Food allergy a serious subject for students

When James Fittje was in preschool, something happened that he will never forget.

"She had given me a peanut butter cookie and I didn't know what it was," he said. "So I took a bite out of it. I felt queasy and I couldn't breathe and next thing I know - I couldn't see anything."

"We picked him up and he was just laying on the floor - just shallow breathing," his mother Johanna added. "When we took him to the hospital, when I was holding him in my arms, his eyes were rolling back and just, he was just lifeless. And I thought I was going to lose him."

James had a severe reaction to peanuts. But Fremont Health Emergency Room Director Brian Cunningham says he's not alone. About 200,000 people end up in the ER every year because of food allergies.

Now that kids are heading back to school, doctors want parents, teachers and students to be on alert.

Dr. Cunningham said, "I saw a recent data point that up to 15 percent of kids with food allergies will have some sort of reaction at school. So it's something that needs to be taken seriously."

In this Health Check, WOWT's Serese Cole continues the conversation with Johanna Fittje and Dr. Cunningham about their food allergy concerns, what steps parents should take as their children head back to school and signs that someone we know may be having an allergic reaction to food.

August 2016 WOWT Health Check