Introduction of the Petition

My MP Mr. Karygiannis (Scarborough—Agincourt),introduced my petition which has been entered into the Journal for May 10, 2012 (Link is below)


"one concerning the labelling of food products (No. 411-1019)"


http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication.aspx?Pub=Journals&Language=E&Mode=1&Parl=41&Ses=1&DocId=5568352&File=0

Some information regarding the stages of petitions.



"On the day the Member chooses to introduce the bill, he or she rises during Routine Proceedings when the Speaker calls "Introduction of Private Members' Bills". The Speaker announces the title of the bill and the motion for introduction of the bill is automatically adopted, without debate.
The Member is then permitted to give a brief explanation outlining the purpose of the bill. Since no debate is permitted at this time, the Member often simply reads the explanatory note in the bill. The bill is then automatically read a first time and ordered to be printed, also without debate, amendment or question put, pursuant to Standing Order 69(1).
The bill is then transferred to the list of "Private Members' Business-Items Outside the Order of Precedence". This list of items, which may be consulted at the Table in the Chamber or on the electronic version of the Order Paper, does not actually appear in the printed version of the Order Paper. Having been placed on this list, the bill is set down for second reading and reference to a committee. When a Member's name is placed in the Order of Precedence, he or she may select any item standing in his or her name on the List of Items Outside the Order of Precedence.
Pursuant to Standing Order 91.1(1), at the beginning of the first session of a Parliament, and thereafter as required, the Subcommittee on Private Members' Business meets following the establishment, or replenishment of the Order of Precedence, to determine whether it wishes to designate any of the items as non-votable according to the criteria adopted by the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs."

http://www.parl.gc.ca/About/House/compendium/web-content/c_d_privatemembersbillsnoticeintroduction1read-e.htm

Allergy Awareness Week

So, it is Allergy Awareness Week and it couldn't come at a better time.

With that being noted here are some resources I would like to share with you and make available for those suffering with life threatening allergies.

Compliments of anaphylaxis.ca here are a list of some interesting facts:

• There is no cure; avoidance of an allergenic food is the only way to prevent an allergic reaction.
• About 1.3 million Canadians (4%) have food allergy according to Health Canada.
• One in two Canadians know someone with a serious food allergy.
• The incidence is highest amongst young children (under 3) with close to 6% affected by food allergy.
• About 300,000 Canadian children under 18 years have food allergies.
• Peanut allergy in Canada affects about 2 in 100 children.
• More than 40% of Canadians read food labels looking for allergen information.
• The Ontario government passed Sabrina's Law in 2005, requiring all publicly funded schools in the province to have an anaphylaxis action plan.

The major allergens are:  Peanut and peanut products, soy and soy products, eggs, sesame seeds, milk, seafood, tree nuts, sulphites, wheat and  mustard (Mustard is now a priority allergen in Canada, and labelling requirements for mustard will come into force on August 04, 2012). Many of these products are hidden in common foods.

There are oodles of information on food allergies available all over the Internet. I strongly urge you to get familiar with food allergies as they are becoming increasingly common in Canada and around the world. A simple "google" search on food allergies in Canada, or any country you are in will give you some relevant information for your area and resources. If you, or someone you know is currently suffering from a food allergy and you have stumbled across this page, PLEASE call your local emergency department or 9-1-1. Getting immediate help can save a life.

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/allerg/fa-aa/index-eng.php

http://www.anaphylaxis.ca/en/educators/educator_resources.html

http://www.allergysafecommunities.ca/pages/default.asp

Metro at Kennedy Commons in Scarborough, Ontario

This is at a Metro located at Kennedy Commons in Scarborough. This is at the end of the isle on wheels. While I was taking a few photos of the setup the cart seen in this image actually hit it and about 13 or so of the walnuts went tumbling to the ground. What become of those nuts I do not know, however I am certain that these being in a closed bin would be a much better set up.

Nightmare at Loblaws

This is a Loblaws in Richmond Hill, Ontario. Look at all those nuts, look at how spread out they are and how easy it would be for a random person to place your next possible food item on them!!

Freshco in Richmond Hill, Ontario

Such a close contact area to the fresh fruits and vegetables. I would be so happy to see this closed up, and not on a slope. This is at Freshco. In Richmond Hill, Ontario.

Walmart in Newmarket, Ontario

Hard to believe that they have some nuts in closed bins, while some not in closed bins. Hopefully all that will change!

Tune into CPAC tomorrow between 10am to 11am

Correction - political games are being played in the House, so now the introduction will occur tomorrow morning between 10am to 11 am


Mr. Karygiannis will be introducing my Petition this afternoon during Routine Proceedings which is after Question Period (2:00-3:00pm).

Wish us luck!!!

