New “Don’t Feed Me” T-shirts for kids with allergies give parents a creative way to keep dangerous foods at bay when they’re not around.  Created by actress and comedian Kym Whitley, the customizable shirts have check boxes for different types of allergies — from milk and peanuts to gluten and corn.  RELATED: KIDS WITH FOOD ALLERGIES GET BULLIED: STUDY  Whitley launched the line after a scare with her 2-year-old adopted son, Joshua, who’s severely allergic to peanuts, chicken, corn, shellfish and peaches, ABCNews.com reported.  After a nanny accidentally fed her son peanut butter, she created the shirts for him to wear to daycare.  RELATED: FAMILY GETS $63M VERDICT FROM MOTRIN MAKER  “The other parents were like, ‘Oh my God that’s great, we need that,” Whitley said.  The shirts cost $10 on DontFeedMe.org and come in gray, red, blue and orange.  RELATED: ARE YOU ALLERGIC TO YOUR CELL PHONE?  But experts aren’t convinced the shirts will be beneficial.  “So much about food allergy as kids get older is social isolation,” allergist Neeta Ogden told the Daily News. “I can’t imagine kids past the age of 5 wanting to wear that shirt.”  RELATED: DEPRESSION MAY BE LINKED TO AN 'ALLERGY' TO STRESS  Ogden, a fellow of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, points out that parents who have kids with allergies already have a system in place to keep them safe.  “If your child has multiple food allergies, you’ve taken many more steps before that T-shirt to inform caregivers,” said Ogden, who has offices in New Jersey and New York. “Teaching about how to use the EpiPen, preparing exact snacks.  “The big takeaway is you don’t just rely on that shirt. It makes sense as a supplement, maybe.”  About 8% of American children suffer from allergies — a percentage that rises every year.  The most common allergies among children are milk and peanuts, Ogden said.  Whitley's reality show "Raising Whitley," which chronicles her experience raising Joshua, debuts on OWN on April 20.
Actress and comedian Kym Whitley was inspired by her son Joshua, who has several serious food allergies. She’s selling the ‘Don’t Feed Me’ T-shirts online for $10. But will the shirts keep kids safe, or making coping with an allergy even tougher?