Food Glorious Food

The question of food allergies, and whether or not they could be considered a disability, has been heavy on my mind today. I talk about my own atmospheric allergies quite a bit on this blog; does that mean I'm discounting those who can't eat certain foods? Whether or not I am intentionally or subconsciously trying to set myself apart from food allergy sufferers, I DO personally believe that having an allergy to food is a disability. It reminds me of the documentary series "Afflicted", currently on Netflix. The program follows seven people with chronic illnesses that are difficult to diagnose--and while most food allergies CAN be diagnosed, one line from the teaser trailer of this show stands out in my mind as relevant: "It's like being allergic to life." That must be something like how it feels to go through life with food allergies. You have to ask "does this have nuts in it?" or request "no eggs" for EVERYTHING. When's the last time you went out to eat and there was NOTHING on the menu with wheat? Or at least one soy product? Recently it's even become an issue at my church, even in social situations. Which makes sense. I mean, if we have cake to celebrate a pastor's birthday, you'd better believe, unless that pastor HIMSELF is allergic to eggs, there will be eggs in the cake. Or cookies to celebrate the start of the school year! But there are exceptions. Communion for example has had to modify its own offerings to meet the needs of its worshipers today. In researching this point I found the following article, which addresses the issue directly: http://www.beyondallergy.com/allergy-abcs/holy-communion-for-those-with-allergies.php This also reinforces, in my mind, the difference between how church leadership views a problem vs. how society does. If say 100 congregants out of 1,700 suffer from food allergies, a church will provide gluten free wafers during communion! On the flip side, out in the "real world", if 100 people with a disability have difficulty entering a building that 1,700 people have no problem entering on any given day...it could be years before a single thing is done about it:( Let alone the RIGHT thing. I guess this is just the way society operates. Nobody said it was fair. I'd like to think that with the way society is changing: so much more diversity, a large segment ageing, so many more considerations in public places for accessibility to all--allergen-free options will also be on their "plates" to amend.