5 Tips For Safely Traveling With Food Allergies
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People with food allergies know all too well that traveling with these limitations is an entirely new level of complicated that everything-eaters just don’t understand. But that doesn’t mean you can’t explore new cultures without sampling some of the fab cuisines sourced from local favorite eateries. Here are five tips to make your travel prep easier whether you’re avoiding gluten, dairy, nuts or even pineapple.
1. Pack like something might go wrong.
You want to think your vacation will go as planned, but you have to prepare as if you could potentially go into anaphylactic shock. That means traveling with your epinephrine injector of choice and any necessary prescriptions from your doctor.
2. Research like you’re in test prep mode.
We know many of you allergy pals out there are also foodies. But in order to make those two traits mesh, you need to do an incredible amount of research. Want to eat street food? Make sure you look into common ingredients in popular global dishes. Want to try the hottest restaurant in a new city? Research its food prep practices. And choose your risks wisely, just like at home.
3. Bring emergency snacks.
Okay, so the delish looking street food might end up being off limits after all. To mitigate hangry travel wanders, bring some snacks from home in your bag. It’s fair game to bring packaged foods or even your own trail mix on a plane. We’d recommend packing your favorite allergy-safe snack for any moments when you need a nibble instead of taking a risk with a random stand on the corner.
4. Know the local words for your allergen.
If you’re heading to a restaurant where the menu won’t be in English, you need to know the word for “gluten,” “seafood,” “nuts” or “dairy.” Since pronunciation can be an issue even for savvy travelers, we recommend writing down the translation in the local language. Even easier, Food Allergy Research & Education has downloadable vocab sheets for nine languages, including a card to hand to restaurant staff to explain your food allergies in the local language.
5. Teach your travel buddies how to use an EpiPen.
Folks don’t want to prepare to stick their friend with a needle, but you should teach them anyway. Luckily, an epinephrine injector isn’t a big, scary syringe. An EpiPen or generic equivalent is an easy-to-use tool. Check out Nationwide Children’s Hospital’s video on how to use it.
If the little babies featured in the video can figure out how to give the shot, your globetrotting travel fam can, too.
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