Its like Russian roulette – mum shares how her son copes with having 28 severe allergies – Birmingham Live

Callum Newman was born a happy, healthy baby but within weeks he started to develop eczema.

Doctors initially put it down to being baby eczema but in no time his body was weeping, sore and bleeding. His face became so swollen his eyes just turned to slits.

After months of going to and from the hospital in a series of terrifying emergencies, Callum was diagnosed as suffering from 28 severe allergies, including nuts, wheat, gluten, diary, eggs, strawberries, apples, pears, plums, peaches, grapes and tomatoes.

READ MORE: How former Aldi worker came up with cream to help with eczema

Determined that Callums life should be joyful and not full of restrictions, his mum Nathalie kept an online diary where she began sharing safe recipes and tips.

We talk to Nathalie on the Brummie Mummies podcast about their 'free-from' journey and what you can do if your child, or a child you are entertaining, has allergies. Listen here

Its like living with a ticking time bomb, almost like Russian roulette on a daily basis," said Nathalie, whose older daughter Chloe doesn't have any allergies.

You send him off to school and you hope hes going to be OK. You teach him all the things that he needs to try to keep himself safe but theres no guarantee hell come back through the front door in the afternoon.

And you just have to learn to live with that and understand that if you dont hear anything, its not a bad thing, its all OK until you get a phone call telling you otherwise. Otherwise you just cant get on with life at all.

Allergies are life-changing but they shouldnt be life-defining. If anything happened to him, God forbid, I dont want to be there saying I wish Id let him do this or try that, I want to be able to say we gave him every opportunity to do what he wanted to do and let him fly in the process."

Callums worst reaction happened just after his first birthday. It resulted in a life-threatening Staph infection, caused by bacteria on his skin spreading deeper into his body.

He was non-responsive for the first 48 hours, said Nathalie. He had numerous drips coming out of him, trying to make him better.

"We didnt think he was going to come home from that one, he was very, very ill but unbelievably he managed to fight it and lived to tell the tale.

At 16 months old, Callum finally had allergy testing done, which was when his parents discovered the alarming number of foods he was allergic to.

My husbands response was the best one, he said what on earth are we going to feed him? Just water and air?" she said.

I was one of those classic allergy parents youd see in the supermarket, reading labels and swearing, putting items back and becoming very defeated, not knowing where on earth I was going to turn to because there was nothing safe for him at the time.

Weaning was tricky, especially as Callum became understandably anxious about eating.

He had food aversion when he was young because he didnt trust it said Nathalie, who used to work in the NHS.

"It meant he wasnt putting weight on when he should have been, The only way to get round it was for him to start cooking with me. We started with a carrot or an apple that he could peel with a baby peeler.

Over time he understood that if he was helping to make meals like soup, there was nothing hidden in there. Then hed start to taste it.

"Now he works with me, making recipes he can show to other children. The biggest part with allergies is that element of trust that comes with it."

Nathalie, from Oxfordshire, shares her free-from recipes and tips on her website, the Intolerant Gourmand and writes booklets for parents of newly-diagnosed children.

She is appearing at the Allergy & Free-From Show at Birmingham NEC on November 6 and 7, where she will be demonstrating and talking to families. You can get a free ticket here

Whilst all of her messages are upbeat and positive, she says it's also about helping people understand the severity of certain allergies too: "Ive had it before when people have said surely a little bit wont hurt him will it?

"And I say well a little bit of arsenic in your coffee wont hurt you will it?

"They say 'but that's poison' and I say it's the same thing for someone with allergies."

Starting school is a daunting prospect for any young child and parent, but more so when any minor accident could result in a major incident for Callum.

But Nathalie came up with a brilliant way to help the transition into school go smoothly for everyone. She wrote a letter to the children and parents to try to help them understand and allay any fears about Callum's allergies.

It read: "Hi Im Callum, Ive got these allergies, sometimes I get poorly from them. I would love it if you could just keep a look out for me. If you start to see me look a little bit poorly, can you let the teachers know?

"I really want to play with you, I cant wait to meet you all. I just need to make sure I dont touch your food, and you dont mine so that it keeps me safe and hopefully were going to have a wonderful time at school. Cant wait to see you!

She explained: "Its scary letting your child go to school when youve been their protector all those years so its good to share those tips and advice.

"It made such a difference because it took that element of fear away. They didnt have that, oh no, we cant talk to them. And now, his classmates are wonderful with him.

Callum is now a thriving ten-year-old, who loves cooking and helping his mum at food and allergy events.

"He is the cheekiest chappy youll ever find, a ray of sunshine and it's a blessing to be around him all the time," she smiled. "He's car-mad, loves cooking with me and is an awesome little brother to his big sister, who thinks the world of him.

"You wouldnt think hes got allergies because he faces life with such gusto.

"There needs to be a lot more understanding from a consumer and healthcare perspective as so many more people are affected now by allergies.

"At The Allergy Show, you get to see hundreds of brands that are really passionate about what they do. You get to see new products, demos and live Q&As with people living with allergies who are all there to give something to you that you potentially havent seen before.

"Its a good day out, it's free and is definitely something people should do."

Do you have an amazing story to tell? Would you like to get involved with our podcast? We'd love to hear from you. Get in touch via our Brummie Mummies Facebook page or email zoe.chamberlain@reachplc.com

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Its like Russian roulette - mum shares how her son copes with having 28 severe allergies - Birmingham Live