This Mom is on a Mission to Change the Future of Food Allergies
Catherine Jaxon is proof that sometimes the most innovative ideas come from a mother determined to help her children. Get to know the woman who's rallying against food allergies! Image: Mission MightyMe
Did you know food allergies affect nearly six million children in the U.S. alone? In recognition of Food Allergy Awareness Month, we chatted with Catherine Jaxon, Mission MightyMe Co-founder and Atlanta mom of three, about motherhood, launching a company in her 40s, her experience with her daughter’s nut allergy, and how she’s helping families across the country navigate prevention and peace of mind.
How did Mission MightyMe come to be?
Our oldest daughter developed a severe nut allergy after we followed the now-rescinded guidance to avoid nuts in infancy. Between the birth of our first child and our third, groundbreaking research led by Dr. Gideon Lack (the LEAP Study) found that up to 86% of peanut allergies could be prevented by feeding children peanut foods regularly as soon as they’re ready for solids.
While this gave us hope that we could prevent our youngest from developing a food allergy, we found it difficult because nuts and nut butters are a choking hazard for babies, and the entire baby food aisle was allergen-free.
Sitting in my kitchen one night, I looked at a jar of expensive mixed nut butter and a canister of baby puffs that our kids loved (but I didn’t because they had zero nutritional value). I said to my husband, “Why can’t someone just combine these two products? Then you’d have a safe way for parents to follow the guidelines and a way more nutritious baby puff!”
We assumed a legacy baby brand would recognize the opportunity and fill this huge market gap, but it wasn’t happening, so we decided to tackle the problem ourselves.
We reached out to Dr. Lack for guidance, and we were thrilled when he expressed interest not only in coming on board as a scientific adviser but also as a co-founder. His research can’t be overstated — it ultimately led to a change in guidelines that has already resulted in a 43% reduction in peanut allergies.
Before Mission MightyMe, you were a CNN journalist in New York. What was that career shift like for you?
I’d worked at CNN for years and loved my job. But after having kids, the reality of the total unpredictability of the news business really set in. J.J. traveled a lot for his finance job, too, and it became clear that the logistics were not working. I decided to leave CNN so I could prioritize raising our kids.
J.J. and I have always felt the pull to create a mission-driven company and be a force for good, so when the new research came out showing that many food allergies can be prevented, and we realized there was this huge gap in the market, we felt this was the company we were supposed to start.
We launched with the belief that following the science around food allergy prevention should be simple, delicious, and available to every family, everywhere.
What makes your snacks safe for little eaters?
Safety was our top priority in creating Nutty Puffs. Since nuts and nut butters are a choking hazard for babies in their natural form, we turned peanuts and tree nuts into meltable puffs that are more than 50% nuts, dissolve quickly for babies, and taste delicious for big kids too.
All our products have also been awarded the Clean Label Project Purity Award, which tests for more than 200 different contaminants, including heavy metals, chemicals, pesticides, and plasticizers.
What’s one food allergy myth you want to officially debunk?
How about three? The first is that you should wait to introduce allergens. Thanks to Dr. Lack’s research, we now know that waiting to introduce peanut foods actually increases the risk of developing a peanut allergy by fivefold!
Many people also think you just introduce an allergen once, but keeping peanuts and other allergens in the diet regularly as kids grow is just as important as introducing them early. Think of it like training the immune system, which requires repeated exposure.
Another important misconception is that just a tiny amount of the allergen is enough. Babies in the LEAP Study consumed an average of six grams of peanut protein weekly, which is the equivalent of about 24 peanuts (or one pouch of our peanut butter Nutty Puffs). So it’s not just a little taste here and there. The amount matters.
What would you say to women who feel it’s too late to pursue a new dream?
It’s never too late. Research from the Harvard Business Review found that the average age of a successful startup founder is actually 45, so I think experience is a huge advantage.
I also think moms can absolutely do it all, but not necessarily at the same time. I was consumed with raising babies and toddlers in my 30s, and I don’t think I would’ve had the time or energy to launch a company. In my 40s, I was able to dedicate bandwidth to it.
If you have an idea that simply won’t leave you alone, don’t try to talk yourself out of it. Instead, consider the possibility that it might be the best decision you’ve ever made. Moms often have the best business ideas because they’re in the trenches of parenting. Never underestimate a mom who’s determined to solve a problem for her children!
What do you like to do when you’re not working?
Spending quality time with friends and family is what fills my bucket most. In this season of life, most weekends you’ll find us at our kids’ baseball, volleyball, football, and basketball games.
I just returned from a trip to the Dominican Republic with my former CNN colleagues, who have become lifelong friends, and we laughed for three days straight. We all met while covering 9/11 and are bonded forever.
Who or what is inspiring you right now?
I’ve always admired Sara Blakely and love how she turned a problem she experienced into a solution and worked relentlessly to turn it into a successful business, even when everyone underestimated her.
On the parenting front, as a mom of girls, I really enjoy Kari Kampakis and her thoughtful perspective on raising strong daughters.
What is your best piece of advice?
Be kind. It’s a parenting priority, and it’s woven into our company culture statement as well. I truly believe kindness has a way of opening doors and creating opportunities that otherwise would never happen.
We’ve experienced that time and time again with Mission MightyMe. The way you make people feel matters, and those interactions have a way of circling back years later in unexpected and meaningful ways.
Lightning Round!
Favorite place to vacation? Cashiers, NC, is our go-to.
Your go-to gift to give? Strong is the New Pretty, a coffee table book by Kate Parker. She’s a friend from college and an incredible photographer.
Book(s) on your bedside table? Theo of Golden by Allen Levi, They Ask, You Answer by Marcus Sheridan, and I just started Georgia’s First Elected Governor: John Adam Treutlen and the American Revolution, written by my brother, Wright Mitchell.
Three things you can’t live without? My dog Winston, walks outside, and coffee.
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Katie Leigh Matthews
A Birmingham native, Katie is a lifelong waterfall chaser and is passionate about the outdoors. She also loves connecting with remarkable women in the Birmingham community and bringing their stories to life. Katie has been writing professionally for over six years; you can find more of her work at Moms.com and Islands.com.