10 Stupid Things People say to Food Allergics:
- "Oh that's ridiculous, food allergies are in your head."
- "Having food allergies, helps you stay skinny."
- trust me, not by choice, 1/2 the time we are starving and malnourished and dying to eat something. We don't wish this upon anyone. We often love the very food we are allergic to. This is not a choice or some fad diet you will see us go off of in 4 weeks. We can't "cheat.".
- "I could never give up _____________."
- (yeah, I don't want to either, but I can die if I have it. I bet you'd give it up if it sent you to the hospital every time you ate it.)
- "So you are on one of those new age diets, I can't wait until that trend is over."
- (uh, the trend, dear people, is more and more people are developing severe multiple food allergies! It ain't gonna go away until we start focusing on research as to why- it's like cancer, not like a fad diet.)
- "What about just a little bit of _#enterfoodallergy___. It won't hurt you. Come on!"
- (really? you really want to see me get sick and take a chance with my life, don't be a food pusher... it's not that I don't want it, it's that if I eat it, I'll get sick.)
- "I only used a very tiny bit of your #food allergy in it."
- (a little bit can KILL us. It's not like it's a diet I chose to be on. Yes some people can tolerate a little bit of something one day and then 8 hours be throwing up, skin reactions, etc.)
- "But you ate everything before, now why?"
- (Do you ask people with cancer the same question? I don't know what happened. One day I was fine and the next day I got food cancer. It's a million $$$$ question no one can answer. Yet only a few people actually donate to food allergy research. If I knew the answer, don't you think I'd be running to sign up for the cure?)
- "I didn't know you could be allergic to _________."
- (Yep, there are over 170 foods you could become allergic to, it's way beyond peanut and shellfish.) Read more information on foods known to cause allergic reactions, click here.
- "Food Allergies are not real." (Then they argue with you)
- (I really wish I had a magic wand when someone says that to me, because I want to zap my food allergy reactions right into them at that moment. #ignoranceisirritating I wonder if they go to hospitals where chemo patients are and tell them that their cancer isn't real.
- I want these people to talk to families who have lost children directly as a result of a sudden allergic response. Go ahead, bring that kid back to life who didn't know they had a food allergy and died after eating it. Tell them food allergies aren't real.)
- "You just need to _________, to get rid of them."
- (There is no cure for food allergies, btw and I would never pay someone who claims they have a cure, yet, because I've heard the horror stories. Remember anyone can say anything, it doesn't make it true. If there really was a cure for food allergies, I'm sure our doctors would call us, I'm sure the FDA would approve it. I'm sure less than 15 million people would have it.)
Food Allergies Are VERY Real! Just like cancer is. There is no cure. It may kill you in seconds if you have an anaphylaxis reaction or it could slowly kill you over many years and mask itself as some other medical condition, if you don't take care of yourself with food allergies.
After running Food Allergy Gal for 2 years and being part of the food allergic community for 12 years, there is still so much we don't understand. Additionally, funding for special services, research and education is very low. Right now there is more education going on and more concern being shown to GLUTEN intolerance and 3 million celiacs than there is to the 15+ million Americans medically diagnosed with food allergies.
After running Food Allergy Gal for 2 years and being part of the food allergic community for 12 years, there is still so much we don't understand. Additionally, funding for special services, research and education is very low. Right now there is more education going on and more concern being shown to GLUTEN intolerance and 3 million celiacs than there is to the 15+ million Americans medically diagnosed with food allergies.
Facts EVERY PERSON needs to KNOW about FOOD ALLERGIES:
- There is no cure for true food allergies
- Food Allergies are as real of a medical condition as cancer is
- Any person, any where, at any time can develop a food allergy. (One day they can be eating peanuts, orange and banana and the next day they can eat the exact same thing and go into anaphylaxis shock.)
- The severity of food allergies can increase or lessen over time. Children & adults can outgrow food allergies. There is NO Explanation as to why; just as there is no explanation as to why they come on.
- Foods that people are allergic to can be found in many products beyond just food- such as medicines, soaps, shampoos, cleaning agents, paper goods products, beverages. (They are not required to be labeled on non-food products in plain English.)
- There are over 170 foods documented which cause allergic reactions in humans.
- Reactions may vary in each person, but all of them are REAL!
- There is a significant RISE in adults being medically diagnosed with MULTIPLE food allergies.
- Food Allergies do not discriminate. They impact every economic & cultural class. They are worldwide not just for "spoiled, trendy Americans." (220 million people worldwide, diagnosed with food allergies)
