S.O.S from Food Allergy Sufferers
Since the Great East Japan Earthquake, some products have disappeared and other products have been in short supply at supermarkets in many parts of Japan. When I found two days after the quake that the supermarket near my house had no stock of rice grains, I felt a kind of panicked all the more because my younger son has food allergy to some ingredients, such as flour, eggs, milk, and kiwi. When he took a bit of these allergens, he could have anaphylactic shock, which may threaten life. Even if I could buy bread or noodles at supermarkets, I couldn’t feed them to him. Could you imagine how relieved I was when the supermarket had started to sell rice grains again in a week after the quake?
That was what I had experienced in Utsunomiya, Tochigi. The situation in more damaged area must be much worse. I have been worried about those who stay in shelters and suffer from food allergy. Is allergy-free food distributed to them?
Some allergy-free food not distributed properly to those in need
According to Mainichi Newspaper, the sufferers from food allergy have had trouble getting allergy-free food and some life has been threatened in the devastated area. The reason is not only that local governments have very little reserve of allergy-free food, but also that the situation for receiving supplies has been unsatisfactory.
But the situation seemed to turn a little better at the end of March. The activity of Morioka Allergic Kids Circle: MILK(盛岡アレルギッ子サークル・ミルク), which organization consists of allergy sufferers, was introduced in the Mainichi news. Let me summarize the story as follows;
The voice of the circle staff spread around shelters one day: “Does anyone here have food allergy?” The staff visited shelters one by one to ask if there were any having allergy problem and bring allergy-free food to each sufferer.
There was one allergy patient at the age of 17, staying at one shelter in Rikuzentakata-city, Iwate. She has strong allergy to flour and shells. Her house was destroyed by the tsunami, and her mother and she had stayed at the shelter. Though she had been waiting for something she could eat to be delivered, all available at the shelter were bread and noodles. She had decided her mind to try some bread. She thought that it was not time to say, “I can’t take this and that because of my allergy.” Then an itchy rash came out all over her body. She couldn’t sleep and her sheet was stained with blood.
The nightmare had continued until the support from Morioka Allergic Kids Circle arrived. Since then, her condition has gotten better thanks to the allergy-free food the circle handed her. Now her mother and she live in a temporary housing. She hopes that the public administration will consider the problem of allergy and take action.
The following is the blog of Morioka Allergic Kids Circle: MILK(盛岡アレルギッ子サークル・ミルク) (Japanese only)
http://arerugi1.blog63.fc2.com/
I’m going to donate some money for those who have food allergy. I strongly hope that the allergy-free food will continue to be distributed properly to each patient in shelters.
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