# Food Fadists - STFU **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [June 23, 2012, 5:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037 "2012-06-23T05:33:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/81 "2012-06-24T03:58:51Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > The most shining example was the woman who was here for a 2-day event that included five meals. She obtained a copy of the menus ahead of time and kindly provided us, in advance, a meal-by-meal itemization of everything she couldn’t eat. At first we thought this was awesome - it was much better than those people who wait until the meal _is being served_ to announce their dietary requirements. But then we started looking over her list, and started to notice how her allergies contradicted themselves from one meal to the next. Now, see, I’ll ask for the menus in advance, but I _won’t_ tell you how to cook anything. I’ll determine what I can and can’t eat, and if necessary bring my own provisions/fend for myself. That meant on one business trip I lived for a couple days on french fries, watermelon, and chocolate pudding but hey, for just two days it wasn’t going to kill me and actually I _like_ all three of those. I didn’t insist on tomato-free pizza or ask for a special meal during the buffet. I just didn’t eat hardly anything during the buffet other than the aforementioned chocolate pudding and watermelon. Seriously, people - if you have to skip a meal or eat oddly for a day or two it sure as heck beats a _genuine_ allergic reaction. Those with real allergies don’t cheat, at least not without substantial penalty. And, in case anyone was wondering - my allergies were diagnosed by an MD allergist, who used some blood tests, yes, but also food challenges and skin testing to confirm the results. Two trips to the ER also confirm that my allergies are not in my head or the result of the latest fad but are, in fact, real medical problems. I wish I could afford to be re-evaluated by a specialist as it is now 30 years later and I’m pretty sure some things have changed (I have unquestionably acquired a couple new ones) but my health insurance company won’t authorize it, saying there’s no need as I haven’t had a serious reaction in years, and I can’t afford to pay for it out of pocket. \* \>sigh\<\* ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/82 "2012-06-24T04:20:58Z")
> [@](#): > > I’ve lost count of the number of times all the vegetarians and vegans — the ones who were making us jump through hoops for the first 3-4 meals their group had — mysteriously stop being vegetarians/vegans when they see the big juicy steak being served at the final dinner. Sometimes someone can eat a limited amount of an item, but not for every meal. My daughter limits her animal source foods, for instance, even though she does enjoy big juicy steaks. So she’ll eat veggie for breakfast or lunch. > [@](#): > > Seriously, people - if you have to skip a meal or eat oddly for a day or two it sure as heck beats a _genuine_ allergic reaction. Those with real allergies don’t cheat, at least not without substantial penalty. Sometimes I have to choose between passing out from a low blood sugar, or eating something that I’ll pay for later on. ---
**Author:** ![Enkel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/df705f/32.png) [@Enkel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enkel)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/83 "2012-06-24T04:32:19Z")
> [@ugly ripe tomato](#): > > :eek: I’ma go throw out my antique Thanksgiving tableware set now… I don’t want to sit down to dinner staring at a horny turkey gravy boat. Technically, your tableware is poultry porn. :eek: ---
**Author:** ![fumster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e9c0ed/32.png) [@fumster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fumster)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/84 "2012-06-24T04:47:54Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > There are quite a few places which don’t put black pepper in every single savory dish. Really, what are they? Maybe if they’re French they’ll use white pepper (which is just mature pepper with the outer husk removed). Pork, poultry, beef? The first thing you do is season it with salt and pepper before you start to cook it. Hollandaise? yep, add a little red pepper. The flour used to dust fish before frying it? Seasoned with pepper. Just about any soup, stew, gravy, or sauce will have red, black, or white pepper in it. Almost every Mexican, Indian, Thai, Korean, or Vietnamese dish will have some sort of chiles (red pepper) in it. l ---
**Author:** ![al27052](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/41988e/32.png) [@al27052](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/al27052)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/85 "2012-06-24T05:03:52Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Now, see, I’ll ask for the menus in advance, but I _won’t_ > > Seriously, people - if you have to skip a meal or eat oddly for a day or two it sure as heck beats a _genuine_ allergic reaction. Those with real allergies don’t cheat, at least not without substantial penalty. > > - \>sigh\<\* Yes. I used to eat shrimp all the time, sometimes as much as a pound a week or more. Then I almost died after a lovely meal at Red Lobster. My throat closed up, I broke out in hives all over my body, and it was _not a good evening_. I don’t eat shrimp any more. _Ever_, even though I love it. Even if it didn’t kill me, I’m not going to eat shrimp anymore, because I don’t like it when my throat closes up. I’ve had the same reaction to Brazil nuts, avocados, and some other foods. These allergies come and go, and I just avoid those foods during times when I’m allergic, because I really don’t enjoy the sensations of being unable to swallow, and barely able to breathe. The shit is not fun. