Don’t fake a food allergy

In reading a blog post written by Mikaela on dietforums.com called Avoid Unhealthy Sushi (www.dietforums.com/food-nutrition/2497-avoiding-unhealthy-sushi.html), I was bothered by comments in her last paragraph that I think hurt the cause of those of us dealing with food allergies and intolerances.

“Remember you’re enjoying a cuisine [sushi] which is considered art from a very formal culture.  You will find rigid chefs, who refuse to make healthy substitutions, as they see it as an insult to the culture or their body of work.  Smile and ask politely.  Be respectful and praise the food.  As a last resort, develop a sudden ‘food allergy’ to whatever you’re trying to avoid.”

While I assume there were no ill intentions, as a member of the food allergy community, I found this last sentence quite troublesome.  This is exactly the kind of statement (and behavior, if followed) that adds fuel to the fire of those who believe most diners who claim to have food allergies or intolerances just don’t like certain foods.  Just read the viewer comments associated with recent food allergy articles from major newspapers like the Boston Globe, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, and others to see what I mean.

• “Having worked in restaurants, I found a lot of people used their “allergies” as a way to get special orders. If you want something that is not on the menu, stay at home and cook it yourself.”
• “But then we all know someone with a now-I-have-it-now-I-don’t allergy or dietary restriction – people who “are gluten intolerant” except when faced with fresh-baked bread, or who are vegetarians aside from the pancetta bruschetta. You just can’t plan to please those people because I think they secretly like to be displeased.”
• “I remember reading somewhere that of 100 people who claimed food allergies, only 3 show up on clinical tests. The other 97% are people for whom food restriction is a hobby and a lifestyle choice — and, most of all, a control issue, and one they try to impose on others.”
• “The latest is this so-call gluten problem. Since when have so many people had a problem with gluten?”
• “’Most people are not allergic; they just don’t like the stuff,’ he said.  ‘Every so often, someone will come in with a very serious allergy, but most of the time it’s just customers who say they’re allergic to garlic yet chose to eat at an Italian restaurant,’ he said.”

The list goes on and on.

After reading Mikaela’s article, I assume that she does not have any food allergies.  Whether she knows others who do or not, I cannot know.  What I do know is that by faking food allergies, she and others are performing an unfortunate disservice to those of us who deal with them every day, those of us who need to know we’re being taken seriously.

Maybe Mikaela would be surprised by this reaction.  Maybe others who fake food allergies would as well.  What can we do?  My belief is that we simply have to take it upon ourselves to educate others who do not understand the seriousness of food allergies and even “innocent” statements such as Mikaela’s.  (I’m sure many of you have already found yourself in the position of having to educate others at one point or another).

What do you think?  Am I overreacting to Mikaela’s post?  Click on Comments below and share your ideas, reactions, or perspective.

And as always, please go to the main AllergyEats site (www.allergyeats.com) to rate your restaurant experiences for the benefit of our entire food allergy and intolerance community.  Remember that rating a restaurant takes less than a minute and only involves answering 3 questions.  You can also add comments if you’d like.

Thank you for your support in these early days of AllergyEats and the AllergyEats Blog.

1. Cynthia Says:
   March 24th, 2010 at 11:55 am

   Oh My God!!!!! I can not believe the attitudes out there. We tell people my Cody is allergic to dairy. Oh you mean lactose intolerant is the usual reply. I mean Cody will go into anaphylactic shock if he ingests dairy, I guess that would fall under intolerant… The above mentioned attitudes make it difficult for Cody and millions of others to be taken seriously. You try living without dairy, egg, peanut,tree nuts, fish, lamb and other things and tell me if it’s a god thing to take lightly!

   Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr.

2. administrator Says:
   March 29th, 2010 at 8:18 pm

   From LinkedIn:

   Great point and agreed. Even my wife, the most caring and empathetic person I know, for years treated my food allergies as just another one of my annoying idiosyncrasies. It wasn’t until my son was diagnosed with a food allergy that she began to understand it as a medical matter, not one of personal taste. Statements such as Mikaela’s post really do reveal ignorance.

3. Heather Says:
   March 30th, 2010 at 6:24 pm

   I have multiple severe food allergies that will send me into anaphylactic shock if it even TOUCHES any other foods I may eat. I have less severe food allergies that create symptoms I don’t enjoy, so I stay away from those as much as I can. When I go to a place and say ‘hey, these foods can’t touch any of my food, can you please not put it on my plate/not cook my food in it?’ the waiter usually just scoffs and walks away. They think I’m (and others with the same condition) are being picky. And when my potatoes come with cheese(dairy allergy, not intolerance, it gives me intense headaches), the chicken is smothered in barbecue sauce(severe tomato allergy), I tell the waitress kindly to take it back and give me new food, I cannot eat that. They sometimes bring the food back multiple times with the same stuff on it, or the stuff just scraped away.

   It happened recently at a Mexican restaurant, and it sent me to the hospital with the high prospect of dying. I came out fine, but it frustrates me that because people fake food allergies, no one takes us who have the real allergies seriously.

4. Food Allergy Says:
   February 22nd, 2011 at 4:45 am

   Yes right Food Allergies should not be ignored and sholud be consulted and treated by a good Physician.

5. Poko Says:
   March 27th, 2011 at 10:52 am

   I have severe allergies to nuts, oranges, beans and fish. Not a lot of people take the allergies seriously, I have been told that it is not safe to eat a certain restaurants (by the waiter) because everything can contain what I am allergic to. I think it is horrible that people who are just picky fake a serious condition, like allergies to food. After a while, it will get old and those of us that really have allergies won’t be treated any differently and allergies will become a joke.

6. Allergy Says:
   July 7th, 2011 at 5:34 am

   If it’s really food allergy it should be treated and controlled. But there are such people who are used to exaggerate their “illness”. In fact they don’t have any food allergy. Such people like to be captious. I personally met such people and i felt rather ashamed while sitting with them in an expensive restaurant eating something delicious and hearing every minute about the “food allergy” and “disgust” to the prepared food. I think it’s a simple human nicety.

7. Common Sense Says:
   November 27th, 2011 at 8:28 pm

   I have recently been diagonosed with an allergy to shellfish, that diagnoses was from an allergist who performed a skin test, not self imposed. If there is any question about a restaurant, I don’t eat there. I don’t make a big deal to let others know I have allergies. I know food preparation can be iffy at best, so I don’t put myself in those situations, where I send food back, to have it returned with a special gift from a pissed off waitress. I do carry benedryl and an epi pen just in case something does get into my food, but I take responcibility for what I eat and don’t expect the world to conform to me. I’m not special because I have allergies, it’s just life and I deal with it.