Call Chicago Allergy & Asthma
Give us a call
773-774-4512
Visit Chicago Allergy & Asthma
Visit our location
7447 W. Talcott Ave
Suite 308
Chicago, IL 60631

Dinging Out: Avoiding Food Allergies

January 11, 2019
Dinging Out: Tips on avoiding allergic reactions!
 
Dr. Leigh Ann Kerns, a pediatric allergist and immunologist at Cleveland Clinic Children's Hospital told Reuters Health that there are basic strategies that should be in place when dining out to avoid life threatening allergic reactions. Her team surveyed 39 people with food allergies, 19 of whom had suffered an allergic reaction while dining in restaurants. Based on the responses the researchers compiled a list of 25 strategies and ranked them based off of frequency of use. The top five are speak to the server immediately, order with simple ingredients, double-check food before eating, avoid restaurants with higher likelihood of cross-contamination, and review ingredients on a restaurant website. The researcher also found, “those who never had an allergic reaction in a restaurant tended to employ an average of 15 strategies to avoid allergens, while those who have had a reaction tended to use only six different strategies before suffering a problem.”