Student, 19, dies after eating gluten-free brownie given to her by friend triggering fatal allergic reaction
A TEENAGER has tragically died after suffering a deadly allergic reaction after eating a chocolate brownie given to her by a close friend.
Hannah Glass, a 19-year-old college student from Wisconsin, broke out into hives and started to vomit after taking just two bites of the gluten-free treat before her body completely shut down.
Her heartbroken parents have spoken out on the tragedy and believe the brownie contained roasted peanut flour that the student wasn’t aware of when she took her first bite.
Within minutes her body started to react to the nuts as she started to feel seriously ill.
The brownie had come from a women’s group who had made them on campus at the Maranatha Baptist University.
It had been prepared with substitute flour specially designed for gluten-free bakes.
The freshman quickly phoned up her parents to get their advice as she had faced similar reactions to dodgy food in the past, her dad David said.
She was given Benadryl – an antihistamine and sedative used to help with rashes – which appeared to calm her down.
The teen, feeling slightly better, decided to find a spot to lie down on campus.
Once on her stomach the situation rapidly worsened as Hannah started to struggle to breath and fell into a lot of pain.
Her lung collapsed as she fell into unconsciousness as her body went into anaphylactic shock, her parents said.
She was completely unresponsive and I was incredibly helpless
David Glass
David and Hannah’s mum arrived shortly after and gave her her EpiPen as they called an ambulance.
Emergency responders found Hannah as she was experiencing multiple seizures.
As she was put into the back of an ambulance her heart stopped beating for four minutes.
A devastated David told WISN12: “She was completely unresponsive and I was incredibly helpless.”
Doctors put her straight on a ventilator to get her heart working again as tests revealed she had severe swelling on the brain.
The parents made a heartbreaking Facebook post after Hannah’s death that said: “When Hannah rolled on her side, the Anaphylaxis reaction that we had not seen before hit her incredibly hard.
“This caused her to gasp for breath, leading to the collapsing of a lung, further exacerbating the situation and making the ability of us, the EMTs, and the doctor at Watertown hospital impossible to fix.
“The majority of her brain was unmistakably, seriously, critically, and without the life-sustaining measures in place, terminally damaged.
“There were no conversations about quality of life or anything like that. This was only life and death!”
The events of these past few days create almost a mountain in my mind. They were so emotional, so surreal, and so physically draining
David Glass
After five days on a ventilator Hannah’s parents made the final decision to take her off life support.
Hannah passed away on November 10.
Her organs were donated and have already helped four people as David said despite the family tragedy it was a time to help other families continue to be happy.
He said: “We decided to donate her body to help others have the chance at life she no longer had.
“And to prevent other parents or loved ones from having to endure the torture we had over the previous week.
“The events of these past few days create almost a mountain in my mind.
“They were so emotional, so surreal, and so physically draining, that it seemed like I was unable to look past them to see even the things that happened the week before.”
Hannah’s grandma added: “The hole that Hannah leaves can never be filled.
“Her memories are what we will cherish till we meet her in Heaven.”
The Maranatha Baptist University described the freshman as an “exceptional student”.
A fundraiser to support her family was set up via GiveSendGo.
It has currently received over $28,000.