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Travel Health: I Can't Eat That!
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For travelers with allergies, foreign food can be a recipe for disaster. These tips will help you stay safe
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BY HANNAH WALLACE
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If you’re one of the 12 million Americans with a food allergy, you know it’s crucial to steer clear of the offending food. Even a trace amount of an allergen can cause a reaction—anything from a mild tingling in the mouth to difficulty breathing. Traveling poses even greater challenges—but you don’t want fear to keep you from enjoying the local fare. We interviewed Jay Portnoy, M.D., a pediatric allergist at Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, MO, for his advice on how to travel with a food allergy.
SEE A SPECIALIST
Though food allergies are very real, one of the most commonly used allergy tests—a blood test to detect specific antibodies—may yield false positives, Dr. Portnoy says. “Be skeptical if you’ve been told you have an allergy to a food you’ve eaten before with no problems,” he says. Ask an allergist for a prick skin test as an alternative to a blood test. Unfortunately, the most accurate test comes when eating the food is followed by a reaction—known as anaphylaxis.
RESEARCH YOUR NEMESIS
The more informed you are about the food you’re allergic to—and the dishes it might turn up in—the better equipped you’ll be to avoid it. If you’re allergic to tree nuts, be aware that they’re often in barbecue sauce and that mortadella can contain pistachios. Allergic to fish? Watch out for anchovies in Caesar salad and Worcestershire sauce. Portnoy recommends consulting resources like the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (foodallergy.org).
BE A PEST
Menus tend to focus
on some ingredients and omit others, so quiz your waiter about whether
your danger food might be lurking. Jen Proctor, 38, is severely allergic
to fresh pineapple. She got a bad scare at a Las Vegas restaurant when
she detected the fruit in her coleslaw. Luckily, the pineapple was
canned, which made it less threatening, but she has become even more
vigilant since then.
WEAR A MEDICAL ALERT BRACELET
What if you mistakenly eat something you’re so allergic to that you lose consciousness? MedicAlert (medicalert.org) offers jewelry engraved with the items you’re allergic to, along with your ID number and the company’s 24-hour hotline so that emergency responders have instant access to your ?personal medical records.
PACK AN EPI-PEN
Travel with an auto-injector like the Epi-Pen,* which contains epinephrine that immediately begins treating symptoms of anaphylaxis. The dose only lasts 20 minutes, so Portnoy suggests packing two doses in case you’re far from an emergency room. Also, carry written instructions from your doctor about when to use it and what other treatments you might need. This will help if a TSA agent objects to the pens in your carry-on. (Keep your Epi-Pens in their original packaging for the same reason.)
*Consult your physician before taking any medication, and use all medications as directed.
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Published: Winter 2011-2012
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Illustration: Chris Pyle
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