Food allergy friendly colleges?

Parents Forum
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<p>I don't think that being especially concerned about living with a food-related disability at college is being too sensitive or overprotective.</p>

<p>In most stages of life, people can choose to buy and prepare their own food. They can drive to a supermarket and get whatever they need. They can keep foods that would harm them out of their own homes, and they can bring food with them when they need to eat away from home. If necessary, they can minimize their contact with food service establishments, which is where the hazards are often greatest.</p>

<p>College is different. For students living on campus, especially those in their first year, ALL meals may need to be eaten in a food service establishment, access to a supermarket and cooking facilities may be limited or nonexistent, and they may have to share a small room with another person who has the right to keep any food he or she wants in that room. In most instances, they also do not have access to a car. This would be an extremely difficult situation even for a 40-year-old. It's not babyish for an 18-year-old to consider it extremely difficult, too.</p>

<p>The thing of it is, orchid, that college isn't the real world when it comes to food allergies. It's WORSE than the real world.</p>

42

<p>"I have noticed that some products will say "made in a plant that manufactures nut products" on the packaging."</p>

<p>More and more products are adding this warning--almost everything at Trader Joe's has it, even regular bread. It makes me think that legal departments have decided that it's safer to put the warning on, even if the risk is very low. Of course, this makes it impossible for somebody with a nut allergy to accurately evaluate the risks--you just have to avoid everything with a warning.</p>

43

<p>True. Cross-contamination could occur if somebody walked from the banana nut muffin line to the white bread area, but the risk would be negligible. Still, some products are run on the exact same assembly line. I sure wish they would distinguish the risk level, rather than making that blanket statement.</p>

<p>Other areas of risk are as ubiquitous as public coffee grinders and ice cream parlor scoops. It's not easy for young people, but you have to figure out how to live with whatever degree of sensitivity you have, whether it be as simple as checking the ingredients in cafeterias or as complete as eating only self-prepared food.</p>

44

<p>In addition to checking out and dealing with food service, Sierra Lin, perhaps it would be wise to also note these issues on the housing form. After a student is accepted, generally they receive a questionnaire about their housing preferences (late night/early riser, smoking/non-smo, noise levels,,). Roommates are matched this way. Some schools handle this task carefully, others less so. I think this is a place to wave-your-arms at them in terms of paperwork submitted. </p>

<p>Maybe you'd want to affix a big letter t0 the roommate form about the seriousness of the allergy, and concern for cross-contamination in the dorm room. Perhaps a doctor's letter attached would be taken very seriously, too.</p>

<p>Then, you have basis to ask either for a single or to room only with someone equally involved/aware/diagnosed what3ever with food allergies.</p>

<p>The roommate will want to have snacks in the room, and your kid will too. Niether would want to risk harm to the other! </p>

<p>Usually, housing and dining are handled as two different arenas for entering freshmen, so communicate separately to each.</p>

45

<p>Good thing that I am thinking about food allergies and colleges for my 2nd starting a bit early as there certainly is alot to think about and everyone has great suggestions.</p>

<p>I agree that more products are being labeled with "manufactured on equipment with...." and I would guess that it has to do with legal ramifications. Even college food services protect themselves. As we visit admitted student days for my oldest I am deciding to inquire about food services since most schools are having us eat in their cafeterias and often my youngest is dragged along!</p>

<p>My reactions are mostly skin problems and I even notice that I suffer after eating from things that are labeled with ingredients that should be safe for me - I have to wonder!</p>

46

<p>sierra -- my DS with allergies is still in high school, so we have a couple more years to figure out the commuting thing. But there is a state school 5 miles from our house -- not a top tier school and not my top choice for him, but he can do their honors program and live at home. I am pushing him to consider other schools, too, particularly smaller ones that might have more flexibility in accommodating his needs. </p>

<p>As for tours -- we bring our own food in a cooler, and he has studied the menus of a few restaurants and is pretty comfortable ordering in those places -- choices are very limited, though! We eat lots of subs while traveling because we can see what goes into them.</p>

