Label reading/cross contamination...

When we first started on the elimination of the girl's allergens I was completely clueless. No wheat...oh okay I will take the bun off the burger. No milk....okay I won't eat cheese or drink milk. Note to the world there is wheat in licorice!!! There is dairy in just about all chocolate candy!!! I was eating butter thinking I was dairy free. Okay I was really naive. But WOW!!! How expansive elimination is!!! I have come to realize that the time I don't read the label is the time there are allergens in the product. I am so thankful to have allergen warnings, but my gosh EVERYTHING is a derivative or corn!!! Did you know some plastics are corn based to be more "green"? Almost all supplements/drugs have corn in them! Needless to say my understanding has grown by leaps and bounds. With allergies at the high rates that they are in the world today I wish this was common knowledge. I feel so bad when a trusted friend or family member offers food and I have to read the label or ask what is in it. I am not meaning to be rude, but it is essential for health of the girls. Ingredients are so gray! There are moments, although rare these days, that I slip when it comes to label readings and their allergies have become my job. So world know these things: you can't just pick the allergen off, Its not a trust issue if I double check a label or ask twice what ingredients are, if you own a dog and sit on J's stuff and I wash it don't take it personally, if I walk in your house and don't want your dog to touch me or sit on your couch it is not you, if I ask if you have a pet and then decline your invite know that its because I will be up for 2 nights watching my LO try to scratch herself out of her skin! I still love you world and I hope you can understand my need to carefully try to control these situations because I can't control the misery she feels when she is smack dab in the middle of a flare. Though she did go into the neighbor's house the other day who has a dog and didn't get itchy :) Anyway, label reading is intense, allergen avoiding is daunting. I am glad I learned quickly on this topic. It has been a major step in J's improvement. Hopefully it continues to work and her reactions become less severe over time!