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 5:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/86 "2012-06-24T05:05:49Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > I can’t eat black or white or red pepper… Um, you do know that black pepper and red pepper are completely unrelated and that your claiming sensitivity to both makes you look like one of the food faddists in the OP, right? ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/87 "2012-06-24T05:12:41Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > What those of us who retain the ability to digest milk as adults find irritating are all the non-dairy-tolerant who aren’t content to simply not eat dairy themselves but want to take it away from everyone. Is this really a thing? There are lactose-intolerant people who somehow seek to prevent others from consuming dairy? How? ---
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/88 "2012-06-24T05:18:03Z")
Apropos of nothing: Chickens scare the fuck out of me. ---
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/89 "2012-06-24T05:20:14Z")
Don’t get me wrong, I’ll eat chicken. It’s tasty. But the only good chicken is a dead chicken. ---
**Author:** ![Nocturne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9fc348/32.png) [@Nocturne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nocturne)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/90 "2012-06-24T05:35:04Z")
I live with my sister, who is gluten-intolerant (celiac). If she ingests gluten, it throws her GI system completely out of whack and she generally ends up in the hospital dehydrated because of puking/diarrhea issues. One of my close friends from high school has the same problem, as does my boyfriend’s mother. Another friendly acquaintance has the wheat allergy. She cannot even kiss her husband after he’s consumed wheat products because she’ll break out in facial hives. Sounds nasty. I end up eating and cooking gluten-free often simply because I cook for my sister (she’s a med student on rotation, meaning at least 5 days a week she’s at the hospital working for 12-16 hours at a time). It does irritate me that so many people have jumped on the “gluten-free” bandwagon, or at least it did at first. But now that my small city has multiple grocery stores that carry a lot of gluten-free baking and cooking components, I can’t really complain – it makes cooking for my sis a lot easier. So I guess there’s a good side to these fads. Some people just have to be the most special daisy in the field everywhere they go. If it’s not about food, it’ll be about something else. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 5:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/91 "2012-06-24T05:46:14Z")
The only thing I’m allergic to is penicillin, and that’s not a food, so I don’t care. I’ve been told that that could also trigger an allergic reaction to blue cheese – is that true? Not that I care, since I don’t like blue cheese, I’m just curious. I can’t have caffeine, due to the fact that it triggers my seizures, but that’s also quite easy to avoid. (Although will bars make Irish coffee with decaf if you ask them nicely, and leave a big tip?) > [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > There are quite a few places which don’t put black pepper in every single savory dish. > > And while I do cook most of my meals at home, I also enjoy eating out. > > Do you also tell people who have mobility problems that they should just stay home, because it’s too much trouble to accommodate them? If one tiny pepper flake causes you to spend a week in the bathroom? Yeah, I’d probably suggest you stay home. Oh, and please, don’t give us the details. We KNOW you have bowel issues. I don’t want to hear about them. ---
