#food intolerance

[genderqueerdykes]

i want to take the time to talk about a series of disabilities that no one takes seriously or even recognizes as a disability, which is food intolerances, and allergies. if a person can get sick if they eat the wrong foods, they are disabled, as this illness will make them unable to function all because they ate the wrong food. it's not okay to guilt someone for seeking foods that won't injure them.

in 2022, i began to lose my ability to digest land meats (pork, chicken, cow, etc.), animal milks, and eggs. it started slowly but quickly progressed to every type of land meat. i am only able to digest seafood, plants, nuts, seeds safely without becoming horribly sick. i tried to buy cow's milk because it is cheaper recently and became so ill it was genuinely traumatic. i have never been that sick in my life before. i cannot safely ingest cow's milk, the cheaper option, because it will injure me for several days or even weeks at a time. this happens to me with all land meats as well.

i cannot eat eggs. i cannot fried rice that has egg, i cannot eat most sauces like mayo or ranch dressing because of their high egg content. i cannot eat anything dressed in mayo as a sauce. anything that is baked or brushed or washed with egg is a risk. my digestive system really hates eggs in particular and they are inescapable.

people who can't digest or process lactose, gluten, meats, seafood, eggs, nuts, seeds, beans, fiber, certain fats, proteins or sugars don't have their needs considered very often, nor taken seriously, especially when that person is poor. people with digestive issues need to be able to eat foods that don't hurt us- it's not our faults that alternative milks, breads, pizzas, snacks, sauces, dips, spreads, meats and more are significantly more expensive. we still need to be able to eat foods that don't harm us regardless of how much money we make.

[metalheadsforblacklivesmatter]

So I would like to make a post about food allergies given the information I've been taught by my allergist regarding my food allergies.

The difference between food allergy, sensitivity, and intolerance.

Allergy. This is the classic anaphylaxis.

Sensitivity. This is caused by allergies, but the risk here isn't anaphylaxis. It's inflammation in gut that can cause fatigue, nausea, diarrhea, constipation, generalized ick feeling.

Intolerance. Your body is literally unable to process the food. It lacks the ability to, which means the food causes inflammation in the gut, causing similar symptoms as sensitivity.

Sensitivities will show up on an allergy test. Intolerance has to take a different test specific for that type of intolerance.

I mention this because I see a lot of fake claiming food allergies that's like "Yeah but I cross contaminated the food with eggs and that didn't kill her. She must be lying." Yeah food sensitivities can be pretty mild. Where if you give them an egg salad, they're gonna be having a bad day. But if you rub egg on their burger, they may not even notice.

Also like there's a lot of medical conditions that can affect a person's diet. They may have stomach issues that means they can't eat a lot of acidic foods, and if saying "Hey, I'm allergic to pineapple" gets you to not put pineapple juice in their drink because it'll cause a flare-up. I'm all for people doing whatever they need to make sure their health is taken seriously. Even if it's outright lying because food allergies is the only fucking thing people seem to take seriously in this world.

Anyways take people's "I can't eat this food" seriously. And don't fake claim them if they go "I can't eat this food but I'm not at risk if there's cross contamination"

-fae

[incognitopolls]

We ask your questions so you don’t have to! Submit your questions to have them posted anonymously as polls.

[fxxx-off-watson]

I have always wanted to be a challenge on a cooking competition, with all my allergies, they have to make things I can eat.

I finally have a specific show in my dreams: Gastronauts.

Come on dropout make your cooks try to feed me, something my own mother struggles with.

[chronic-gastro-illness-culture]

hows the tummy hurty fandom doing

[nightmarekilljoy]

Today I ate some pickles and a piece of cheese (plant based)... and I told a family member and they said "Oh that's not food." as in that's not a meal.

Um. How do I tell them that mentality isn't healthy??

Please, if you're out there struggling with food do not listen to people like this. Eating anything is better than eating nothing at all. /srs

And people with digestive disorders like me can't eat like an ablebodied person can. Keep that in mind.

