Allergy-Safe Lunchbox Ideas

Forget allergy season sniffles; food allergies are increasingly prevalent among kids, and if you are the parent of one, you know the often dangerous condition is a year-round concern. The number of affected children younger than 18 has increased to 8 percent from 4 percent in 2009, and the most common adverse immune reactions are to milk, fish, eggs, wheat, and soy, with the harmless-seeming peanut topping the list.

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While allergies are an escalating threat to many children, excuse the pun but, there's no reason to go nuts about it. Just because you can't get rid of a food allergy doesn't mean you can't work around one. With back-to-school lunch planning in full swing, many parents are faced with the brain-racking battle of keeping their kids' food creative, flavorful, interesting — and allergy-safe. But don't panic, because we've come up with some fun, alternative options to lunchbox staples, all of which curb specific allergy threats (popular and obscure alike) and keep all of the flavor and nutrition.