A Cure for Food Allergies - Together we can make anything happen
You don’t opt-in to food allergies. They are blind to race, to age, to gender. When you live with food allergies, they lie in wait for a food misstep, for a moment when you let your guard down, or misplace your trust, or just touch the wrong thing at the wrong time.
Food allergies are a chronic condition recognized as a disability in the US with protection afforded under the Americans with Disabilities Act.
If life is full of uncertainty, life with food allergies takes the uncertainty part to a whole new level.
“… Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less." (Marie Curie)
We don’t know what causes food allergies -- why some people are food allergic and others are not -- though diverse theories are under investigation.
Adding to the frustration, food allergy testing to diagnose food allergies is an imperfect science, though it has improved over time. Testing can sometimes deliver false positives, and while test results can be predictive of one’s likelihood to react to an allergen, they do not predict the severity of allergic reactions. Even reactions themselves do not predict the manifestation and severity of the next reaction.
What we do know is that the incidence of food allergies is increasing at a rapid rate. The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention reports that the prevalence of food allergies in children increased by 50% from 1997 to 2011. The ‘disease’ now affects 1 in 10 adults and 1 in 13 children in the US or roughly two children in every classroom. Chances are high that if you don’t have food allergies, you will know someone who does.
There are a host of developing therapies targeted towards reducing the immune system response to allergen exposures – some in practice at clinics and private practices, some awaiting FDA approvals – but there is no ultimate solution, yet.
More basic research is needed to find the underlying cause of food allergies that can lead to that ultimate solution.
“Because the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do.” (Steve Jobs)
Allergy Force recently spoke with Ilana Golant, Founder of the Food Allergy Fund, to explore what they are doing to move the needle on a cure for food allergies. F
The Food Allergy Fund is actively working to raise awareness of the problem, elevate the national dialogue and raise funds for food allergy research.
After less than a year of existence, the Fund made its first award --- a $100K grant – to a team of 10 researchers collaborating across 6 institutions in the US and UK. The Fund’s second grant will be announced this Fall at a planned Food Allergy Summit in DC.
What’s remarkable about the Food Allergy Fund is its speed to market, from idea and ambition in early 2018, to awarding its first 6 figure grant in under 12 months.
It’s also remarkable that the Food Allergy Fund is entirely volunteer-staffed and 100% of individual donations are used to support research for a cure.
“We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.” (Winston Churchill)
More than 100 people across the country – from Tampa to LA and places in between -- have donated hundreds of hours of their time to make the Food Allergy Fund happen. According to Ilana, “Volunteering with the Food Allergy Fund is a great way for people to expand their personal networks, make a positive contribution to finding a cure for food allergies, and grow from idea sharing.”
Ilana tries to match the Food Allergy Fund’s needs with volunteers’ skills, ideas and passions. She tries to speak with every volunteer on a monthly basis to gather ideas, understand their interests and keep them engaged. She’s passionate about creating a meaningful volunteering experience for all volunteers, and brings a warm and personal touch to the process that reflects the heart she pours into building the Fund.
What’s ahead?
Ilana and her team of volunteers are deep into planning future summits.
They can use help with:
- Spreading the word on social media—starting with following the Food Allergy Fund on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
- Sharing content that’s engaging, compelling and fresh and tagging the Food Allergy Fund when you do
- Fundraising if you are able to donate
Please raise your hands to volunteer and share your time, energy, creativity and expertise. It’s easy; just send an email to [email protected]. You have the power to make a difference.
People with food allergies look healthy, just like you or me, but one bite of the wrong thing and they can become ill. They can die. They do die. Suddenly. Tragically.
The hope for millions is that through more fundamental research we can find a cure for food allergies. They are a solvable problem.
Dr. Ruchi Gupta, Pediatrician, Professor of Pediatrics and Director of SOAAR at Northwestern Medicine, Clinical Attending at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago said it best at the inaugural Food Allergy Summit in 2019….
“…together we can make anything happen.”
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