Trace Adkins

Country music sensation Trace Adkins understands the effect food allergies can have on kids and their families, especially parents. Trace’s daughter, Brianna, has severe food allergies. “When she was 9 months old, she licked the lid of a peanut butter jar; her face immediately got swollen. We had no experience with food allergies at the time, and it was terrifying. We later learned she is allergic to several foods, including peanuts, milk, and eggs,” says Trace.

Learning about her allergies has “been a struggle and a learning process. We are very careful about our food now. We have peanut butter in the house, but it is on the top shelf of the pantry, and none of us wants to eat it. I don’t like to eat what she can’t eat,” he says. “My wife is the world’s best at managing our daughter’s food allergy. It is her mission in life to enable Brianna to have just as normal a childhood as others. We don’t isolate her but are vigilant and watch over her. It’s all about education.”

With Trace’s and the whole family’s help, Brianna is coping with her food allergies. “She is a mature little girl. It is both amazing and heartbreaking at the same time to see how mindful she’s learned to be about her food allergies. She has had several reactions that required a trip to the hospital, so she knows how careful she has to be. She knows to ask first before eating any food,” says Trace, words that could come only from a proud father.

It was because of his daughter’s experience that Trace was motivated to join the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN). “I know firsthand how important FAAN’s efforts to increase funding for food allergy research are,” says Trace. He and his family turn to FAAN for help managing Brianna’s food allergies, and now Trace is helping FAAN as its national spokesperson.

He was recently on “The Celebrity Apprentice” to raise awareness of food allergies and support FAAN, and in 2008 he is reprising his role as National Honorary Chair of the Walk for Food Allergy: Moving Toward A Cure, which raises awareness and funds for food allergy education and research. “I’m so pleased to be able to lend my name as the National Honorary Chair,” says Trace.

“I don’t think many people are aware that so many children are developing food allergies these days,” Trace notes. When asked what he would like others to know about food allergies, Trace says, “Be aware that food allergies are serious. We are not talking about a simple rash. Let’s work together to figure out what is causing the increase in food allergy and take care of it.”