Out Smart Children’s Food Allergies with these Mobile Apps

If you have or care for a child with food allergies, you know how difficult meals can be, especially if you are dining out. Oftentimes, restaurant employees or their kitchen staff is not entirely sure what ingredients go into the food they are preparing, and risking your child’s health most certainly is not an option. Even grocery stores and convenience stores may sell products that are not clearly marked with allergen information.

Fortunately for parents and sitters, apps are apps available that use bar code scanners to read access product information and check for allergy alerts. Additionally, you may want to consider carrying a list of foods that may cause an allergic reaction either on your tablet or phone.

MyFoodFacts and Cooking Allergy Free

This app is one that scans the barcodes on the products to make sure that the personal food allergens are not present. This app is most helpful if you frequently cook meals at home and need to purchase items at the supermarket. It costs $9.99 for an iPhone and, while some consumers may feel that the price is a little high compared to the traditional $1.99 or $2.99 app, it is the most helpful tool to protect your family from accidental allergic reactions.

Cook It Allergy Free is an extensive website as well as a $1.99 app that you can use to tailor recipes to meet the needs of your family. If you have a recipe that calls for ingredients with which you are not familiar or that you know are unsafe, you can use this app to check the product and remove it if needed. The app also provides safe substitutions. You can customize the recipes you create and even share them on social networking sites for others to use as well.

iCanEat OnTheGo

If you dine out or travel frequently with your family, unless you are hitting the same restaurant every time, you are going to need to be aware of the establishment’s menu. Not all employees are knowledgeable regarding allergen information and some may even take a guess without knowing the correct answer. iCanEat OnTheGo covers menus in as many as 26 fast-food chains, while its partner, iEatOut Gluten &Allergen Free is available for dining out.

You can select and personalize any of the nine most common food allergens including tree nuts, milk, soy, peanuts, eggs, gluten, wheat, fish and shellfish, and corn is added to the list for the restaurant option. Both are available for $2.99.

PalmPedi, Medlert, Allergic!

There are apps for scanning products and apps for menus, but what about apps that can help in an emergency? PalmPedi lets caregivers find vital information needed during an allergy emergency, offering reference information on pediatric resuscitation. The app costs $2.99. Medlert is a free, highly rated family emergency app that helps you contact emergency services with one button.

Anaphylactic Allergy Alert can help caregivers with emergency information and tracking information emergency workers will need when they arrive. This $.99 app also helps you find local pharmacies so you can get the allergy medications you might need after an unexpected exposure.

By purchasing inexpensive apps to evaluate the food you want to eat, you can ensure that you are making safe choices for anyone who may be allergic to specific foods.

Author Bio:

This important information for parents and caregivers was provided by NannyJobs.org, a site that helps nannies locate families in need of childcare.