School’s almost back in session and that means it’s time to gear up for all-nighters, early-morning classes, and endless supplies of not-so-healthy dining hall foods. Life can get overwhelming when you pair the stress of college with food allergies. Slow down, take a deep breath, and read on for tips and tricks for staying healthy with food allergies at college.
Talk to your school’s registered dietitian
Many colleges provide access to a registered dietitian through health or dining services. Make an appointment with him or her to ensure you’re getting all of the nutrients your body needs. For example, if you’re allergic to dairy, you may need more calcium. Knowing which foods compensate your dietary needs is important to your overall health and helps power you through your days of classes, studying and activities!
Plan for your social life
College is a time of new experiences, and there are more opportunities of risking food allergy safety. Plan ahead to avoid unnecessary risks such as consuming alcoholic beverages that do not have ingredient labels.
Get to know dining services
It’s important to meet and communicate directly with dining services. They’ll be working daily to provide safe food, so you’ll want to establish and maintain a relationship with them. As early as possible, have an in-person meeting and discuss your food allergies with the person in dining services who manages the school’s food allergy plan. This will usually be a director, manager, registered dietitian or chef. (FARE)
Emergency snacks
Food allergies or not, having access to healthy snacks in your dorm room and to take with you before leaving for class is essential. Enjoy Life Foods creates delicious on-the-go snacks made with no artificial ingredients. In their clean ingredient labels, you’ll find ancient grains such as buckwheat, teff and quinoa flakes. In addition, all Enjoy Life snacks are verified non-GMO, certified gluten-free and free-from the top 8 common food allergens: wheat, dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, egg, soy, fish and shellfish. Be sure to stay on top of your healthy back-to-school shopping!
Support groups
Having food allergies can often feel isolating. Check if your school has a group for students with food allergies, celiac disease or other dietary restrictions. You’re not alone!
For more tasty tidbits from Enjoy Life, check out 8 ways to enjoy allergy-friendly chocolate chips.