For the nut- and peanut-allergic, Easter was once a pretty bleak day. Plastic eggs filled with mini-stamps, erasers, and teeny dollar store toys never really match up to giant chocolate bunnies and candy galore to a little kid. So, yes, you can absolutely shun sugar and go the other route for Easter, or you can spend a little time reading labels and find some really great treats for your wee allergic kiddo this Easter.

According to a recent study in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, penicillin allergies are not only the most common drug allergy, they're also the most inaccurate reported by patients. Why is this? The repercussions of this are serious; some include extended hospital stays and serious infections.

I admit it: I had no idea there were service dogs trained to detect allergens. Someone sent me the link to Allergen Detection Service Dogs and my first reaction was to laugh. A service dog? For my kid? So he doesn't eat allergens? Huh.

Ignoring the fact that a dog like that would kill my husband thanks to his allergies, it might be an interesting idea.

The mission of Allergen Detection Service Dogs is simple:

I made these muffins this weekend and my husband said they're my best ever, so I figured I'd better write down the ingredients and share them with you guys. What I absolutely love about making muffins is how easily customizable they are. I usually just throw in whatever I have around, but the combination this time was magical, so I'm excited to share with you. They're fairly healthy (you could easily make them without the chocolate chips, too), and the kids ate them all up quickly.

Allergies are difficult on all members of the family. They're hard for the person who has to deal with them, they're hard on parents trying to learn about them and keep kids safe, and they're hard on siblings who often get lost in the shuffle while everyone's trying to protect the at-risk family member. More discussions should be happening about the non-allergic siblings of allergic kids, I think.

When you can't eat the food you used to love, it's nuts how often you think about it. You also discover a willingness to shell out for the more expensive alternatives just to get a fix for the cravings because anything else simply walnut do. Oh man, totally cracking myself up here. I feel like Lisa would be really proud of my puntastic opening lines, but I digress.

Do you know a Canadian student (under age 25) who will be attending a post-secondary education institution in September and has worked to raise allergy awareness? Anaphylaxis Canada is now accepting applications for the 2014 Sabrina Shannon Memorial Award!

From WhyRiskIt.ca:

Runny noses, watery, itchy eyes, nagging coughs, itchy skin, headaches, and ohhh the sneezing. Although I'm pretty sure there isn't a person around who's not happy to bid this brutal winter adieu, with the coming season comes air full of new allergens. Spring allergies are nothing to sneeze at. Ugh, that one's too cheesy even for me, ha! Approximately one-quarter of all Canadians suffer through seasonal allergies, most of them taking antihistamines to combat their symptoms.

A team working at the University of Toronto has recently developed a formulation that is highly effective at removing trace amounts of nut allergens from hard surfaces (compared to current household cleaning products). When tasked with creating a life science product that would improve people's quality of life, the team chose to focus on the area of food allergies.

You're on the internet, so I'm going to assume you've seen the latest life-changing promise floating around—oil pulling (a woman swishes oil around in her mouth, and what happens next will totally blow your mind!). There are those touting its amazing healing powers and others laughing at its over-the-top claims, but the one thing I know for sure is this: it isn't new.

Mississauga mom Debbie Bruce has fought hard to convince the Toronto Blue Jays to help make their seating a little safer for those suffering with life-threatening peanut/nut allergies. Her son, John, said, "As someone who constantly has friends wanting to make a group outing out of a Blue Jays game, it often puts me in a position where I don't go in fear of having to inconvenience the group with my allergies.

The truth is, life with food allergies is pretty scary and can be really limiting for young kids. They miss out on a lot because of these allergies, but playdates don't have to be something they miss out on. Whether you choose to host your allergic child's friend at your house or allow your child to head to their friend's place, it doesn't have to be a stressful event, either. I've rounded up some great tips for making playdates easy (well, ok, from an allergy perspective at least) for hosts and guests. Have fun!

Yesterday, the Ottawa Sun reported that a two-year-old girl who attends a Barrhaven daycare centre has been suspended for three days for bringing a cheese sandwich into the facility. The headline is rather alarmist, isn't it? It insinuates that the child is somehow at fault, but we all know it's a rare toddler who's already making their lunches (wouldn't that be great, though?).

My family doesn't have to follow a gluten-free diet, but I know plenty who do, and I know that finding reliable resources for recipes, products, and information isn't always something they've got time to do. So I asked around for everyone's fave celiac and gluten-free online resources and am happy to provide you with this round-up. And if you've got some to add, please let me know!

Food allergies are tricky things. They vary from person to person, reactions can evolve and change, get more severe, or even disappear. They're just unbelievably difficult to manage, in general. What's making the whole thing even harder to manage is the fact that there are so many people out there spouting all kinds of garbage about food allergies that just aren't true.

Here are a few common myths that I'd like to dispel that'll maybe help clear up some confusion.

Spring is just 30 days away, you guys! Thirty sleeps! Winter has felt eternal in my neck of the woods, and as much as I loved the movie Frozen, I can't say I'll be sad when the temperatures stay above zero. As I sit here writing this today, it's snowing again, and I'm really not sure how to shovel the snow up onto the 6' tall snowbanks I have running along my driveway.

My son was born with food allergies. He was sensitive even through breast milk.

When we were kids, who knew what an EpiPen was? Severe allergies seem so commonplace now, that it feels like not a classroom is free of an EpiPen or two. While we struggle to protect our kids and ourselves from exposure to our allergens, scientists are trying to figure out what is happening to our immune systems, how to stop the progress of these allergies, and how to stop them from happening at all. 

Last month, there was news of a study that demonstrated a marked decrease in peanut allergies in children who underwent a gradual desensitization process. What huge news! This week, British researchers say they've successfully decreased reactions in their study of 90 children who suffer from peanut allergies.