How to Deal With Allergies While Camping
Top Tips on how to deal with allergies while camping.
Allergies can be tricky to deal with in any situation. But when we are camping and in the great outdoors, we are faced with different challenges.
Both of my boys have different allergies. My youngest son Finley, was born with a milk, soya and egg allergy. He was quite poorly with it all when he was small, but has thankfully grown out of the soya allergy and can tolerate small amounts of egg and milk without it being life threatening.
Food Allergies
As such, we have learnt to be careful with certain food products. When camping we have to take this into account.
We mostly take burgers and sausages for our main meals, as they are easy to cook on an Instant barbecue like this one. Most meat products are milk free but it is always second nature for us to check the packaging. Rolls and buns are purchased fresh from the bakery section of the supermarkets as these are usually* allergen friendly.
Other main meal ideas are jacket potatoes, which we pre-cook, keep in foil, and then warm up on the fire when we get there. Finley has vitalite spread and a few beans for flavour.
When we take the ‘Big Tent’ out, with all of our proper cooking equipment, we cook pasta in tomato sauce. A nice and easy dish to prepare and a firm favourite of Finleys’.
Finley also loves fajitas. On the camping stove, we can happily cook up some mince or chicken strips with spices. Throw in some boil in the bag rice with vegetables and there’s another happy and healthy meal on the table.
If we are out for a picnic, controlling what Finley eats is quite easy. We pack a box full of goodies that we know are safe for him to eat.
If we eat out, we take Finley’s vitalite spread and soya milk with us, just in case food establishments aren’t prepared. NB: we shouldn’t HAVE to do this, as all food places should abide by the new allergy rules, but you never know!
Environmental Allergies
Oliver, our eldest, has environmental allergies. He suffers with hay fever, and has severe reactions to actual hay. He is allergic to certain perfumes, washing powders and penicillin. Along with his dad, he is also allergic to bees. If any of them get stung, it’s straight to hospital we go!
To avoid any issues we abide by a few rules and regulations.
- Vaseline under the nose and eyelids will stop any pollen from aggravating the senses.
- Always keep a stash of tissues for sneezing fits!
- We try and wash our hands as often as we can. We use bottled water to flush and have hand sanitisers like this one from Jackson and Reece. It’s pocket sized and perfect for the rucksacks.
- Allergy Bracelet or Keyring. Finley has an allergy bracelet that he has carried around since he was quite small. It’s a bit bedraggled now, but you can find them at Allergy Buddies. They are very child friendly and fantastically made. They are noticeable enough for anybody to see, if ever a situation occurred.
- Sunglasses, especially wrap around can help stop any pollen entering and aggravating the eyes. Oliver wears glasses anyway so he has a barrier, but wrap around sunglasses will help further.
Medication
- Piriton is a staple in our house. When the weather warms up, Oliver has a dose before we go anywhere.
- Eye Drops – Opticrom is handy to keep in the medicine cabinet for any flare ups. Oliver is allergic to dogs too. If he strokes a dog, then rubs his eyes, that usually results in a reaction. The eye drops sort him right out. I also use these for the same reason, but with cats, and can vouch for their effectiveness!
- Ranitidine is always carried too. Finley has reflux and is currently having a flare up so we take this medication with us. It works wonders, and we occasionally have a swig if we have heart burn too!
So there we go. One huge list of things to take camping or holidaying in the UK! It’s only another toiletry bag worth of items, but if it means the kids are more comfortable while we are outdoors, then I’m happy to take it along!
*Please check all products at your own discretion.
Related posts include Food to take on Hikes with Kids.
There is so much to think about, it sounds like you are very organised with it all. The only allergies we suffer with is hay fever, so we would certainly have to think about this whilst camping.
It’s taken some time to perfect! I hope you don’t suffer too much.
We are off camping tomorrow – my partner suffers terribly from allergies so we always make sure we pack some piriton.
Don’t forget a spoon! I hope he’s not too bad x
I can only imagine how much planning it must all take! Better to take as many precautions as possible though!
Absolutely. We’ve honed down our tactics a bit, and finally found something that works for us.
I’ve never been camping before but I imagine it could be a little tricky with allergies. I have to avoid gluten and always need to plan ahead before going out.
There is some really good advice here for sure. Not been camping for years, so may give it a try xx
Thank you!
We haven’t yet been camping, but it’s good to see it is manageable when your child has a milk allergy! Like you say checking packaging becomes second nature!
We’ve learnt not to let the allergies hold us back!
I love this article, always gives me little bit of sense what I need to do and be prepared for before camping. Thanks!
Thank you so much. I hope it helps!
Great tips, we have to keep lots of meds to hand when we are camping. We must get through a bottle of piriton a day lol x
Ah, us too! Even in the winter, my middle one flares up with the dust on the Christmas decorations!
Great tips for anyone going camping especially for those with allergies x
Thank you!
We never travel without our Ranitidine, it has been our life savour, the hubby has some allergies.
We always make sure we have a stock of it. Acid reflux isn’t nice at any age!