**Author:** ![keturah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e95f7d/32.png) [@keturah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/keturah)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 5:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/92 "2012-06-24T05:56:42Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > There are quite a few places which don’t put black pepper in every single savory dish. > > And while I do cook most of my meals at home, I also enjoy eating out. > > Do you also tell people who have mobility problems that they should just stay home, because it’s too much trouble to accommodate them? LMAO!! You are something. Yes, Lynn you should stay at home. Keep your creepy intestinal problems including exosive ass syndrome at home. If even one speck of black pepper is a problem, dont eat out. Really. Even if they are hover round accessable. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 8:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/93 "2012-06-24T08:55:00Z")
> [@dropzone](#): > > Um, you do know that black pepper and red pepper are completely unrelated and that your claiming sensitivity to both makes you look like one of the food faddists in the OP, right? I can eat bell pepper, if that’s what you mean by red pepper. Someone else seemed to use “red pepper” as a synonym for cayenne, which I can’t eat. And I’m sensitive to more than one food. I can’t eat any raw allium, but I can eat cooked alliums just fine. I don’t know why. > [@keturah](#): > > LMAO!! You are something. Yes, Lynn you should stay at home. Keep your creepy intestinal problems including exosive ass syndrome at home. If even one speck of black pepper is a problem, dont eat out. Really. Even if they are hover round accessable. Nope, not gonna stay home. I’m going to enjoy myself as much as I can, while I can, and that includes eating out at a lot of places that don’t insist on peppering stuff to death. And what makes you think that I use a wheelchair, powered or not? I don’t. I walk. I do use a walking stick, or a quad cane, but I walk. I’ll admit that I don’t walk very fast, and that sometimes I’ll need to sit down after walking for an hour or so, but I do walk. Or I drive my car. Now, my doctor has offered to write me a prescription for a power chair, but I don’t need one, and I don’t want one. I’ve used a store cart a couple of times when I was recovering from a long illness and absolutely HAD to shop, and I prefer to walk. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/94 "2012-06-24T12:05:29Z")
> [@fumster](#): > > God the web is full of stupid. I was looking up allergies to vinegar (hadn’t heard that one yet) and ran across this gem:Yes, teeming masses, the magic alkaline vinegar. So THAT’S what I’ve been doing wrong in the lab. My glacial acetic acid has been acting as a base. Thanks, random posting on the Internet! ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/95 "2012-06-24T12:21:59Z")
> [@Guinastasia](#): > > The only thing I’m allergic to is penicillin, and that’s not a food, so I don’t care. I’ve been told that that could also trigger an allergic reaction to blue cheese – is that true? Not that I care, since I don’t like blue cheese, I’m just curious. It can - it doesn’t always. Most docs will recommend that those with penicillin allergy avoid bleu cheese, although if you’ve been eating bleu cheese without a problem they’ll say OK, but watch out for reactions. There is, after all, a difference between eating something and having it injected as a penicillin shot, and difference between the stuff that makes bleu cheese blue and the refined antibiotic even if they molds are related. ---
**Author:** ![Princhester](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/3e96dc/32.png) [@Princhester](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Princhester)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/96 "2012-06-24T13:10:28Z")
> [@Simplicio](#): > > Almost no one gets HIV infections from blood transfusions anymore. Obviously the precautions we take to screen blood units for HIV are far out of proportion to the actual problem and we should stop wasting money doing it. And while it is a somewhat different point to the one you are making, peanut allergy _deaths_ may not be very high, but highly unpleasant and potentially lifethreatening _reactions_ may be. Also, as I understand it in many people reactions get worse with exposure. So given the prevalence of knowledge of peanut allergies, one would expect many people to have a bad (but not fatal) reaction and to then become cautious, meaning few deaths. This doesn’t mean there wouldn’t be deaths if precautions weren’t taken. I don’t really have a position on the issue, but as you say, the logic - of going from low death numbers to a conclusion about the problem being minior - is lacking. ---
**Author:** ![lorene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/65b543/32.png) [@lorene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lorene)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/97 "2012-06-24T13:48:13Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > Sometimes I have to choose between passing out from a low blood sugar, or eating something that I’ll pay for later on. You do have a third option, which is to always carry an emergency snack. No one \*has to \*choose between the two options you presented, especially not someone who has years of experience with disabling food sensitivities as well as diabetes. Common sense. ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/98 "2012-06-24T14:18:11Z")
> [@Kimstu](#): > > Fast food places and other establishments that make up fixed-recipe dishes from mass-produced and mass-marketed ingredients could certainly do this. For restaurants that change their menus and recipes according to what they think looks best in the market and/or garden today, though, it might not be feasible. Is this really true, though? I haven’t worked at a high end restaurant, but I imagine someone has to develop the recipe and tell the rest of the cooks how to make each dish on tonight’s menu. Can’t \*someone \*write it down and scribble up a quick reference sheet? It’s not like photocopies are prohibitively expensive. But actually, I’ve never ever had a problem with a nice menu changing place knowing what’s in their food. They’re usually awesome and will often send a chef to the dining room who’s actually eager to find out what she can’t eat and makes her something wonderful off menu. It’s like their own personal Iron Chef Challenge moment. (Note: seems to help to go at really slow times!) I have had far more problems with mid level diners and such, who don’t know what their “cheese” sauce is made of, because they don’t make it on site and someone threw away the can. So we choose something else. > [@Jennmonkye](#): > > In almost every single case, (and I promise you, I’ve paid attention and am not exaggerating–I’m looking at you vegans, too), the guest who inconvenienced their host with special meal requests, EATS THE WEDDING CAKE :rolleyes: My daughter, like many, seems to have a limited intolerance (not allergy) to gluten. Not all of her intestine is damaged (yet) so she can still digest some gluten, but not as much as you and I can. She can manage about 1/2 a slice of whole wheat bread or the equivalent in a day. More than that, and she’s up at 1:30 in the morning throwing up. More than that on a regular basis and she gets bronchiolitis and stops growing and the doctor mutters about calling DCFS for Failure To Thrive. Long term, gluten intolerant people who don’t stop eating gluten have higher rates of diabetes, lupus, rheumatoid arthritis and a host of GI cancers. So unless you’d like a lecture with Powerpoint slides, how 'bout you don’t decide you know more about my daughter’s medical needs than her doctor and I do, and decide that because you see me allowing her to enjoy three croutons on her salad, or a small slice of the cake, that means I’m a lying hysterical drama whore when I ask you if there’s flour in the gravy? She’d rather have the cake than the gravy, and she can’t have both, unless you’ve thickened the gravy with cornstarch. I’m not asking to be difficult, I’m not asking you to make a separate batch of gravy, I’m asking in case she actually CAN have the gravy. I mean, I do agree with you that there are lying hysterical drama whores, and yes, they annoy me to no end. I have one friend who is “allergic” to cilantro, but she loves fresh coriander leaf. :smack: But please realize that not everyone who makes an exception for the cake (which has immense cultural importance, as well as being the tastiest thing at most wedding dinners) is doing so to piss you off or is even being inconsistent with the doctor approved diet plan. > [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > Sometimes I have to choose between passing out from a low blood sugar, or eating something that I’ll pay for later on. Well, that’s just silly. They make allergen free meal replacement bars you can carry in your pocket. Or you can make your own. Ultimately, I think you’re responsible for having something with you so you’re not passing out from low blood sugar and scaring the shit out of everyone around you. > [@Nocturne](#): > > It does irritate me that so many people have jumped on the “gluten-free” bandwagon, or at least it did at first. But now that my small city has multiple grocery stores that carry a lot of gluten-free baking and cooking components, I can’t really complain – it makes cooking for my sis a lot easier. So I guess there’s a good side to these fads. It is good for now, but I know sooner or later the fad will disappear, and then the products will disappear, and that makes me sad. ---
**Author:** ![Spice\_Weasel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spice_weasel/32/5435_2.png) [@Spice\_Weasel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spice_Weasel)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/99 "2012-06-24T14:20:29Z")
> [@fumster](#): > > Who diagnosed the allergies: Naturopath, Homeopath, or Chiropractor? > > Here’s a tip: if you are in a pit thread and you can’t tell who’s being pitted, it’s probably you. Doctors, you dipshit. Twice. ---
**Author:** ![billfish678](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7bcc69/32.png) [@billfish678](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/billfish678)\ **Post date:** [June 24, 2012, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037/100 "2012-06-24T14:25:36Z")
> [@Princhester](#): > > . > > I don’t really have a position on the issue, but as you say, the logic - of going from low death numbers to a conclusion about the problem being minior - is lacking. But on the flip side were people dropping like flies BEFORE people realized peanuts were deadly to some? Yeah, the ant-vax basic arguement that we don’t need them because there isnt a problem now is stupid because BEFORE we started using them there were major problems that the vacines greatly reduced. I suspect that was not the case with peanuts. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/food-fadists-stfu/626037.md?page=6)