On the Nature of Food Allergy
Allergy Expert Paul J. Hannaway, M.D.'s Clear, Informative Book
Food allergies can be life-threatening. This book explains what food allergies are, how to reduce exposure to food allergens, and how to manage the risks.
Book Review
On the Nature of Food Allergy, by Paul J. Hannaway, M.D. (Lighthouse Press, Marblehead, MA 01945, 2007. ISBN 13: 978-0-9621799-3-8, ISBN 10: 0-9621799-3-0.) Cover price $19.95 US, $24.95 CAN.
About the Author
Paul J. Hannaway, M.D. is, among other things, a Fellow at the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology and the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. He is an Assistant Clinical Professor at Tufts University School of Medicine, and a widely-published scientific and popular writer in the field. His previous consumer books on asthma are
- The Asthma Self-Help Book
- Asthma - An Emerging Epidemic.
A Good Book for Understanding Food Allergies
Despite its academic-sounding title, On the Nature of Food Allergy is fairly easy to read. There are many short stories about food allergy emergencies and other incidents that bring life and a sense of both urgency and importance to the pages. The reader soon realizes how vital it is to have some knowledge of food allergies and anaphylaxis.
The scope of this book is impressive. It explains, in clear English, what food allergies and sensitivities are, how they occur, how to deal with food allergies, and a number of important facts about allergic reactions. The 21 chapter titles give a very good indication of what this book about food alleries covers, including chapters on:
- Is It Really a Food Allergy?
- Diseases Associated with Food Allergy
- Two chapters on Anaphylaxis
- Eight chapters on specific types of allergies, including cow's milk, hen's egg, wheat, peanut, legume, tree nut, seed, spice, seafood, fruit, vegetable, and less common reactions
- Food Additive Reactions
- Risky Restaurants
- Managing Food Allergies at School, Camp and College
- Peanuts: To Ban or Not to Ban
- and more.
Who is Responsible for Managing Food Allergies?
One strength of On the Nature of Food Allergy is that the author makes it clear that the responsiblity for preventing food allergy events lies with the person who has the allergy, and extends to the wider community, including parents, caregivers, educators, food preparers, manufacturers, labelling standards setters and regulators.
Chapter 18: Food Allergies at School, Camp and College
This chapter speaks to every parent's deepest fear: how to make sure a food-allergic child is safe away from home. There are some factual, but horrible anecdotes including the story of Sabrina Shannon, an extremely allergy-aware, responsible high school student who died from an reaction to food in her high school cafeteria despite having taken what appeared to be extremely cautious measures to prevent an incident.
Dr. Hannaway tells Sabrina's story by way of background to a Canadian law called Sabrina's Law, 2005, passed in the Province of Ontario, that requires schools to have policies and plans in place for reducing the allergens in the school, training and communication, and an individual plan for each student with an anaphylactic allergy.
In addition to explaining this law and other regulatory aspects of food allergies throughout the book, the author includes in Chapter 18 specific advice for school, camp and college, for a wide variety of people who might be involved, including the responsibilities of
- parents or guardians
- the student
- school administrators
- school nurses
- classroom teachers
- home economics teachers
- food service director and cafeteria workers
- coaches and trainers
- transportation department and bus drivers
- field trip supervisors.
The fact that this list of headings is so detailed shows the richness of the information in the book is as a whole.
Almost everything about children in school or at camp could be applied to travellers. The traveller typically has to rely on others to protect him from allergens. There is a whole chapter on Risky Restaurants to help manage eating out. It's frightening, and necessary reading.
Everyone Should Have Some Basic Understanding About Food Allergies and Anaphylaxis
While On the Nature of Food Allergy is not at all preachy, there is no doubt that the reader will soon realize the information it contains may make the difference between saving someone's life and failing to do so. For persons with food allergies, this book provides ammunition in the form of facts from a credible source, to support reasonable requests for an allergen-free school or workplace, and to help friends and associates to understand what having a food allergy involves. The book is factual and reasonable, and answers most, if not all, the questions about food allergies that a non-medical person could have.
Everyone who eats or prepares food - whether or not they have a known allergy - should read at least part of this book. All of us. For travel industry workers, waiters, cafeteria workers, hotel and kitchen staff, barmen - food allergy awareness should be part of the training.