Its a family affair...

After my sons first reaction I became a protective parent. I started watching everything. I got my son a cute little MedicAlert band. Taught him to say "No nuts", became active in research on food allergies, subscribed to Health Canada's food recalls (here) and made appointments with allergist to become as informed as I could be. Our first allergist appointment was pointless. The allergist simply tested for walnuts. (If your making a specialist appointment for answers - dont be the last appointment of the day) As if we didnt already know it was walnuts, but what about all the other nuts? If we listened to that allergist when he said "It is probably an isolated walnut allergy as it is more common in children of european decent", my son would have probably never been taken to see Dr. David Hummel. Dr. Hummel was amazing, he gave us the time of day, tested in depth for Tree Nuts and Peanuts, discussed with us what we should do, steps to take. He was amazed with all the steps I had already taken. Both my husband and I had already practiced with a "trainer epi-pen" which we ordered from this link, we
de-nutted our house, informed friends and family, became trained in the scientific names of the allergens to watch out for, and began watching for cross-contamination. I was obviously more aware of the steps, despite trying to get everyone on board. Everyone thought I was crazy or being extreme. Honestly, I felt like grabbing my kids and running from my unsupportive family. I screamed when my Mother-in-Law purchased buns from an open bin, you would think this would be safe, but buns come from a bakery, a bakery in a grocery store is not allergen free. The risk of cross-contamination is very high, think of carrot cake, carrot cake is often made with crushed walnuts... think of those buns being baked in the same area... No one could persuade me to think it is safe to have in a house with a child that has severe anaphalaxis to walnuts. That was before discoverning my sons allergy was not specific to walnuts. We discovered during allergy testing with Dr. Hummel on November 15th that he has a positive allergy to Cashews, Walnuts, Pine nuts, Pistachios, Pecan, Hazelnuts, Brazil Nuts, Almonds and a "tree nut mix". This is slightly more rare than just a single family nut allergy. Each tree nut comes from a "family". Generally said, if you are allergic to walnuts, you will also be allergic to pecans, same with pistachio to cashews, beechnuts to chestnuts...

Walnut: walnut, pecan	Birch: hazelnut, filbert, hickory nut
Mango: pistachio, cashews	Plum: almond
Legythis: brazil	Macadamia
Beech: beechnut, chestnut

It was in between all my research and my appointment with Dr. Hummel that I discovered that this will be a life long allergy for my son. On Food Allergy Gourmet it states: a tree nut allergy is rarely outgrown. Most people remain allergic for their entire lives. It is also possible to develop a tree nut allergy later in life. From Food Allergies About they say: over 90% percent of children diagnosed with tree nut allergies will have them for life. This is why I consider living with tree nuts allergies to be like a disability. It is not something that will just go away, it has no cure.



Some interesting facts I have found. I know this is about food allergies in Canada but I have yet to find the same interesting facts and figures for Canada.

Allergy to peanuts and tree nuts in the general population is, respectively, 0.6 percent and 0.4 percent, with the rate in children under age 18 (0.8 percent and 0.2 percent) slightly different from adults (0.6 percent and 0.5 percent respectively). These two foods are the leading causes of fatal and near fatal food-allergic reactions.

In spite of attempts to avoid allergenic foods, accidental exposures are the major causes of allergic reactions to foods. Over a period of two years, approximately 50 percent of subjects in the United States with food allergy have an allergic reaction to accidental exposure.

In the United States, there are approximately 30,000 episodes of food-induced anaphylaxis, associated with 100 to 200 deaths; most deaths occur in adolescents and young adults.

Food allergy is the most frequent single cause of emergency room visits for anaphylaxis and accounts for 34 to 52 percent of these visits.

What is anaphylaxis?

What is Anaphylaxis? How does it occur?

Anaphylaxis is the most severe systemic allergic reaction. It is the result from an exposure to an allergen.
It can be triggered by certain foods, insect stings,medicine, latex, exercise and sometimes unknown causes. Common triggers are most likely to cause anaphylaxis. Foods such as peanuts, tree nuts, fish, eggs, milk, wheat and shellfish can cause severe anaphylaxis. Insect stings and bites such as those from bees, wasps, yellow jackets, hornets and ants. Latex can also cause anaphylaxis, it can be found in car tires, rubber bands, elastic, carpet backing, hospital and dental equipment, gloves, balloons and condoms. Medication such as penicillin, sulfa antibiotics, muscle relaxants and certain post surgery floods can also cause a reaction.
Sometimes the cause of an allergic reaction such as anaphylaxis is unknown. This type of reaction is diagnosed as idiopathic anaphylaxis.
Symptoms of anaphylaxis can happen fast and they require immediate medical attention. If you or someone you know is suffering from anaphylaxis, get emergency help right away. Anaphylaxis is unpredictable and can lead to death.


http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000844.htm

How this all started...

