than just that. When he did the Celebrity Apprentice, he was raising money for a food allergy organization (it might even be this one, to be quite honest) and he said that it was close to his heart because his youngest had terrible allergies.

lele on September 14th, 2008

oh yeah! forgot about trace…. thanks for reminding me. it truly helps to know i am not alone with this allergy.

Tara on September 15th, 2008

my son isn’t allergic to anything that I know of but I am allergic to Dove soap. I get a horrible burning rash whenever I use it.

Sanja on September 15th, 2008

Amellia –celery is put in the original recepie for spaghetti bolognese

Heather on September 15th, 2008

My 19 month old son is allergic to soy,peanuts,eggs,wheat and dairy. We found out because he was extremely sick for the first year of his life and his doctors finally did a allergy blood test.
After finding out about his allergies I started http://www.spewdfree.com where I have a blog and recipes that are free of soy,peanuts,eggs,wheat and dairy.