Over the course of two years, parents Vivek and Salina took their daughter, Mira, to nine pediatric food allergists throughout the Boston area. They were shocked to find that each one had a different answer to the question, “How can we keep our daughter safe?” Mira, now three, was diagnosed with food allergies to wheat, dairy, peanuts, and tree nuts when she was eight months old.
“If you can’t eat wheat, dairy, or any nuts, how can you live a normal life?” Vivek said. “We would take Mira to other kids’ birthday parties and the food would be pizza and cake. She couldn’t eat any of it.” The inability to be a normal kid was one thing, but there was something else, too: the constant fear that Mira could accidentally ingest one of her allergens and end up in the hospital.
One allergist recommended doing nothing, advising that the only way forward was for Mira to avoid the foods that could hurt her. But Vivek and Salina, both doctors by training, continued asking questions and doing their own research. That’s how they came across Latitude Food Allergy Care, a network of clinics founded by food allergy moms that offer personalized plans to diagnose and treat food allergies.
Latitude works with patients to help lessen the threat of food allergies in their daily lives. One way Latitude accomplishes this goal is through oral immunotherapy (OIT), in which patients are given small, gradually increasing doses of their allergens in order to desensitize their immune system. For some patients, the goal of OIT is to become safe from cross-contamination. For others, it’s to build up enough of a tolerance to their allergens that they can eat those foods freely. No matter what a family comes to Latitude for, they’ll experience the clinic’s thoughtful, customized approach and are likely to step into a much different reality by the end of the program, when routine experiences like traveling and eating at restaurants are no longer life-threatening risks.
Richelle, a parent in California, found herself in a similar position to Vivek and Salina when her daughter Lucy, now 5, was diagnosed with anaphylactic food allergies to eggs and peanuts when she was 5 months old. After years of doctor appointments and independent research, Latitude felt different from the start. “Everybody else told us we should avoid for the rest of her life,” Richelle said. “Latitude gave me the confidence to take a different path and treat her allergens with OIT.”
Part of Richelle’s confidence stemmed from knowing that food challenges are the first step in Latitude’s process. It’s common for food allergies to be misdiagnosed and oral food challenges enable Latitude’s team to begin with a precise baseline. Latitude’s board-certified allergists conduct these food challenges, ruling out possible misdiagnoses to any foods that the patient can safely eat. From there, Latitude creates a personalized treatment plan. “It’s scary because you as a parent have to make that decision to put your child through this, but I trusted Latitude,” Richelle said. Now, Lucy is being treated at Latitude for her egg and peanut allergies.
When a parent named Komal first learned about OIT, the process sounded daunting. Her 5-year-old son Vihaan was diagnosed with anaphylactic allergies to cashews, pistachios, walnuts, and pecans when he was a year old. Komal experienced several unthinkable episodes where EpiPens—a medication that contains adrenaline and can help slow an allergic reaction—saved Vihaan’s life. She was understandably nervous about OIT but never felt rushed into the process. “The clinicians at Latitude didn’t push us,” she said. “They answered all of our questions. When we started, it was the warmest environment.” Vihaan recently graduated from OIT for tree nuts.
While safety is the number one priority at Latitude, comfort is a close second. The clinics—located across New York and California—are bright and open, filled with toys and books for kids and Internet and office spaces for adults. Vivek said that comparing Latitude to the other nine clinics he and his family tried feels like the difference between a Four Seasons and a Holiday Inn. Richelle said that going to Latitude never feels like going to a doctor’s appointment. That was intentional. The company was created by parents of food allergy kids who know what it’s like to go through this process.
A food allergy mom named Kim Yates founded Latitude in 2018 after her own daughter, Tessa, went through OIT. As a toddler, Tessa was diagnosed with anaphylactic allergies to milk, wheat, eggs, nuts, and shellfish. Tessa’s allergies impacted her entire family, from her sisters Reese and Alyssa to Kim herself, who followed the same strict diet that Tessa had to abide by in an effort to keep her daughter safe. When Tessa was nine, Kim heard about a doctor at Stanford who was leading OIT research. Although no one had ever been desensitized to more than one allergen at a time, that doctor, Kari Nadeau, was intrigued by Tessa’s case. A year later, when Tessa was ten, she graduated from Dr. Nadeau’s groundbreaking clinical study, becoming the first patient to successfully complete OIT for multiple allergens. Now, Tessa is a junior at NYU who spent part of her gap year in Thailand—a place she never could have imagined traveling if not for the life-changing care she received. In starting Latitude, Kim aims to bring that same care to other food allergy families around the country.
Although Vivek’s daughter Mira has only been a Latitude patient since July, her life has already changed through OIT. At her third birthday party this past October, Mira got to eat pizza and cake with all of the other kids. “A year ago, my wife and I would’ve dreamed about that,” Vivek said. Now, thanks to Latitude, that dream—not only of living a normal life but, more importantly, one without fear—is a reality.