When I say ALL, I mean all students…with or without life threatening food allergies! The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has a very nice Read the Label Youth Outreach Campaign that challenges youth between the ages of 9 to 13 to label read food and soda items to learn how to make better choices. Wouldn’t it be fabulous if we could take that concept one step farther and ask kids to label read for allergens too? I think if we see schools, after care or camps using this program, it might be beneficial for us to ask about reading for allergens. The reason I say this is that when snacks or food items are purchased there might be a more heightened level of food allergy and anaphylaxis awareness regarding cross contamination and allergens present.
I personally appreciate it when teachers, coaches or friends buy food that do not contain my child’s allergens. Unfortunately, I feel sad when I have to be the one to explain that even though they did a great job of not purchasing items containing allergens, the chosen product has a cross contamination risk and my child can’t eat it. I feel bad since the shopper is often proud of their safe purchase and then they end up feeling even worse that my child was just excluded.
Resources for learning about food allergen label reading:
- The Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE) offers a nice Food Labels webpage explanation of may contain statement and how to contact the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to report a problem.
- FDA Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 document
- How to Read an Ingredient Label slide show from Allergy Home.
- Careful Label Reading Suggestions from Kids With Food Allergies (KFA)– a division of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.
As you can see, I’ve embraced label reading on all levels! I do hope we can piggy back on this label reading health lesson and ask others to also take a peek for their friend’s allergens.
One of the hardest things I find about managing both life threatening food allergies and asthma is talking to others. I hate to be the one that might be perceived as demanding, pushing or for asking too much. What I now know, fourteen years later, is that honest, clear information presented with kindness works!..