What Is This Woman Not Allergic To?
By: Anthony Adragna
Published: September 29, 2011

Nathan Ketcham of Samba Grille in Houston posted a picture online of a list of food allergies that a female customer provided them before service. 
His comment, "Must suck to be her." Agreed.

Comments:
Carol Thoams
September 29, 2011

Is that like some kind of joke??  I think this is pure bullsh_t and you guys made this up so it would be posted. I mean come on, let's be honest who is going to do something as stupid as this. That would be pretty dumb, don't you think??
Sheri Wetherell

Hi Carol,
I can assure you that we did not make this up. I think, unfortunately, it is quite common for someone who has Celiac disease, and wants to enjoy a meal outside of their own home, to provide a restaurant with what they can/cannot eat.
Do we think it's a bit extreme to include a long list of what they cannot consume? Yes. Which is why we published the story.
Kelsey Ganes

Hi Carol,
As someone with Celiac disease (a severe allergy to wheat, barley, rye and oats), I take a list and explanation similar to the above picture with me to every restaurant. It does "suck to be her", but when you have life-threatening food allergies, you don't really have a choice.
The long list might seem ridiculous, but by explaining all of the possible sources of an allergy (in this case it seems to be gluten, corn and sulfites) but in doing so, you are guarding against an unknowing mistake in the kitchen.  Yes, it's extreme, but so is the allergic reaction to peanuts, shellfish and any number of other foods.
KateM

This list looks a lot like what my four-year-old daughter is allergic to (gluten, egg, dairy, nuts, fish), and it's no joke, especially on the way to the emergency room with her in full-blown anaphylaxis.  I certainly wouldn't want anyone to say to her, "it must suck to be you," because it doesn't.  It certainly doesn't suck for the 8% of children in the U.S. with severe food allergies who are managing them with the help of caring, understanding adults. I don't think it's unreasonable for this woman to have a desire to eat in a restaurant, and for a restaurant to weigh whether they can reasonably accommodate her allergies--we've certainly been turned down and that's ok.   Let's not denigrate food allergic people with thoughtless comments, they are just trying to keep from dying in a world that is most decidedly unsafe for them.