extra payments for dietary needs

munchings-n-crunchings

Preparing food from scratch is by far the best option, and once you really get your head around it, you can really reduce your shopping bill. There is lots of advice on the Old Style Money Saving board

Once you are more clear about the food stuffs you need to avoid, you can contact the major food manufacturers and request a 'free from' list. Most large supermarkets also now do this for their own line products.

Depending on the food allergy or intolerance, there may be prescription foods, mainly for gluten free items.
If the allergy is to milk, you can get soya milk on prescription, especially when it's for medical need, not lifestyle choice.

My daughter is whole protein intolerant, so cannot eat anything derived from cows milk, anything derived from soya, goats milk or sheeps milk, and although the hospital were convinced she would grow out of it by the time she started school, she is now a teenager and still intolerant.

DLA for something like this will be very hard to get, as you need to show that the child has significantly higher care needs than a 2 year old without the condition.
By changing the way food is bought and prepared, then a lot of these issues can be resolved to some extent.

If you've not already been told, you should really be avoiding nuts, as when you have 1 allergy or intolerance, you have a higher chance of suddenly developing another.

Regards
Munchie

themonkeybutler

Free prescriptions? Absolutely yes. Even if its an over the counter product, doctors can still prescribe them and she would get it free if on IS.

Extra money for food? Unless its a diet of caviar and champagne that make it impossible to afford, then Im afraid not.

moomoomama27

She will get all creams and oil on prescription, which are free of charge as it's for a child. Certain foods also are available on prescription like flours etc.. As for everything else well that's what the government support goes towards (IS). I doubt she'd get any help towards anything else.

welshmoneylover

Perhaps the OP's question was about carer's allowance *reading between the lines*. It's surprising how many parents come on this board requesting info on how to claim for more money to care for their own child.

KeaneFan10

welshmoneylover wrote: »

Perhaps the OP's question was about carer's allowance *reading between the lines*. It's surprising how many parents come on this board requesting info on how to claim for more money to care for their own child.

I get carers allowance for caring for my son, i did not ask to have a disabled child ..sorry when people say this type of thing it makes me very upset.

Now to the OP your daughter needs to talk to a hospital dietitian about her son, why does she need extra money if she gets the right advice she will know what to cook and what not too cook

GlasweJen

Only certain items are available on prescription and even then they are only for certain conditions! Someone who has coeliac disease is entitled to specialist food on prescription but someone who just has a food intolerance to gluten isn't.

We'd really need more information on what food the OPs daughter is buying special and what condition the child has.

As for eczema - certainly anything given by the doctor will be free on prescription but anything mum tries privately wont be, we order in products for a woman who spends upwards of 30 quid a month on skin stuff for her child which isn't available on NHS but identical products are - it's madness really as she would get something with exactly the same ingrediants from the doctor for free but she read online that this stuff is better so that's what she buys.

Kimitatsu

oxooxo wrote: »

My daughter has just spent yet another night in hospital with my 2 year old grandson due to an allergic reactio. He is allergic to quite a few food things that makes it difficult to know what to feed him
my daughter needs to cook meals from scratch now so that she knows exactly what is in them. He already has to have several special foods etc that are more expensive. He attends an allery clinic regularly and has had several hospital visits. He also has to have special bath oil and skin creams for his eczema. My daughter will not ask for help financially...but i understand that she may be entitled to extra help as she is not working and on income support. Does anyone know where i can get more info about this to see if she is eligible???thanks

You need to get a definition from the consultant as to whether he is allergic or intolerant to certain foods. My DS2 is intolerant to lactose/gluten/soya and most fruit but it is not an allergic reaction and so not life threatening.

If he has a diagnosis of coeliacs disease then you can get some gluten free products on prescription, and if he has eczema then all of his products should be on prescription already.

Cooking from scratch is really the ONLY way to ensure that he avoids the intolerances that he has, and has been said as he grows you will find that some diminish and some flare up, it is a bit of a juggling act. If your daughter is on IS, she should be able to claim all travel costs to and from the hospital, all prescriptions should be free, and she should be in receipt of healthy start vouchers for fruit, veg and milk. DLA is very difficult to get for food related allergies as in the main they do not have excessive care needs beyond that of a normal child of that age, but you could try contacting your local CAB and talking to a welfare benefits adviser who will be able to give you an honest opinion of your chances.

What particularly does he have to have in the way of special foods? There is a thread on the OS boards which deals with food intolerances, so perhaps you could post on there too? There are several of us with children with food issues, so you may find ways to help over there.

tipsyt12

sorry if I sound daft, what is the OS board
Thank you

munchings-n-crunchings

tipsyt12 wrote: »

sorry if I sound daft, what is the OS board
Thank you

It's the Old Style Money Saving board.
Check down the list of boards to find it.

Munchie

welshmoneylover

Old Style boards