Website for Restaurant and Travel Destination Reviews

We tried something like this in our forums that just ended up being a haven for spam so I am happy to see someone that is devoting their site to it.

www.lonelyplate.org is  all about getting the word out on places to go and safely enjoy your time out without worry.

I went to Disney World a couple years ago and they were FANTASTIC! We’ll be going back sometime very soon to reproduce the trip, pretty much exactly. Land and sea cruise/park package. Stay at Animal Kingdom and just soak it all in.

Ok, I’m leaving.

Wait, Here’s the info in this press release. Check it out and participate! Make this the Go To place for this info!!

PRESS RELEASE: New Food Allergy/Celiac Restaurant and Travel Review Website

WASHINGTON – A new website catering to the food allergy and Celiac community, www.LonelyPlate.org, was launched in February by Sharona Schwartz, who up until a year and a half ago was News Coverage Manager at CNN’s Washington Bureau. While at CNN, Schwartz produced award-winning television reports with chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta on food allergies.   She is also the mother of a daughter diagnosed with multiple food allergies, including wheat, peanuts, fish and more.

At LonelyPlate.org, individuals dealing with food allergies and Celiac can write reviews about restaurants, hotels, airlines and theme parks they visit.

“There are fantastic online resources reviewing restaurants and hotels, but because I couldn’t find any that consolidated our unique experiences in an easy, interactive, international platform, I decided to create an interactive database where we can review restaurants, hotels, airlines, and kid-friendly venues,” says Schwartz.

“Wouldn’t it be great to give a shout out to a place that did a great job helping you have a safe meal, or warn others of a place to stay away from at all cost?” Schwartz says.

Recognizing dining out for those with food limitations is an experience fraught with worry for many, Schwartz says the website will disseminate reports, both positive and negative, to families facing similar medical challenges. “This kind of information-sharing is crucial not only to keep each other safe but also can be a message to restaurants that we are a consumer community worth catering to,” she says.

The Examiner.com writes of the new site: “…what a great accomplishment for those of us on a restricted diet.  With so many people being diagnosed with a food intolerance, this type of website will help us feel more normal and stay safe when we are traveling and when we are at home.”

The web address is www.lonelyplate.org.

Contact information: info@lonelyplate.org

Link to The Examiner article:

http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-15981-Gwinnett-GlutenFree-Food-Examiner~y2010m2d16-Lonelyplateorg-offers-national-consumer-reviews-for-those-with-food-allergies

Link to godairyfree review:

http://www.godairyfree.org/201002284124/News/Nutrition-Headlines/Lonely-Plate-Launches-as-Food-Allergy-and-Celiac-Restaurant-and-Travel-Review-Website.html

Delta urged to stop offering peanuts

MEMPHIS, May 9 (UPI) — Dr. George Flinn, a physician and Tennessee county commissioner, is asking Delta airlines to stop serving peanuts on its flights formerly flown by Northwest.

Delta began serving peanuts in late March, when it substituted its snack, food and beverage offerings for those previously provided by Northwest.

The Memphis Commerical Appeal reported Saturday that Flinn said he’s not allergic to peanuts, but his grandson is.

“It’s been absolutely proven that if someone who is allergic to peanuts is exposed to peanuts, they’re going to have anaphylaxis,” he said. “This can cause trouble breathing, possibly even death.”

Delta spokesman Anthony Black said the airline’s policy is to create a buffer zone three rows in front and three rows behind a passenger with peanut allergy.

But Flinn said that’s not good enough because some allergy patients can be affected by airborne peanut particles.

He said Northwest not only provided that, but the airline also would make courtesy announcements asking passengers not to break out their own peanut-based snacks while traveling on a flight with an allergic person.

He said his family has been forced to make alternative travel arrangements with his grandson since the snack offerings changed.

“Peanut allergy is the most common cause of severe allergic reactions in the U.S. and it tends to be a lifelong allergy. Further, the entire family of an allergic individual usually changes their plans to keep that person safe, thereby making the market impact of food allergies three to four times greater than the 12 million patients,” said Anne Munoz-Furlong, founder of the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network.

via Delta urged to stop offering peanuts – UPI.com.

New iPhone application helps allergy sufferers abroad — chicagotribune.com

Being the owner of an Ipod Touch (like the Iphone without the phone) I appreciate the technology aspect of this and helping food allergic people. I am disapointed that someone is charging for this. Many helpful applications in the store are free, and this one should be as well or at least priced more reasonably. $3.99 seems a bit high. I have not reviewed this app but if you know of someone who has it please comment on this!

Those with serious food allergies know that ordering meals in a foreign country where you don’t speak the language can be a dicey and potentially deadly ordeal. Eat Safe, a new iPhone application ($3.99), helps bridge the communication gap between diner and waiter. The program, a model of simplicity, allows the iPhone to display a clear illustration of 18 products, such as fish, dairy or peanuts, that the patron can’t eat. You can download it to your iPhone from the App Store or through iTunes.

via New iPhone application helps allergy sufferers abroad — chicagotribune.com.

Dog Protects Girl from Peanuts

You have probably heard of these peanut-snififng dogs, but I just love hearing about the feel-good stories. Especially when the person involved is a young one and is extremely allergic.

Do you know of anyone with an allergy dog?

How many kids can say they’ve never eaten a peanut butter and jelly sandwich?

8-year-old Riley Mers can say that.

And no, she’s not from another planet.

She’s from Monument, Colorado.

The reason Riley can’t eat PB&J is because she’s allergic to peanuts – so severely allergic that when she stepped on a peanut shell one time, it nearly burned through her skin.

For virtually her entire life, Riley has been unable to leave her home or her yard.

Going to school?

Forget about it.

Riley studies online, mostly, according to the Colorado Springs Gazette.

And when she does go to school, she has to sit in a special room of her own.

After all, what if some other kid brought peanut butter and jelly for lunch?

Riley is so sensitive to peanuts that even peanut dust can cause her to have a life-threatening allergic reaction.

But recently, Riley’s life changed.

Read the rest of this entry »

Food Allergies Limit Where And How Families Vacation

This is an interesting article that I am sure most of us are fimilar with. It is interesting to see the percentages below with regards to what precautions are taken as well as to see what geographical locations are avoided.

Families with food allergic individuals make significant lifestyle alterations when it comes to vacation planning, according to a study presented at the 2009 Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI).

  Read the rest of this entry »

Planning to fly the allergic skies?

Travel nerve-racking for parents of allergic kids
BY KIM GRAY, CALGARY HERALDMARCH 16, 2009
Peanuts are a part of snacking culture on planes, but they can be deadly for some people.

Spring break is upon us and families countrywide are preparing for travel.

For most, jumping on a plane with the clan in tow is a relatively uncomplicated, even fun, event.

But for those with a child who has life-threatening allergies (a. k. a. my husband and I), the notion of flying long distance in what is essentially a pressurized metal tube with re-circulated air 12,000 metres above the ground, well, it’s another matter entirely.

Read the rest of this entry »

It can get nutty at 30,000 feet

There are a few versions of this story floating around the net these days. I can tell you that flying with someone with a nut allergy is scary. Our recent trip to Disney Land was well looked after (On the flight there they prohibited handing out nuts and on the flight back they asked passengers to not eat nutty snacks) but I am sure we are the exception.

Many airlines still don’t have policies on in flight food allergens — but should they?

Read the rest of this entry »