Simone's Story

I have had my food intolerances and allergies for over 10 years. Before they developed I enjoyed a varied diet, eating out with friends and always had an adventurous palate. This has not changed, accept now I have to be a little more cautious when choosing ingredients, dishes and new culinary experiences!

My food allergies are severe and include: nuts, fish, shellfish, fresh citrus and tree fruits, wheat and coffee. My intolerances are limited to dairy produce and chocolate. As dairy produce is sometimes hard to avoid, I am able to cope with a small intake of milk in tea and the odd helping of cheese, but if i overdo it, I certainly know all about it! I can feel very sick, have low energy levels and headaches.

Fortunately, dairy free produce is becoming much more widely available and also much tastier. There are a variety of milk alternatives on the market including soya milk, rice milk and oat milk. Lovely dairy free yoghurts, creams, ice creams and custards are widely available to buy from most supermarkets and health food shops and are often much tastier than the real thing. I have also found dairy free butter and cheese alternatives too. Many of the Free From ranges often make cakes and biscuits with dairy free ranges.

Living with my allergies and intolerances means taking responsibility for eating; I often phone ahead at restaurants to check the menu options and always let friends know what I can and can't eat ( I often take food substitutes with me to help them out!) and finally, there are many fantastic cookery books available which offer lots of free from treats. If anything living with my allergies and intolerences has increased my range of cooking and the ingredients I use. I am healthy, happy and enjoy food enormously.

When first diagnosed I was confused and upset about what I could and couldn't eat, but once I became used to it and felt the benefits of an exclusion diet there was no looking back.

Simone