About ten years ago, I failed my very first food challenge for oats. A food challenge is where you take a food that you’re allergic to and eat little bits of it over a few hours, with the portions getting bigger each time. The last time I had oats, one of my several food allergens, I failed on the final dose. This time, I had a different experience.
I walked back into the room where I had failed my egg food challenge only a few months before, feeling nervous. I really wanted to pass this time; it was my only allergen outside of the top nine, and I loved the idea of all my allergens having to be labeled. My mom had baked some granola bars for me to eat, and I handed them to the allergist.
All of the pieces were portioned out, and I ate my first bite of oats in years. To be honest, I didn’t like the taste of oats, but I was happy that I had no symptoms. Over the next few hours, I ate more and more oats, around the size of two granola bars, and did not have an allergic reaction.
As my allergist gave me the final report on how I passed, I felt so excited. I had walked in feeling nervous, but hopeful, and it turns out my feeling was right. I saw a new door open up for me in terms of what I could eat: granola bars, oatmeal, etc.
Part of passing a food challenge is continuing to eat the food forever to ensure the allergy doesn’t come back. In the months that came after my food challenge, I figured out how to incorporate oats in my everyday life, like eating a granola bar between classes or trying oat bread rolls. Passing my challenge also let me try new gluten-free products since my oat and wheat allergies limited what I could have.
Even though the experience felt scary, I’m glad that I took the leap and did another food challenge. It’s allowed me to try new foods and stress a little less whenever I eat out. Food allergies can feel overwhelming, but this was a push outside of my food comfort zone that left me feeling less stressed when it comes to food allergies.