The Itch: Allergies, Asthma, Eczema & Immunology

Food allergy anxiety is taking a front seat in the FA community, how do you recognize if it is impacting you and your family?   Helping Dr G and Kortney discuss anxiety and mental health concerning food allergies is Lisa B. Rosenberg, M.Ed., MSW, LSW, CSSW. Lisa is a licensed child and family therapist, founder of Safe & Included, LLC , and co-founder of the  Food Allergy Behavioral Health Associa...

What do you do when your son dies from a food allergy? Dr G and Kortney talk to Dina and Thomas Silvera who had to face that very question. After their son passed away from ingesting dairy, they made it their mission never to let another family go through what they did.  The Elijah-Alavi Foundation is an initiative designed to raise awareness on the severity of food allergies and anaphylaxis as we...

Dr G and Kortney sit down live from Portland Maine to interview Dr Ruchi Gupta!   You may know her from the Netflix series Rotten, where she appears in the Peanut Problem episode. Or you may know her name from the article that came out in early 2019, Prevalence and Severity of Food Allergies Among US Adults, which stated that 1 in 10 adults have food allergies.    Dr Ruchi Gupta, has more than 15...

How does a mom turn a food allergy diagnosis around to help empower herself and her children?   A new food allergy diagnosis can be overwhelming as a parent, but there is a lot of good that can come out of it. Many food allergy moms have turned a food allergy diagnosis into a new cooking passion, helping them make the transition from diagnosis to life much more manageable and empowering.   We talk...

Do you know why mental health history is essential when deciding your controller medication?   Dr G shares her top tips on using inhalers and when it is appropriate to use a nebulizer. She also explains the side effects of certain controller medications and why doctors need to know more about you as a patient (even your mental health) when prescribing a controller medication. The decision of going...

Did you know asthma medication encompasses more than just inhalers?   Asthma medications are a massive topic to cover! We will be covering them all in three episodes. The first part we discuss the types of inhaled medications, both for quick relief and controllers. Dr G breaks down how the medicines work in the body and why it is essential to know the function of each type of inhaler.   We also co...

What do you do when a family member passes away from an anaphylactic reaction?   Kortney interviews Joey Salmingo, the founder of FATE. Joey founded FATE after his sister Joanna passed away from eating a mochi ball made with cashew milk. Joey is making it his mission to advocate and educate on behalf of people with food allergies as he never wants another family to experience experience what he an...

What are the different levels of severity and types of asthma?   Asthma is not a one size fits all diagnosis. The advances in medicine have given doctors the ability to pinpoint a patient's asthma severity level and the type of asthma they have. Knowing the severity level of a patient's asthma and what type or types they have is critical in finding the best treatment possible.   In part two of the...

How do you decide what online information about allergies and asthma to trust?   There is only so much a doctor can cover in an appointment, which means the vast majority of patients do lots of research on their own. Not only do patients want to know about the medical side of their new diagnosis, but they also want to know how it will impact their lives. With social media and forums, it is easy to...

The power of learning about asthma through comics! Kaboom! Pow! Inhale!   Dr Alex Thomas doesn't think educating patients about their conditions needs to be boring, instead, he thinks it should be an adventure! Dr Thomas talks to Dr G and Kortney about how he uses comics to help his patients understand their asthma and what tools doctors can learn to become better communicators.   Dr Thomas is a p...

How is asthma diagnosed?   Similar to many of the atopic diseases, asthma is not black and white. When it comes to diagnosing asthma, there are many factors including history, allergies, biology, and tests that are performed by your doctor (allergist, pulmonologist or primary care doctor).   Asthma is a massive topic, and we can't cover in it one episode, let alone take a deep dive. We will be bre...

Managing life with 2 multiple allergy kids and EOE   Dr G and Kortney talk to Megan Egbert Lavin the blogger behind Allergy Awesomeness and author of An Allergy Mom's Lifesaving Instant Pot Cookbook.   Meg opens up about her journey as someone who knew nothing about allergies to having two sons with multiple allergies. On top of the food allergies, Meg's oldest son was diagnosed with EOE before th...

TUNE INTO Ep. 97 FOR UPDATED CONTENT   Figuring out the art of allergy testing.   Allergy testing can feel overwhelming, scary, and not always black and white. Like most things that pertain to allergies, both food and environment, the answer is not always a straight path. So what do you need to know about allergy testing?   Dr G explains the types of allergy testing you can expect to undergo at th...

An allergy mom takes action and writes a book about it!   Kortney and Dr G interview Emma Amoscato the blogger behind The Free From Farmhouse and author of the book Living with 'Allergies: Practical Tips for All the Family'.   Emma shares her journey into becoming an allergy mom of two and her son's experiences with asthma. Emma also talks about how her son copes with severe asthma attacks and hav...

What is it like growing up with food allergies, asthma and eczema? Time to get to know our co-host Kortney, aka allergy girl, a little better. Kortney opens up about her journey with allergies, asthma and eczema, and shares some tips on how to manage them, so they don't hold you back from living your fullest life. What we cover in this episode: Kortney's story and why she decided to start a blog a...

Why have allergies increased so drastically in the last two decades? This episode takes a more in-depth look at what causes an allergic reaction, breaking down the parts involved in a reaction, and what symptoms to look out for in an allergic reaction. Dr Gupta also explains some theories into why someone may develop allergies and why they are on the rise. What we cover in this episode: The sympto...

THIS EPISODE HAS BEEN UPDATED! Please tune into episode 95 for the most recent information about the science behind an allergic reaction and more! **************************** Why did an allergy girl and an allergist immunologist decide to team up and start a podcast? Listen on to find out why they want to spread awareness about allergies, asthma and immunology. Plus learn what an allergist does a...