Safety First

Until Subway starts enacting some food care changes, readers, it's up to us to keep our food clean and safe. I've thrown in a lot of tips for Subway customers with food allergies throughout this blog, but for the purpose of convenience, I've compiled a list. (Keep in mind that these tips aren't just for those with allergies; you can follow these tips if you just want a clean sandwich, too.)

• Be explicit about your food allergy; tell the workers what you're allergic to. Be clear.
• Ask the worker to wash the knife or get you a clean one. Rinsing the knife in cool water isn't enough; make sure they wash it with warm water and soap.
• Make sure the worker is wearing clean gloves. Ask to see them put the clean pair on.
• If your sandwich hangs off of the edge of the prep paper, make sure they clean the counter before preparing your sandwich.
• Check the food bins for bits of food that don't belong there. If something you're allergic to has dropped into another bin, avoid that ingredient or ask them to open a new package of it.
• And, finally, don't be afraid to be insistent. True, you might annoy the Subway worker a little bit. But avoiding a potentially fatal reaction is worth looking like a finicky customer.

As Lisa Cipriano Collins writes in her book, Caring for Your Child With Severe Food Allergies, "When considering which foods to eliminate based on the chance of cross-contamination, you will need to reactivate your common sense and use it constantly."

Collins provides the following list of allergic reaction symptoms:

"Feeling of anxiety or dread
Redness of skin and/or hives
Warmth and swelling of skin
Itching and/or swelling of lips, throat, and tongue
Itchy eyes, coughing, sneezing, hoarseness
Wheezing
Chest and throat tightness
Nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps, diarrhea
Shortness of breath
Increased heart rate
Loss of consciousness due to rapid and severe drop in blood pressure"

Hives






If you start to experience these symptoms, use your EpiPen (if you have one on-hand) and seek medical attention immediately.