A recent article in the Baltimore Sun by an author with a honeydew allergy made me think of some of the reader correspondence and forum threads about unusual food allergies.

Estimates are that about 90% of allergies are to the so-called “big eight” (dairy, wheat, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, eggs, and soy), which means that at least 10% of people with allergies can’t eat a food other than this group. The actual number of people with less common allergies is likely significantly higher, since many people are allergic to more than one food.

If you tell waitstaff at restaurants about your uncommon allergy, do you feel you get the same treatment and understanding that you’d expect for disclosing a severe nut allergy? Are you frustrated with poor disclosure on ingredient labels? Consider this an open thread on less common food allergies.