SWEET TOOTH: Pina Vomero, a former bank financial advisor, established a company with her husband to help parents facing their children's food allergies. The sweet pastry of choice? Cupcakes, which do not include nuts or eggs. Photo by Corey Lewis/Vaughan Today
Pina Vomero’s one-year-old son was diagnosed with a peanut and nut allergy three years ago.
The discovery forced a lifestyle change the entire Vomero family found trying.
“There’s no history of food allergies on either side of our family, so this was quite honestly a shock,” the Woodbridger said. “It was a totally new experience for us.”
Dining options shrank for the entire family. They had to be mindful of where and what they ate, and had to ensure all products they brought into their home were nut-free.
Even though everyone had to sacrifice, the member of the Vomero-clan hardest hit by the household’s peanut-embargo was, naturally, Pina’s son.
“We found that when it came to getting things that were safe for him to eat, we were limited in terms of baking cakes and things like that,” Vomero said.
The Vomeros’ experience is common among parents of children with food allergies, says Dr. Susan Waserman, allergist and clinical immunologist at McMaster Univeristy in Hamilton.
Parents typically greet the news with an array of emotions ranging from extreme anxiousness to numbing confusion, Waserman says.
“I don’t think (parents) grasp what it means when they first walk into our clinic,” she said. “They don’t hear all the information that you give them at one time. They feel very paralyzed by the diagnosis.”
And to get through this safely and sanely, parents must step bravely into a slightly new and scary world of eating and grocery shopping. Close label reading is required, Waserman says. And if you don’t trust the company, give them a call to verify the information.
“It takes a certain amount of time and education on the part of the parents,” Waserman said. “Not everything is clearly labeled. Things are known by many different names.”
Experts suggest keeping your eye peeled for shops and bakeries with products suitable for those with food allergies. Carrot Common in Toronto, for example, offers products suitable for individuals with various food allergies.
Or, if you’re more of a hands-on, entrepreneurially minded individual, you can do what the Vomeros did.
With many fun-food options for her child off the table, Vomero, a one-time bank financial advisor, and her husband got the bright idea to establish a company to help out parents facing the same situation.
Their D.I.Y. solution? Simply Cupcakes, a business that caters to individuals with peanut, nut and egg food allergies.
All ingredients used to create the treats, including gels, flavouring, and decorations, are nut- and egg-free, Vomero said.
“I’ve gone the extra step to make sure they’re manufactured in a peanut and nut-free facility so there’s no potential for cross contamination,” said Vomero.
To mollify on-the-fence parents, she’s even gone so far as to procure documents from the manufacturers backing up their nut-free claim.
“I liked what I did before,” Vomero says of her previous gig. “But now I get a better sense of satisfaction because I know we’re helping other parents in similar situations — making it a little easier for them.”
Keeping a home allergen-free is a household effort, notes Julie Daniluk, nutritionist and co-owner of Carrot Common. Parents can’t eat one way and the kids another.
“Everyone has to be onboard with it if the allergy is life threatening,” Daniluk advised. “If it’s a peanut allergy, you better believe that it will change your whole life because you’re not going to be eating in a restaurant again.”
