Hot on HuffPost Parents:
'Grey's Anatomy': Meredith And Derek Can't Get Alone Time
Cassandra Scrimgeour: When Is the "Right Time" for a Baby?
Play-Doh Alternative for Kids with Wheat Allergies
Filed under: Toys
A quest to brew a wheat-free beer led to a new toy that will bring happiness to thousands of kids whose gluten allergies prevent them from playing with Play-Doh.The Hasbro toy contains an ingredient -- and the company won't say what it is -- that aggravates wheat allergies. But now, thanks to a Purdue University junior, kids can get their hands dirty with Soy Doh.
Prompted by a professor who mentioned that he couldn't drink beer because of his wheat sensitivity, student Sawyer Sparks and two others in the agricultural economics program tried to make a gluten-free beer. They mixed soy flour, gluten-free yeast and water, cooking it up on Sparks' stove.
The result was most decidedly not beer, but instead the trio wound up with a substance that had a texture very similar to Play-Doh. Sparks, who already started his own alternative-fuel company, saw a great opportunity to market the stuff to parents of kids with allergies.
Soy Doh comes in a dozen colors and smells like fruit or foods, such as root beer. The non-toxic, non-allergenic toy markets for about $2 a can, and Sparks has already sold "hundreds" of containers of it to schools. Because of the economy, Sparks has added some rice flour to his formula, but the toy remains safe for any kids who might have a wheat allergy.
Now that's what I call ingenuity.
YourVoice
Ask Us Anything About Parenting
TheTalkies:RelatedVideos
-
How to Cope with an Allergy to Wheat Part 2/2
This video by TV360 shows you how to cope with an allergy to wheat and the treatments available.
-
How to Cope with an Allergy to Wheat Part 1/2
This video by TV360 shows you how to cope with an allergy to wheat through a patient's story.
-
Allergies and Genetics
Learn about what role genetics play in the appearance and severity of allergies.
-
Harvesting Wheat in Washington State
The harvest in the heartland is the final act in an exciting and unpredictable play. It's the culmination of months of planning, hard work, sweat and a few prayers. And for wheat farmers in Washington State it can be the most important weeks of the year.
SitesWeLove
- Site Map
- |
- Staff
- |
- Terms of Service
- |
- Privacy Policy
- |
- Trademarks
- |
- Advertise With Us
- |
- About Our Ads
- |
- AOL Downloads
- |
- Contact Us
- |
© Copyright 2012 AOL Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Aol Family
ReaderComments (Page 1 of 1)
1-05-2009 @ 11:45AM
Sabrina said...Soy is one of the top food allergens in most countries of the world. It is most certainly not non-allergenic, although it does give an alternative to those of us with wheat allergic kids. I'm guessing it's still cheaper to make my own.
Reply
1-05-2009 @ 2:39PM
Margaret said...It does seem a little strange to replace one top ten allergen with another in play dough. There is gluten free play dough commercially available.
But, yeah.. we make our own with rice flour.
Reply
1-05-2009 @ 8:59PM
commonplaceiris said...here's a blogpost about gluten free playdough - there are a couple of links to places online that sell gluten free playdough but the post is mostly about making your own in the crockpot
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2008/04/crockpot-play-dough-recipe.html
Reply