My mom, Soccer Girl, and I just got back from a one week vacation to Walt Disney World. It’s certainly among our favorite places to visit, and not just because of all the great rides and attractions. Most visitors walk around Disney in amazement, marveling about how they think of just everything. Thankfully, that goes for food allergies too. One of the reasons that I enjoy going is the great attention they pay to the needs of those with special diets.

Soccer Girl has a food allergy.   As such, the world can be a scary place. Ever since she was diagnosed 6 years ago, we’ve put an allergy plan into place for her. It’s kind of a like a “WWSGD” that helps her cope with any situation where food is involved.

Disney too has it’s own food allergy action plan. Based on my experiences, during this trip and prior ones, it works and can make your vacation a whole lot more relaxing.  Based on my experiences,I’ve put together a list of do’s and dont’s for anyone planning on going to Disney who has to deal with food allergies.  I hope you find it helpful in planning your visit to WDW.

DO be sure to tell people at any restaurant that you have a food allergy. The Disney protocol seems to be to have you talk directly with a manager or chef, and this works fairly well.

DO read lists of ingredients, just like you do at home. At the counter service places, the front desk cashiers have “the book” that lists ingredients for all menu items, and in some cases has ingredient lists and nutritional information pulled directly from the packaging. Yes, this is one sad way to learn that Toy Story Pizza Planet serves frozen pizza from distributor, but you know with confidence that you are getting food that works for you.

DO plan in advance. You can make restaurant reservations (currently) 90 days before your visit. Tell your reservationist that you have allergies so it’s noted on your reservation. In most cases, they will have access to the phone numbers so you can call the restaurant directly and talk to the chef about any special needs you might have. This is important because…

DO call restaurants in advance if you are visiting because of a certain menu item. For instance, at Le Cellier in the Canada pavilion at EPCOT, SG was prepared to have the dish she had last year, their most yummy Portobello Mushroom Ravioli. However, when the chef came out during the meal to go over menu options, this was off her list because the dish now contains pine nuts. She was most disappointed, and while she willingly had the prime rib, it really wasn’t what she wanted. Lesson learned, I walked into the Morocco pavilion a couple of days before our planned meal there to ask if the dish she’s been obsessed with was ok to eat. Wouldn’t want to take the chance of breaking her heart again, so in the future, I will definitely call ahead to discuss menu items. I assume this is the way you would want to go if you had more complex allergy issues because they can do things for you if you give them enough advance warning.

DON’T assume that there is not a menu option for you. I met a woman from Venezuela on line at Pizza Planet who had a son with celiac. She had been relying on food she brought from home or bought locally, supplemented by fruit and other things on the regular menu. Unfortunately, that night she forgot to bring something for him, and was anxious about having him see pizzas for everyone and not being able to partake. She had no idea that you could get a gluten-free pizza there if you specially requested it. I knew because I saw the Amy’s label in the allergy book there. I got to chat with her and give her some advice about how to find gluten free items for him. The boy was so happy to find a pizza he could eat – a pizza, I might add, that looked way better than the ones we had.  Ask at every counter service, and when you make dining reservations, call ahead and see what the options are.

DON’T be surprised when hiccups happen.   At Pizza Planet, I assumed the front cashier needed to mark “allergy” on our order. However, because the manager and I agreed there were no nuts/chance of nuts in the pizza, and they didn’t have any nut products in the restaurant, eliminating the chance for cross-contamination, we were just going to get a regular pizza. By marking allergy, I ended up spending time waiting for a special pizza that wasn’t coming. But that was my fault as much as anyone else’s!  We also had the experience in the Germany pavilion where SG decided she wanted a pretzel. The woman working at the pretzel cart wouldn’t confirm or deny nuts in the pretzel, insisting I seek out a manager, who was working at the back of the pavilion. I headed back there, and looked for him, but he wasn’t around. They called him on walkie-talkie, but after 10 minutes, he was a no-show and I gave up. She ended up with popcorn, and was just as happy.  In one counter service place, the chef made a special batch of chicken nuggets for us, and told us to only take the food from him directly.   A staff member kept trying to place nuggets on our tray, but we told him no, and another staff member corrected him, reminding him of the protocol.   Thankfully, these hiccups showed that Disney tends to err more on the side of safe, avoiding sorry wherever possible.

DO bring your epi-pen, benadryl, or whatever other medical precautions you have to deal with a reaction.  Just because you are on vacation doesn’t mean you give up following your usual protocols for your allergies.

DON’T be rude.  Be pleasant, say please and thank you.  This may sound stupid and obvious, but these people are going the extra mile for you.   Let them know their efforts are appreciated.   We got wonderful service at some of the counter service places, the aforementioned Le Cellier and Restaurant Marrakesh, Boma at the Animal Kingdom Lodge (where the chef walked us through the buffet and offered to make a special dessert for SG) and Fresh at the Dolphin.  Special mention must be made of Kona Grill, where the chef made a special “Big Kahuna” for our little Kahuna, and Tutta Italia at EPCOT, because they didn’t give up in helping SG find a dessert that worked for her.  They seemed happy to do it, and I was certainly happy to have it happen.  So often kids with food allergies feel alienated and left out at mealtime.  It was great to have her feel special at mealtime.

DISCLAIMER: There are my experiences at WDW, and mine alone. Your mileage may vary. I encourage you to do your own research to help meet your own individual needs.  For more inforomation on food allergies, visit the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network.  Disney also maintains their own food allergy page you can check out for more info.

