thankful for good friends

The allergic diner's BFF most recently adopted another cat. I am notoriously allergic to cats and have been having terrible problems with my allergies as of late, so she has been travelling to see me at my place. But, with a holiday party and a chance to meet some new people, how could I not go?
This woman is such a gem! Not only did she clean her home from top to bottom, but she sprayed allergen reducer on everything, and then cordoned off the cats to one section of the house so i could have an "allergy-free zone." As a result, with the help of a little Benadryl I was able to attend the party without worrying about an allergic reaction. She even cooked me a separate "Allergic diner-proof" meal. (she simply left some of the oil and seasonings off my food)
Allergic diner's sage advice: Be thankful for friends who go to such lengths, friendships like these are few and far between!
Coming in the New Year. Reviews of several more national chains, and the allergic diner's territory expands to NYC!

Well, your allergic diner made it through the holidays without ingesting a single nut, tomato product, or spice. Good times were had by all! I would like to wish everyone a very merry christmas, happy chanukah, and send my best wishes for a happy & healthy 2007. See you in the new year!

What works for Jared will work for us!

I have to pause and give what the kids call "props" to Subway. I was on their website the other day, looking at the menu b/c that's what we were going to have for dinner and I am notoriously indecisive at times. How wonderful it was to discover that in addition to calories, fat, etc., that Subway offers FULL INGREDIENT LISTINGS of everything they use. The Allergic Diner has discovered Subway's honey mustard sauce, yum!
Thank you kind folk at Subway. You couldn't get any more allergy-friendly if you tried!

http://subway.com/subwayroot/MenuNutrition/Nutrition/pdf/AllergenChart.pdf

http://subway.com/subwayroot/MenuNutrition/Nutrition/frmUSIngredients.aspx

Romano's Macaroni Grill? Stay home!

The allergic diner had a frightful experience last night. I was out with a group of girlfriends for dinner at the famed Romano's Macaroni Grill. I say famed because all of them ooh and aah over the extensive menu and healthy-eating friendly selections. I elected to "make my own pasta" and promptly explained to the waiter that there was to be no sauce of any kind on my plate. I showed him my med-alert bracelet, to explain that I was not simply being difficult, and explained about my tomato allergy, in addition to my problems with oil, butter, etc. Sounds simple, right? It was pasta with onion and mushrooms, and when it arrived i simply added a little salt and pepper. I ate two or three bites of pasta, very pleased that I couldn't discern any additional seasonings or oil in the bowl, only to discover after the third bite, A TOMATO. An evil intruder in my pasta...i showed it to the waiter who was visibly upset and told me they'd make me a new one. When I said, "do me a favor, this time, please just a bowl of completely plain pasta so that it doesn't touch something in the assembly line," it was in front of me within 5 minutes...except this time there was oil on it!! The manager came over to apologize (and was perfectly lovely and sincere), but by now I was a little wary of ordering anything else from the kitchen.
Now I know chefs/waiters and the like make mistakes, and while I may give a snotty write-up on this blog, I don't like to make a scene in the restaurant, i simply paid for the dish and left. My husband now has a huge bowl of pasta for lunch today, and I ended up at home, cooking at 9:00 pm. Regardless of how courteous and quick to take care of things the staff at this particular Romano's was....when someone tells of a food allergy EVERY PRECAUTION SHOULD BE TAKEN TO MAKE SURE IT IS FOLLOWED!! Thankfully nothing I had eaten touched the tomato...but I don't think I'll be heading back there. My advice to my allergic readers.....the eater beware!

The allergic diner recently uncovered numerous articles on the web about how food allergies cannot be treated with allergy shots. The body's immune system does not respond to the small amounts of stimulation and unfortunately often has a reaction (not deadly, just unpleasant).
Why then, do doctors persist in prescribing allergy shots for people with severe food allergies?
Is this still standard medical practice? And what can allergic patients do to protect themselves? I welcome your ideas/research/comments.