Even though food allergies are quite common in our community, there are some people who are unaware of the everyday struggles people with food allergies have to go through. Food allergies are a serious issue and is still not getting the rightful attention it deserves. Here are 5 things you might not have known about people with food allergies.
1. Food Establishments
For the average person, walking into a fast food place is probably one of the last things you would be afraid of, or spending the night at a friends house. But for some, it can be a nightmare. I personally have severe food allergies, and from what i have witnessed over the years, the only people who seem to truly understand the severity of food allergies is someone who is close to me, either a sibling, parent, friend, etc. Which is sad considering I have had allergy attacks in the past from people who have claimed "they understand food allergies" and were not handling my food with caution. Having said that, it's scary and always is a constant struggle at restaurants or going to an overnight camp. Most people with allergies prefer to bring their own food because of this. If I could tell food establishments one thing, it would be to have a required training on the knowledge of food allergies and how to address them properly.
2. Panic
Every person with allergies has different ways of handling an allergy attack. Everyone is different, but a good amount of people go into what I would call a state of emergency. Anyone who has food allergies and eats something that they are allergic to, normally knows the drill, most of the time, it's taking bedridden and waiting for it to kick in. But when we feel an allergy attack coming on, it's easy to say that you can never get used to that horrible feeling inside. Imagine being locked in a dark box with water all around you and you just ate poison ivy, to me, that's how a normal allergy attack feels, and it's a priority to try not to freak out. All that going on while people around you are flipping out. It can become very overwhelming. What people need to realize is how stressful it is. But sometimes people don't fully understand how serious it can truly be. So in those situations, its best to stay calm for the person with the reaction. Because if you freak out, we will freak out. And that never goes well.
3. Lactose Intolerance
One of the things I'm allergic to is dairy. And let me tell you, I have probably been told this so many times, I'm not sure what to say anymore. "Oh, so like, your lactose intolerant?" NO. For those people out there who have a dairy allergy, I feel pity for you, because you have at least heard this line once in your life. For those of you who do not understand, I will gladly explain. Being lactose intolerant is just that. You can only tolerate so many dairy products until you feel sick or have diarrhea or something under that category. But the big difference is that people who are lactose intolerant handle a certain amount of dairy, people who are allergic cannot have any traces of dairy. None. Or else we go into an allergy attack or for some, go into shock. There is a HUGE difference and yet so many people get confused.
4. Trusting Food
This sounds similar to #1 but let me explain. Ever bit into one of your favorite snacks and thought "what would I do without you?" yeah that's kinda creepy, but the food is our comfort zone sometimes. I felt the same way for one of my favorite snacks, that is until I bit into it and had an allergic reaction. What's scary about this is that the labeling was completely safe, nothing was mentioned about any cross contamination, and yet just a month after that occurrence, they were calling back all products under that brand because of allergen issues and what not. But ironically, this is normal. This stuff happens all the time, which is another reason why it is so darn difficult to find food anymore that's safe. But it seems that not too many people know this.
I hope that after explaining and putting you into the shoes of a person with food allergies, that you will at least have awareness on this serious topic after reading this. But even though lots of people have food allergies or allergies in general, that doesn't stop us from living our daily lives.