-Amber (she/they/it or star/shine/rot)

[oneshortdamnfuse]

Students with food intolerances deserve a safe, free lunch too. Failing to provide that because you think it’s unnecessary is just ableism. “Eating this food causes them pain because their body can’t digest it, but it’s not life threatening so we don’t need to accommodate it” is such a bad take. Yes, let’s just make them sick every day instead of giving them the option of safe, free foods to eat. So poor kids will have to choose every day if they’re going to starve themselves or if they’re going to be in excruciating pain the rest of the day when they’re trying to learn. Makes no sense.

Furthermore, I don’t think people realize what food intolerances entail. It’s not just, “oh, eating this food gives me a stomach ache.” It is often caused by the body’s inability to break down the sugars in the food because the pancreas and/or the small intestine doesn’t make enough digestive enzymes. People with food intolerances can have a number of disabling conditions, especially because of malnutrition and malabsorption. I am dependent on digestive enzyme supplements, as well as vitamins because I can’t eat and/or get the nutrition I need to thrive without them. This is disabling. Yes, even if it’s not going to immediately kill me if I eat the wrong thing.

Don’t put people in places where they’re required to work, promising that food will be provided for free, and then only provide foods that will make them sick.

[thedisabilitybookarchive]

Free-From Baking

Hey if you're someone who likes to cook and bake a lot, and you also live with/encounter food allergies and intolerances in your day-to-day lives, then this book may be of interest to you:

The Elements of Baking: Making any recipe gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free or vegan by Katarina Cermelj

Release Date: October 3rd 2024

This book is advertised as "the ultimate allergy-friendly cookbook" and I believe it. I've seen photos of this book, and a video on the author's personal Tiktok page that shows it in a bit more detail and I think it looks incredible.

As well as clear visual markers to show which recipes are free from certain ingredients, there are also pictures included for some recipes to show what they should look like if they are gluten-free, egg-free, soy-free etc. Which I think is amazing.

My lactose intolerance and love of baking may make me biased, but I was already excited for this book when it was shown to me before I even looked at Cermelj's website for more information, and now I'm even more so.

Cermelj's site, The Loopy Whisk, also allows you to search for recipes by dietary requirement and recipe type!

She has another cookbook, released in 2022, with details on gluten-free recipes!

If anyone has any other recommendations for allergy/intolerance-friendly cookbooks and recipe books, please let me know! I'd love to add more to the archive!

[the-lights-are-loud]

Nothing like food allergies to make you pick out what you want from a restaurant before you even leave to go there

[chronicillnesshumor]

[hylianengineer]

Every once in a while someone mentions a food and I realize I have never tried it and also can't and maybe never will because of the food allergies and intolerances and then I get mad. Why is the universe cruel to me. I was twenty-one years old the first time I had a croissant (and literally had to cross the Atlantic ocean to do it). I have never eaten a jelly doughnut.

[a-totally-reasonable-username]

The worst food restriction i have is that i can't eat ice cream. It sounds ridiculous bc i can't eat loads of foods but being unable to eat ice cream is the most emotionally impactful by far

[spacedocmom]

Doctor Beverly Crusher @SpaceDocMom Food shaming ought to be a prosecutable crime. I'm always proud of you for eating whatever works for you. Fed is best! emojis: black heart, blue heart, masked 1:16 PM · Oct 24, 2023

[twisted-rat-king]

when GI issues

[metalheadsforblacklivesmatter]

There's only one food allergen I'm allergic to. (I got diagnosed as allergic to 3 but I only seem to have a reaction to one). Guess which one it is?

💀

It sucks because sesame oil is fucking delicious too.

Also. For disability rights I guess I should state. It really fucking sucks that companies are like "I'd rather just make it so people with serious allergies can't eat my food" rather than actually try to accommodate us. You know how much fucking time I spent reading fucking labels to find food I can fucking eat?

You know what's especially shitty? There's actually treatment for non-life threatening food allergies. Doctors just don't treat it because insurance just doesn't cover it because "You can just avoid the food". Except you fucking can't. Because sesame is everywhere. Especially its in literally every health food that includes seeds and nuts "for added protein"

-fae

[chronic-gastro-illness-culture]

undiagnosed chronic gastro illness culture is idk whats wrong w me but i think its trying to kill me