Campaign encourages people to ask before eating

Food allergies inspire precautionary measures

By: Jessica Emill
   For many people, a trip to the grocery store is simply a matter of routine and visiting a restaurant is a special treat.
   But either activity could have deadly consequences for 15-year-old Madeline Glickman and 8-year-old Frankie Yandrisevits, who suffer from food allergies and must carefully monitor every piece of food they eat.
   "His allergies affect all of us," says Frankie’s mother, Maureen Yandrisevits, who must ensure there are no peanuts, tree nuts or milk in any of his foods. "Our house is completely dairy- and milk-free."
   Same goes for Madeline, who must be extremely careful when eating out because she’s allergic to casein, a milk protein present in all dairy and dairy-derived products, including cheese, yogurt, butter and whey.
   "Going out to a restaurant is never casual," says Elyse Pivnick, Madeline’s mother. "There’s lots of preparation we have to do. We have to talk to the servers and the managers. A lot of people think that she’s just lactose-intolerant, but it’s not the same thing. In Mady’s case, it’s life-threatening."
   In an effort to raise awareness about the dangers of food allergies, the Legislature passed a bill in 2005 that mandated the Department of Health and Senior Services establish the "Ask Before You Eat" public-information campaign.
   The department launched the campaign this spring in conjunction with the Rutgers University Food Policy Institute and Department of Nutritional Science. Since then, the groups have created and distributed fact sheets detailing how restaurant owners can accommodate customers with food allergies and serve safer meals.
   New Jersey is the only state to mandate such a program, and nutrition experts are hoping the campaign will help those in the restaurant business — as well as parents — understand food allergies and how to prevent reactions.
   "Over the next year as inspections are done, we expect to see an increase in knowledge and safety, and establishments that are better able to respond to food allergies," says Dr. Carol Byrd-Bredbenner, a Rutgers professor of nutrition who’s working on the campaign.
***
   
The "Ask Before You Eat" campaign, with its focus on education and communication, will certainly make eating out a whole lot easier for those with food allergies. And it will help ease fears for many parents, including Ms. Yandrisevits and Ms. Pivnick, who constantly worry about what their children are eating, particularly at restaurants.
   "There’s a lot going on in the kitchen. If they can make a safe meal, that’s great for us," Ms. Yandrisevits says. "The more restaurants that can do that, the better."
   "It’s good just to have a restaurant that can communicate their ability or disability in accommodating us," she adds. "I would rather hear, ‘Sorry, we can’t accommodate you,’ than having them prepare an unsafe meal." Ms. Pivnick agrees, adding she is hopeful the "Ask Before You Eat" campaign will change the way people statewide view food allergies.
   "It’s really about education all of the time," she says. "The campaign is going to be a great help because it’s raising awareness. I’m hoping people will now rise to the occasion of labeling food well and helping people understand."
For more information about the "Ask Before You Eat" campaign, visit www.foodallergy.rutgers.edu.
To contact the The Allergy and Asthma Support Group of Central New Jersey, call (609) 439-8629 or (732) 821-0567.