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Meet Your Neighbor: Kristy & Jack Littauer
By Callie Thomas
It has been said that you are what you eat, and particularly for those afflicted with extreme food allergies, what you eat can be a life or death proposition. According to the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, more than 12 million Americans have food allergies, and experts say the numbers are rising. The incident is highest among young children—about three million children in the U.S. have food allergies. Even a mere trace of a food allergen can cause a reaction, and most are due to something they thought was safe.
Resident Kristy Littauer and her four year old son Jack are all too familiar with food allergies. It is something Kristy, her husband Fred and their daughter Lianna have become knowledgeable about after discovering Jack’s food allergies. “Jack was just an infant when we found out he has severe food allergies,” says Kristy. “After going through the normal ‘green’ baby food, I decided to add some variety and give him creamed spinach. He took a few bites and started wheezing and his neck and chest broke into hives. I called 911 and he was rushed to the emergency room and treated for food induced anaphylaxis.”
That was the first of three other near-fatal episodes that young Jack has endured. Although the family has become hyper-vigilant about the foods that are given to him to eat, dining in a restaurant proved another terrifying experience. “When we were out to dinner with friends, I brought food from home for Jack,” Littauer said. “But the other kids were getting ice cream for dessert and he wanted a treat too. I saw that there was sorbet on the menu so I asked the server if she could check to see if the sorbet had dairy in it. I made it very clear that my son is deathly allergic to dairy.” Needless to say, while the server had checked with the kitchen to ensure that it did not, the child only had a few bites of it before he stopped breathing and was rushed to the hospital, landing in ICU. “We found out after the ordeal that the restaurant was out of sorbet so she served him sherbet which is made with milk.”
Kristy has devoted herself to helping her child, as well as others with food allergies by joining the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN). A nonprofit organization, FAAN’s mission is to raise public awareness, provide advocacy and education, and to advance research for those suffering from food allergies. “FAAN gave me resources and knowledge to feel empowered over Jack’s condition,” Kristy said. She is also an active member of Food Allergy Parent Education, a local parent support group. “Along with other volunteers, we organized the first annual fundraising walk. More than 600 walkers attended, and the event raised over $40,000. This year’s event will be held on September 25 at the District.” She is also grateful to the National Jewish Medical Center in Denver where they were able to get additional information about Jack’s allergies. The family helped the center create a video on food allergies which was used in a recent fundraising event with proceeds going to research.
Kristy Littauer is determined to continue giving her time, knowledge and understanding to help others improve their lives. “If our experiences and knowledge can save one life, make one family’s life easier or raise money to find a cure for this condition, I will work tirelessly to do it.” For more information on FAAN, visit www.foodallergy.org. To join in on the September walk, visit www.foodallergywalk.org/lasvegas_NV10.