47

<p>My daughter had anaphylactic reactions to nuts and sunflower seeds and serious reactions to milk and eggs. She is now a freshman at Stanford where she is doing great. They have a peanut free dorm, but it was important for my daughter to live in an all frosh dorm. They accomodate her there by labeling all foods served with signs indicating ingredients that are a problem for her.
She did the admit weekend visit Harvard, where they were also very careful in accomodating her allergies. I just called dining services people, and they were happy to talk about what she would eat during her visit and also how they would handle her allergies if she chose to attend.</p>

48

<p>Just returned from NYC where my daughter and I worked hard to avoid starving on our visit. She is looking at music conservatories. I asked one student affairs office about food allergy accommodations, and was told she could be on the commuter meal plan, but live in the dorm. She could have a fridge/microwave but there is no kitchen available for students.</p>

<p>In NYC, food in markets and restaurants is expensive! With the busy life I know she will have (my son is in college and can't get to the post office!), I am concerned. (BTW my son is at Brown, where is allergies are amazingly accommodated). Is it even possible to eat food prepared in a microwave, all the time? (I have never used one)</p>

<p>This daughter also had type 1 diabetes and is on an insulin pump. This means that if she is "low" or getting low, it will be life or brain threatening to wait for food. She carried glucose, and juice, but is healthier when she eats a good snack instead.</p>

<p>She has other health issues which I will not go on and on about, but, given the stresses of freshman year, I was hoping that food allergies would be the easiest to deal with.</p>

<p>Frankly, after dealing with 504 and disability law since our daughter was 4, I think that the onus for dealing with this should be on the school, not the student. Lists of ingredients should be available..and should be trustable too. Alternative versions of foods should be available, such as grilled chicken that is not prepared with any butter or breading. </p>

<p>Schools don't tell kids in wheelchairs to go somewhere else to eat, or to have a different meal plan, because their wheelchair can't get down the stairs. They are required to provide access. What is the difference here?</p>

<p>To the person who feels these kids need to get used to cold reality, I say: college, esp. the first year, is extremely busy and stressful, and these students have a legal right, wherever federal funding is received, to an education equal to others.</p>

<p>Rushing out to a store or restaurant between classes does not seem like equality to me, when the other kids can go down a flight of stairs and eat, together. This kind of effort to eat would also rob time for studies, preparing for classes, and also socialization.</p>

<p>If more of us demand this rightful equality, things will change.
Right now, elite, wealthy colleges obviously are doing the best job. But all schools should do so. It is outrageous that so many people here feel it is reasonable to choose a school based on their food policies. Again, our children deserve the same free choice about where to go as any other students, based on academic interest, arts, or whatever their passion is.</p>

<p>So, let's all start the ball rolling. Our kids can be independent in carrying this out, but, even if they are 18, it is up to parents to advocate. We have more clout than the kids.</p>

49

<p>Compmom, sorry that things did not go well. Agree that allergy kids should be able to have freedom of choice of schools, but unfortunately it seems change occurs slowly. I do know that I have been impressed by a few colleges we have visited with our oldest. When I call admissions/food services often they are willing to look into the situation. I haven't asked often because I figure I'll wait to the younger allergy student is looking at colleges. It also seems that many more stores and products are out there. I am so thankful that my family didn't have these problems a decade or two ago.</p>

<p>I guess it becomes the old saying that life isn't always fair. Does the FAAN group do anything in terms of advocating that colleges become more allergen friendly? I have to admit that most of my energy is zapped at just getting through the daily and weekly demands of school, field trips, lessons, sports, creating a normal homelife, and all the special shopping at many places and food preparation which goes with multiple food allergies. </p>

<p>I do alot of planning and preparing for family trips and college tours as I am always concerned about not having enough food for allergic family members. From checking out what food is served in the area to creating foods to microwave, and looking for natural food stores and whole food markets. I have even asked restaurants to heat up food for me, but prefer not to do this as who knows what cross contamination can occur. I also do the cooler/bag thing like orchid_2000 and probably many others.</p>

<p>Say in reading ,paying3tuitions ideas, wouldn't it be cool to end up with a roommate who has same problems as yours or similar! What a great bonding point.</p>

50

<p>Along with dealing with food allergies for 3 in our family, we have also had to deal with the insulin-dependent diabetes, endometriosis, seizures, Lyme disease and other problems in our middle child. I certainly understand burnout.</p>

