Food Allergy Advocacy

As someone who has suffered from severe food allergies for most my life I am encouraged and inspired to see advocacy for food allergies is taking hold.  The most important areas to address are schools and their policies, the travel and restaurant industries recognition of food allergies and research for a cure.  There are some advocacy platforms that are making inroads and raising awareness.  

Many schools currently "accommodate" food allergies.  My grammar school experience was to sit with all the allergic kids at a separate table.  The kids who were allergic to milk brought nuts to get the protein they needed.  The kids who couldn't eat nuts drank milk.  We all felt ostracized and conspicuous.  In addition, the smell of the nuts made me feel ill.  The college I attended offered one of the most accommodating food allergy options available.  But it still felt weird going over to a special section to get my food and having to remember to order my meals in advance.   All of the accommodations helped to prevent disastrous consequences. Yet no-one has any requirement to make sure allergens are not in the school environment.  The following video highlights what happens when food allergies are not taken seriously.  It is titled Food Allergy Bullying.  It is a strong story but an example of what a lack of knowledge can do.

Airlines and restaurants are the least accommodating.  Nut allergies are life threatening.  If you are on a plane and go into anaphylactic shock there is no recourse unless you have your own Epi-pen with you.  It seems to me that if airlines can accommodate dogs, cats, oxygen, babies and the handicapped they would be more willing to work with such a life threatening allergy.  Restaurants are also not as serious about food allergies as they should be.  I once went to a Japanese steak house where they used peanut oil to fry the hibachi. The smoke from the peanut oil almost killed me.  There was no sign or indication they used peanut oil to fry the food.  Only upon entering the restaurant and smelling the smoke did I realize I was in a life threatening situation.  I find it interesting the government supports the listing of calories which are not life threatening in the short term but not potentially allergic ingredients. Today the sole responsibility for identifying what is in a product at a restaurant is the person with the allergy.

Finally, there does not seem to be a great deal of interest in finding a cure for food allergies.  Medicines to treat asthma and pollen allergies are billion dollar businesses. Xolair, a new treatment for peanut allergies seems to minimize the effects of peanuts on allergic people.  At a cost of $10,000 there must be a way for companies to make money.  The Food Allergy Research and Education Network provides funds for research and awareness. Advocacy costs money just as research does.  Food allergies are an important topic for the general public to understand.  The following video highlights some of the struggles of people who are allergic to food.

Stronger advocacy could result in stronger laws to help people with allergies.  An amendment to the Americans With Disabilities Act would greatly enhance food allergy sufferers lives.   Changes requiring schools to educate the rest of the school population about the dangers of food allergies, a requirement for restaurants to list key allergic ingredients similar to those found on food boxes and a requirement for airlines to not serve nuts if notified an allergic person is on board would not hurt business but would definitely help all allergy sufferers.