The website Delicious Baby just posted a great article on traveling with a food allergic child.  It’s one of the few sources I’ve found for information that gives you the feeling that “yes I can travel on an airplane and my child will survive.”  I remember reading something on a Disney-related site (written by a parent and not affiliated with Disney) that pretended to give info about how to handle food allergies at Disney, and it started out by saying “of course, with a food allergy you can’t fly…”  Not true, and Delicious Baby gives you great advice on how to do it successfully. 

In full disclosure, I am credited with contributing to the piece, but that doesn’t make it any less accurate. 

As a member of the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network, I regularly get emails about product recalls due to undeclared ingredients.  A few are informative and sometimes they apply to a product that I occasionally buy.  Many are regional or about an allergy we don’t have.  However, this one really stood out in ye ole in-box…

**THE FOOD ALLERGY & ANAPHYLAXIS NETWORK SPECIAL FOOD ALLERGY ALERT NOTICE**

PECAN ALLERGY ALERT

Dreyer’s Grand Ice Cream is recalling 1.75-qt. packages of “Dreyer’s Slow Churned Light Caramel Delight” ice cream and “Dreyer’s Slow Churned Light Butter Pecan” ice cream due to undeclared pecans.

How can Butter Pecan ice cream have undeclared pecans?  Doesn’t naming the flavor “Butter Pecan” imply that pecans will be present in the ice cream, or at the very least you stand a strong chance of having pecans in your ice cream?  Does Butter Pecan ice cream generally have “artificial butter pecan-ish flavor”?  Has it really come to this, people?  Do the lawyers think we’re that stupid?

For those living under a rock, Halloween is next week.  According to the National Retail Federation, Halloween is the second-biggest decorating holiday of the year after Christmas.  Not surprising then to see vacant storefronts turning into specialty stores painted orange and black, only to be painted red and green on November 1.  Americans love Halloween.  We love trick or treating for candy, having parties, decorating our houses, and dressing up in costume. 

For a parent of a food allergic child, Halloween means something else altogether.  It means mine-fields that have to be navigated.  Practices that have to be maintained.  Precautions that need to be taken. 

It’s been four years since we found out about Little IT’s allergy.  In that time, we have worked tirelessly, aided by the support of the Food Allergy and Anaphalxis Network and great resources like Food Allergies For Dummies, to educate ourselves and others about how to manage her allergy.   No sharing foods or snacks, she can only eat stuff that we know is safe, etc etc.  For the most part, she feels “normal”, no different from any other kid.  But there’s something about Halloween that causes angst. 

Last night was a great example.  Little IT’s girl scout troop held a Halloween party.  There was a cake served at the party that came with a label that said “may contain peanuts or tree nuts.”  Personally, it seems like a legal warning, with very little chance of contamination.  But part of our allergy management plan is to avoid foods like that, both for her own safety, and to train her and others to read allergy labels.  I had stepped away from the party momentarily to pick up dinner for IT Boy.  When I returned, she had a piece of cake in front of her that I had to remove.  That got her very upset.  I had two options for her as substitutes – little black and white cookies, and Hostess Cupcakes.  She looked like she was going to cry and said she wanted nothing.  The other girls immediately raised their hands saying they would prefer the cupcakes to the cake.  One sweetheart volunteered to “test” the cake to see if it seemed nutty (if only that worked).  But, no, Little IT would not be consoled. 

Truth be told, she was a bit worked up from the incident and the excitement of the party.  I took her aside and told her that the cupcakes were the same ones she always begged me for.  She replied that she didn’t like the chocolate icing.  I told her I would give her 2 cupcakes and she didn’t have to eat the icing on either of them, which seemed to pacify her.  Another girl who has celiac saw the cupcakes and wanted one.  Her mom said it would be a waste because she can only eat the icing.  I countered with the knowledge that Sarah is only eating the bottom, so why shouldn’t she be able to just eat the icing?  Then other girls started going for the cupcakes, and I had to tell them they were just for the girls with food allergies. 

So, what did we do wrong there?  Well, first off, even though I was at the party, I needed to tell the other parents to NOT give my kid food unless I’m okaying it.  If I hadn’t been staying, I would have talked to a trusted friend to have her do the maintenance.   I had originally planned to bake my own cupcakes, but this week has been really hectic and I never got the chance.  The rule at school is that if someone brings in something that she doesn’t know is 100% safe, she says no thanks, tells me when she comes home from school, and we give her a special treat.  The thought of the special treat is usually enough to curb the disappointment when she cannot partake in a group celebration.   But last night, for the first time, I got the feeling that she was perfectly ok with letting her guard down, and that scared the hell out of me. 

I’m not going trick or treating with her this year, as I have a prior commitment that evening.  A very good friend is, and I know she won’t let her eat anything on the route, which is a smart idea whether you are allergic or not.  When she does bring the candy home, we sort through it into good stuff and questionable/definitely not good stuff.  Years ago, I came up with the idea of buying back the not good stuff from her, and then matching the dollar amount of purchase to give to FAAN or Unicef.  It has worked out pretty well so far, and the looks on the faces of parents when Little IT yells, “I’ve got some great stuff in here to sell to you, Mom,” is priceless.  I hope I can continue to maintain the excitement of the holiday for her, while at the same time keeping her safe and making sure she’s like all the other kids.