There are several things which circulate around in my head every time I leave my apartment: did I remember to unplug my flat iron, turn off my stove, lock my door, and did I pack my EpiPen? Out of everything listed above, the last is most important. Sure, if I burned down my apartment that would be a problem, but if my throat closed from eating one of my many allergens, I would be in even bigger, life-threatening trouble. One which would result in me either having to stab myself in the leg and administering epinephrine or being rushed to the hospital for medical treatment. Roughly, 15 million Americans have food allergies averaging out to 1 in every 13 people, and I am in that bracket.
A few weeks ago, posts began to circulate about everyone’s favorite rabbit, Peter Rabbit. The new children’s movie has a scene where furry little rabbits throw blackberries at one of the characters despite knowing he is allergic to them. The character is then shown using an EpiPen to counteract his reaction. Needless to say, parents of children with food allergies are not having it, using the hashtag #boycottpeterrabbit to voice their reactions. As someone who has life-threatening allergies, I can relate to the parent’s fears. Sony Pictures has released an apology, but the pressing issue on hand is that the movie depicts a very real issue that individuals with allergies deal with on a very daily basis. In fact, one in every three children with food allergies has reported being bullied because of their allergies.
There have been cases all over the country where children, teens, and even college students have been bullied for the allergies. For instance, a 12-year-old with a dairy allergy in Stockton Kansas had nacho cheese dip smeared on his face by some older kids. Luckily, he was okay, but taunts often accompany these attacks like “Let’s see if he dies” which adds to the anxiety experienced by these children. There was even a case where a college student pleaded guilty to assault and battery after hazing an unconscious student with peanut butter.
Allergies are not something to take lightly. Although I have suffered from them my entire life, it wasn’t until my freshman year of college that I went into anaphylaxis. I was out to dinner with my family when suddenly my throat began to get very tight and I felt a lump, the size of a gumball forming underneath my tongue. My heart began to race, and I started having a panic attack. I had gone through 18 years of my life without having this reaction. Too scared to use my EpiPen, I relied on Benadryl to relay the reaction. In retrospect, I should have used the epinephrine injector and know for future reference Benadryl is not good enough.
I want to encourage everyone to take the time to learn about food allergies and the severity of them. Every three minutes, someone is sent to the emergency room because of a food allergy reaction, roughly 200,000 people per year. When going out to eat, we are not trying to be annoying when asking the question, we genuinely need to make sure we are not consuming our allergen for the safety of our lives.