<p>Institutions will resist accommodations, because they are often expensive, inconvenient, and labor-intensive. Things won't improve until some sort of active effort is made, either by parents/students, or by some organization representing us, and the effort has to exceed the institutional inertia that is there.</p>

<p>Many of us are accommodating our kids' plans to whatever the schools are doing, and it should be the other way around.</p>

<p>For diabetes, beginning in kindergarten, we had to trailblaze and create a program ourselves. We had to literally teach the school how to do it, and, a few times, needed a lawyer to back us up. It worked out great, after a few years of painful efforts, and now other kids are benefiting.</p>

<p>The point I was trying to make, in comparing schools' unwillingness to accommodate food allergies to barring wheelchairs, is that failure to accommodate is illegal. I don't think it is out of the bounds of "reasonable accommodations" to expect a kid to be able to eat at the school cafeteria, with everyone else versus finding a grocery store and cooking, or going to a restaurant.</p>

<p>In the particular schools we looked at, which are urban, one-building conservatories, not eating in the cafeteria would be a major hardship.</p>

<p>They do take federal funding, and it would be possible to sue.</p>

<p>Our daughter is a good enough musician to have made the final cut at schools like Juilliard. She is one of only two females to make it that far. And yet, we had a school tell us that, because of her health issues, she might not be "up to (their) standards."</p>

<p>Chronic health problems are the last frontier of civil rights, I read the other day. The trouble is, we parents are so tired and burned out, it is hard to advocate. But I plan on trying, and I hope others will too.</p>

51

<p>Yes, I know that I am not a parent, but I am a current college student with food allergies, including gluten.</p>

<p>During my initial college search, I spoke to several small liberal arts schools about accommodation. All said that accommodation was done all the time, that I didn't need to worry, and that I could still eat in the dining hall.</p>

<p>What I'm trying to say is that your college search inquiries are NOT an accurate indicator of what you'll actually get. Even if you talk to the dining hall chefs themselves, it is still not accurate. I was promised full accommodation with weekly menus and ingredient information at minimum, and I got neither. The GM of the college didn't even know what was in most things, was incapable of giving me ingredient lists in print because the staff took care of that kind of thing, and gave me incorrect menus (if he sent me one at all). I ended up transferring from this school (not specifically because of the food, but it was a factor), and I have seen how multiple schools handle students with food allergies. I am fairly confident in saying that -most- colleges are not equipped to handle food allergies.</p>

<p>Today, at my current college, I cook virtually all of my own meals. It is a HUGE time commitment. It also requires a car (or at least frequent access to a car). I can't eat most of the things served in the dining hall because of the sauces they use. You (or your kid) will discover that waiting 10-15 minutes for a specially cooked plain chicken breast gets old really quickly (especially when your friends are waiting for you to finish up). Unfortunately, this means less meal nutritional value, since most of my food is prepared in a microwave.</p>

<p>As a parent, please take away the following lessons, even if you didn't read the rest of my post:
1. Cooking for yourself is a huge time commitment, and even bigger for a first-time freshman in college. Think long and hard before going off a meal plan--oftentimes colleges suggest this up front when they know/suspect that they can't offer good accommodations
2. Cooking usually requires a car. Shuttles to town every two-three weeks aren't enough to keep you/your kid stocked.
3. During the college search, call admissions or dining services and ask for the name of a student (or more than one) with food allergies. This SHOULD give you a much more accurate indicator about life with food allergies at that college.
4. THIS IS IMPORTANT--write on the housing form that you have food allergies and need "easy access to a fully-functioning kitchen". Add a note that a doctor's note will be mailed separately, and include the "kitchen" sentence in the doctor's note as well, including a request for a larger refrigerator, microwave (if not allowed) or other supplies. HOUSING is almost a bigger deal than dining services. They SHOULD place your child in a place with a floor/building kitchen. I'm not saying cooking there won't be a pain, but having a kitchen in the building is very convenient when the dining hall messes up. HOUSING is important.
4. Finally, be persistent with the administration. I am all for fighting for the things you need, especially when basics like food are involved. But also know at what point you need to say "This isn't working". Also be ready with things like "My kid needs access to grocery stores, let's create access to a car" or "My kid needs to talk to Res Life about living off campus next year". This is probably going to be a difficult process, so you should know exactly what you need AND know your limits.</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

