May is Food Allergy Awareness month in North America, Australia and other communities around the world. This initiative is dedicated to raising awareness that food allergies are serious, sometimes life-threatening medical conditions. Helping people understand what can trigger allergic reactions, what are the top allergens (egg, milk (dairy), mustard, peanut, seafood (fish, crustaceans, shellfish), sesame seed, soy, sulphite, tree nut, wheat (gluten)), and to recognize symptoms of anaphylaxis can help make the world a safer place for people with food allergies.
Here are some creative initiatives that help spread awareness about food allergies:
Faces of Food Allergies
Lindsey Riley, a photographer from Virginia, is spreading awareness about allergies in a project called the “Faces of Food Allergies” which features images of people with food allergies that live in her area. This project, which will eventually be a published into a book, shows us that people with food allergies are vibrant and diverse individuals that live, work, study and play in our communities.
“Look at these faces …. The next time someone asks you if something contains nuts, or to put away those peanut butter crackers at school please remember these are peoples lives we are talking about . Lets have compassion and understanding . Lets find a cure, and NEVER assume you can tell if someone is allergic or not.” – Lindsey Riley
For more information, go to http://ellerileyphotography.com/faces-of-food-allergies/
“Ask the Experts” Twitter Party
To kick off Food Allergy Awareness Week, FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) be hosting a Twitter chat on May 12 at 3:30pm, ET where questions about food allergies will be answered by Ruchi Gupta, MD, PhD and Wayne Shreffler, MD, PhD. Follow @FoodAllergy and #FAREChat.
Paint One Nail
Allergy and Anaphylaxis Australia is asking people to paint one fingernail during Allergy Awareness Week (May 12 – 18) to help raise awareness that 1 in 10 babies born in Australia today will develop a food allergy.
For more information, go to http://www.foodallergyaware.com.au/
How can you spread awareness and increase understanding about food allergies?
