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Accurate estimates of the number of children and adults with food intolerances are not known, because reactions range in severity and intolerance is often underdiagnosed. Jen Chapman said there are about 200 children in the United States with FPIES.

To deal with the increasing need for proper treatment of food allergies and intolerances, the National Institute of Allergy and Disease released the first-ever set of clinical guidelines for diagnosing food allergies Monday.

“FAAN has been advocating for years to have these guidelines,” said Julia Bradsher, CEO of FAAN. “To improve patient care, we needed a definitive set of guidelines for physicians to follow, to know the right way to diagnose and treat a child or adult with food allergies.”

The new guidelines advise that doctors use a combination of methods to diagnose a patient with food allergies. taking a comprehensive medical history is an integral part of the new diagnosis process, combined with more standard methods like blood tests and the “skin prick” test, where allergens are introduced to the patient’s skin in small amounts to check for a reaction.

Another method used to diagnose food allergies is the “food challenge” where a potential allergen is introduced to a patient in a controlled setting, usually a doctor’s office.

The Chapmans are all too familiar with food challenges, as they have slowly begun to introduce new foods into Bronsen’s diet.

“Until he was 14 months old, he only had fruit and breast milk,” Jen Chapman said. “Now the only things he can’t have are milk, soy and legumes ? no beans or peanuts.”

Typically children grow out of their FPIES symptoms in early childhood, but it varies from child to child. Feeding Bronsen became easier as the Chapmans introduced things like rice, wheat and beef into his diet.

The limitations of Bronsen’s diet still take their toll on Jen Chapman, however.

“As he gets older, it’s harder as we get invited to parties and things,” she said. “He can have 90 percent of all pretzels, but if I can’t read the label, he can’t have any, because if it has milk or soy ingredients, he’ll have a reaction.

“Right now, it’s so hard thinking about sending him to preschool or child care,” she said.

Jen Chapman also said Bronsen only weighs 28 pounds, the same as her 17-month-old daughter, Kitsen.

But, because Bronsen will likely grow out of his FPIES symptoms, there is hope things will get easier as he gets older. The Chapmans have arranged a soy food challenge to take place in February, after his third birthday.

“It’s our hope to be able to send him to school without any food restrictions,” Jen Chapman said.

If you have questions about FPIES, please contact Jen Chapman at jenlisabuck@yahoo.com.

Contact Daily Press & Argus reporter Sarah K. Norris at (517) 552-2847 or at sknorris@gannett.com.