It was July 31^st when my son had his first allergic anaphylactic reaction. It was after a nice family visit with my mom. My Husband (Evan) and I loaded the kids in the car and proceeded to head home. My son was being fussy in the back seat which generally means hunger, so I handed my daughter (Felisha) a bag of raw walnuts. I didn't think anything of it, as my son (Dimitrios) had peanut butter, almonds, pistachios, and cashews before; never had a problem. Just about a minute out from the highway I heard Dimitrios crying. It did not sound like him, but something like a dying animal. It was raspy and gargled; at first I thought maybe he was choking on the food. When I turned around his face was swollen, his eyes so swollen shut he could not see. He was crying in a raspy way and rubbing his eyes. I froze for a second. I had seen this before. I have allergies myself, but to seasonal items (bees, trees, grass) and medication (Amoxicillin, Buckley’s). I jumped in the back while my husband was driving and started to call 9-1-1. We pulled over into a gas station and waited. It felt like forever, when it was literally less than 5 minutes. From the time of ingestion, to full reaction was 3 minutes. The fire trucks came first, they looked at my son and freaked just as much as I did. At this time my son was in and out of consciousness. Ambulance arrived a minute after. Asked four questions: 1) where did this happen 2) when did this happen? 3) Has he ever been like this before? 4) Did we give him anything for it?



By this time he was unconscious and we are jumping in the back of the ambulance. They talked to him attempting to get a response and indirectly telling me what they would be doing. First was epinephrine in the right thigh, then Benadryl in the left. They strapped so many monitors on to him that you could barely see him. They placed an oxygen mask on his face, and by the time we arrived at the hospital he was screaming again. Screaming after an experience like this makes your heart feel so much better. I just cried. He was quickly taken to an isolation room in the hospital where they connected wires to every machine, turned on bright lights, and asked more questions.

I felt so lost, so confused, so terrified... My son had nuts before, I couldn't believe that I, me, his mom, just about killed him...

They gave him another dose of epinephrine which brought his blood pressure back up to normal range. They gave him prednisone after. We remained in the hospital for another 6 hours. He was watched constantly for remission. He was still attached to monitors, with nurses and doctors coming to check on him every 5 to 10 minutes.

Around the 3^rd hour, a doctor came in to tell us that our son was lucky. He had a severe anaphylactic reaction to tree nuts. I had mentioned that he had eaten other nuts before without a problem and I was advised that it didn’t matter. He would forever be allergic to nuts. He was prescribed two epi pen juniors because as we discovered, one was not enough. We got advised that if something happened again to immediately give him the epi-pen and call 9-1-1 again. The doctor said, “For every exposure to an allergic reaction, he will require less of the allergen to create a greater reaction”.  We got a strong message that my son should not come into contact with any nuts, despite having had them before; until he could see an allergist.



I spent the next day going through everything in my house. It is amazing how much contains or may contain nuts. I had a face scrub from St.Ives that actually contained walnut shells. I had never used it, thankfully. Simple things like bread, crackers, pancake mix, cake mix, icing, and pasta, anything that is ready made… Usually contains or may have been in contact with Tree Nuts or peanuts.



Our life began to change…

(*More to follow)

Lobbying to get a private members bill passed

While I have an entire team getting signatures, I have been working away on lobbying. My mission is to get this private members bill passed. As a mother of a child with nut allergies... This is my duty. I personally wont stop until this does pass.

Some background on private members bills in Canada:

A private members bill is a proposed law introduced by a member of parliament. In most countries with a parliamentary system, bills are proposed and passed by the government, not by individual members. In Canada, an MP (Member of Parliament) that produces a legislative motion is allocated the time for its consideration but it is restricted. Private Members' Bills may be considered only during one of the daily Private Members' Hours. This was established in 1986, the idea was that 20 items of private members' business are selected at random to receive priority in debate. Six of these items are chosen by a committee to be votable and must come to a vote in the House. Even under the new rules, very few private member's bills become law. The reason this is such a perfect time for starting this is that every time an election is called, a bill that has not passed dies on the order paper, in other words removed from the agenda.


On this link: http://www.parl.gc.ca/Parlinfo/Compilations/HouseOfCommons/legislation/privatememberspublicbills.aspx you can find all the private members bills that have passed, while it is somewhat discouraging to see that only 235 bills have passed since 1910, you must realize the bills that do pass are for the benefit of children, health of the public, health of the environment, or for items that help the roots and values of Canada.


Such as:  the "Non-smokers' Health Act" (aka Bill C-204), passed in 1986, (given Royal Assent on June 28, 1988) restricting smoking in federally-regulated workplaces and on airplanes, trains and ships. The bill was passed in a free vote of the House of Commons despite being voted against by all members of the federal cabinet, including the Minister of Health.


