If you suspect that a food allergen has been ingested (or insect sting), immediately determine the symptoms and treat the reaction as follows:
|
Symptoms |
Give Medications |
||
| Mouth | Itching or tingling lips | Benadryl | |
| Skin | Hives, swelling on face or extremities, itchy rash | Benadryl | |
| Gut | Nausea, abdominal cramps, vomiting, diarrhea | Benadryl | |
| Throat | Tightening of throat, hoarseness, hacking cough | Epinephrine | Benadryl |
| Lung | Shortness of breath, repetitive coughing, wheezing | Epinephrine | Benadryl |
| Heart | Thready pulse, passing out, fainting, pale, blueness | Epinephrine | Benadryl |
| General | Panic, sudden fatigue, chills, fear of impending doom | Benadryl | |
| If a food allergen has been ingested, but no symptoms: | Benadryl | ||
| If a reaction is progressing (several of the above areas affected): | Epinephrine | Benadryl | |
Medication Doses:
Epinephrine: Epipen or Auvi-Q 0.3mg (body weight > 30kg / 66lb) / Epipen Jr or Auvi-Q 0.15mg (body weight 15-30kg / 33-66lb) injected once into upper outer thigh.
Antihistamine: Liquid Benadryl (12.5mg/5 ml) take 5ml per 10kg/22lb of body weight
– Call 911 (or Ambulance service)
– State that you had a severe allergic reaction, and additional epinephrine doses may be needed
Food Allergy Research & Education (FARE) Emergency Care Plan can also be downloaded.