ever since i was an infant i have been allergic to dairy protein...no i'm NOT lactose intolerant...it is totally different. my allergy to dairy is life-threatening and hopefully with this group i can help raise awareness of the severity of food allergies. along with my milk allergy i am also allergic to nuts, honey, cantalope, and other non-food substances such as dust, mold, animals, etc. when i was younger i used to be allergic to dairy, soy, corn, cantalope, carrots, cinnamon, eggs, and many other food i cannot remember. as a child it was extremely hard for me to cope especially at birthday parties when everyone was eating pizza and cake and i was stuck with nothing or at school when someone would get a piece of chocolate for answering a question right and i would be given a pencil. i am 18 now and instead of growing up to be frail and sickly like my doctors predicted i am healthy and as active as any other 18 year old. although i may eat different foods than other people, i think it is for the better. like everyone else i love food and without allergies i would never have tried half of my favorite foods such as wildberry tofutti or rice dream. plus my whole family has high-cholesterol and my dairy-free diet has kept mine at 109. also, just because one can't have ice cream or cookies doesn't mean you have to slave over making everything home-made. there are a lot of stores that sell foods that even my family likes better than the real thing! hopefully this group will help many sufferers of food allergies and if you have any questions feel free to contact me.
thanks,

Elizabeth Tabor