None of this should worry you, as I received an email response back today from Health Canada stating: The private members bill I mentioned in my email would be given full support when it is brought forward in the house. This is huge!!!


This means that we have a key player. I will continue my lobbying... As I hope you continue emotionally supporting me and my family in this cause.


With love,


Krystle
on Behalf of my Son

Signature Update

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Date	Amount of Signatures
December 13, 2011	22
December 14, 2011	38
December 30, 2011	73
Janurary 2, 2012	96
January 22, 2012	158

Being aware is the First Step to Preventing

How to Read a Label for a Tree Nut-Free Diet

All FDA-regulated manufactured food products that contain a tree nut as an ingredient are required by U.S. law to list the specific tree nut on the product label. Much like in the US, Canada has regulations it must follow as well. The Government of Canada says is "committed" to providing safe food to all Canadians. They work with various agencies that help to identify foods that are known to commonly cause allergic reactions. One agency they use is the CFIA (Canadian Food Inspection Agency) they enforce the labelling laws by working with associations, distributors, retailers, food manufacturers, and importers to ensure complete and appropriate labelling of all foods. It recommends that food companies establish effective allergen controls to minimize the potential for allergic reactions. The Food and Drug Regulations require that pre-packaged food be labelled and that ingredients appear in a list in decreasing order of proportion. However, these regulations do not currently require components (i.e. ingredients of ingredients) of certain foods and products, such as flavouring, seasoning, spices and vinegar, to be listed on food labels. Health Canada is working to amend the Food and Drug Regulations to require that the most common foods and food ingredients, which have the potential to cause life-threatening or severe allergic reactions, be labelled when intentionally added to food. These changes would also require that the most common of these foods and food ingredients be always identified by their common names, which consumers can easily recognize on food labels.” (http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hl-vs/iyh-vsv/food-aliment/allerg-eng.php)". Esentially, it comes down to it being your duty, check the labells, be aware and know what oyu are looking for. The following is for tree nuts only .

Avoid foods that contain nuts or any of these ingredients:

 almond

 artificial nuts

 beechnut

 Brazil nut

 butternut

cashew

 chestnut

chinquapin

coconut

filbert/hazelnut

 gianduja

(a chocolate-nut mixture)

 ginkgo nut

 hickory nut

litchi/lichee/lychee nut

macadamia nut

marzipan/almond paste

Nangai nut

 natural nut extract

(e.g., almond, walnut)

 nut butters

(e.g., cashew butter)

nut meal

 nut meat

nut paste

(e.g., almond paste)

nut pieces

 pecan

 pesto

 pili nut

 pine nut

(also referred to as Indian, pignoli, pigñolia, pignon, piñon, and pinyon nut)

pistachio

praline

shea nut

 walnut

Tree nuts are sometimes found in the following:

black walnut hull extract

(flavoring)

 natural nut extract

 nut distillates/alcoholic extracts

 nut oils

(e.g., walnut oil, almond oil)

walnut hull extract

(flavoring)

 Keep the following in mind:

 •

Mortadella may contain pistachios.

 •

There is no evidence that coconut oil and shea nut oil/butter are allergenic.

 •

Many experts advise patients allergic to tree nuts to avoid peanuts as well.

 •

Talk to your doctor if you find other nuts not listed here.

Provided By:

© 2011, the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network

Current Petition For the House of Commons

If you are interested in circulating this petition in Canada, Please please please email me at allergenmother@hotmail.com I would like to provide you a copy of it as well as the mandatory information to ensure this petition remains valid, and the signatures are accepted.

PETITION TO THE Government of Canada

We, the undersigned, residents of Canada draw the attention of the Government of Canada to the following:

THAT it is estimated that as many as 1.2 million Canadians may be affected by food allergies and these numbers are increasing, especially among children. The food products most commonly associated with severe allergic reactions in Canada are eggs, milk, peanuts, seafood, sesame, soy, sulphites, tree nuts and wheat. These are otherwise known as the priority allergens. Currently in place are labelling laws for foods that have been made or in contact with any of the priority allergens. Nothing is in place in stores selling food and other commodities that prevents cross contamination with nuts and tree nuts.

THEREFORE, your petitioners call upon the Government of Canada,

To bring forward legislation that would require tree nuts (including but not limited to: walnuts, pistachios, almonds, brazil nut, cashew nut, pecan, hazelnut) and peanuts, to be sold pre-packaged, with mandatory labelling, or in a closed bin to help prevent serious life-threatening anaphylaxis.

Signatures (Sign your own name.) Do not print.	Home Address	City, Province, Postal Code