52

<p>GerberDaisy, great suggestions. I printed them off to share with my son. I'm sure he will like the idea of the car, even though it's there for a practical reason. </p>

<p>The delicate balance I see for parents and students is how aggressive parents need to be. I do understand that this is a time for students to take responsibility for things, but sometimes a parent can make much more "noise" and get something done. In teen years what I see is a deep desire to individuate and to try to problem solve on one's own. Which is good. But as a parent I've tried to identify problems where one problems solves on one's own (e.g., dealing with classroom problems) and things where it helps to pull in the heavy hitters (e.g., illegal discrimination, safety issues and so on).</p>

<p>Any chronic illness is inherently isolating and it is always good to have more people in your court fighting the good battle when the stakes are so high. It is important, as parents, to show how in our own lives we problem solve some things ourselves, but at times, have to call in the legal, financial or emotional support team. </p>

<p>For anyone with health challenges, I think the message should be: Go, be independent, choose your major, find your friends, live and learn, but when it comes to physical safety, none of us should feel that the responsibility for day-to-day well-being rests solely just on our shoulders.</p>

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<p>Thank ALL of you for sharing your suggestions and thoughts. Wishing those of you who are working on this right now much success. We're 5 years behind you and are so thankful for this discussion.<br>
We never considered that the food choices of a roommate were a factor. Clearly it is a huge factor. The suggestion to contact current students with food allergies is priceless. Thanks so much. Best of luck to all of you.</p>

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<p>I don't know if this was mentioned but there are online grocery services. My DD now does her own food preparation and there isn't a grocery store that's convenient so she and her roommates make an occasional online order and supplement it with an occasional trip to a distant store or the tiny little grocery store next door.</p>

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<p>Online grocery services are available in some communities but not others. There may be a minimum order, which could be beyond the needs of a single individual. Also, the customer has to be available when the order arrives in many instances.</p>

<p>For these reasons, online grocery services may be less helpful to a college student than they would be to a family.</p>

56

<p>Everyone's suggestions and comments have been great and I really appreciate the student's perspectives, GerberDaisy and others. I too printed your post so that I could refer to it later. Agree that the idea of seeking other food allergy students would be helpful, especially if they don't have any at their school and you would be the first. Your important lessons also bring up the point that depending on the extent and severity of health issues one really needs to look at the layout of the city and what specialty stores are offered.</p>

<p>I applaud all students with allergies and celiac type problems that are able to shop and cook on their own. As a parent I find myself going to more than 5 stores to find the variety of speciality products which provide half of us meals. I would hate for a freshman student to be concerned with all of those things and adjusting to school too. Many restaurants and programs have turned us away either not equipped to handle allergies or not wanting to risk any problems or legal issues. Based on the questions I ask to the colleges we have toured I would agree that most places are not equipped to handle food allergies. Additionally I don't think the are very knowledgeable of what to even look for in terms of avoidance.</p>

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<p>I would check with the schools your student applies to. I'm certain he/she is not the first individual with life-threatening food allergies and he/she won't be the last.</p>

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<p>Thanks for the suggestion to ask students already there, how their food allergies have fared at a school. </p>

<p>We have already had an expereince with a a summer program, where the chef said, "Sure, we can take care of that" and then proceeded to show us that he did not realize barley was not gluten-free (he was thinking only wheat)!</p>

<p>Good comments too about how much a college freshman should be expected to handle, autonomously, versus some parental efforts and support.</p>

<p>With our daughter's multiple health problems, I had thought that food allergies would be the most easily addressed- but, clearly,I am wrong.</p>

<p>I think I am going to rejoin the food allergy network and ask them about advocacy. Good luck to everyone!</p>

59

<p>Great idea to ask other students, but may be difficult to implement. Privacy standards may prevent health or dining staff from sharing names and medical issues of other students.</p>

60

<p>Does anyone have recent experience with colleges for allergic students? Do any on them offer cooking facilities for them? Those of us with allergic children realize this requires more than just teaching them to make proper choices. First the food needs to be available to them. This is not always the case in schools, restaurants, stores, etc.</p>