Luann by Greg Evans and Karen Evans for July 26, 2017

ain’t it a shame to have food allergies

I know several people with multiple food allergies.

Not fun. :(

Take that contaminating hot dog and bun away from her food Luann, or she won’t be eating anything. And just to make sure people understand, Vegan is not the same as having food allergies. Vegans can eat fries.

Food allergies suck, not just because of what you can’t eat, but because people think you can somehow control it, and you’re just being picky.

Sprouts and garbanzo beans are cool, especially right out of the refrigerator. Sometimes, they are downright cold. Actually, I don’t mind sprouts and I LOVE garbanzo beans.

Food allergies can kill. I had a coworker (now retired) who was very allergic to shellfish. Someone brought a food platter to the office that had a dip with shellfish in it (pieces so small, no one could see them), and after he had a few chips and dip, we had to call paramedics because he began losing blood from his stomach.

Garbanzo beans are full of lectin unless you soak them and cook them in a double boiler.

From yesterday: Wow, there sure were a lot of Pru bashers — surprising. And some support. Examples:

@Chuck374 Pru needs to remember that not everybody wants to grow up to be like her. An out of work actor waiting tables for a living. Some of us are realistic about our futures.

@Trilogy wow way to kick a girl when she’s down

I sure share Trilogy’s sentiments on this one. Pru is one of my favorite characters, and makes the strip interesting. She has the potential for generating a lot more interesting arcs. The Fuse is partially a dinner theater, and she’s a good fit there. I hope that this arc isn’t a signal that she’s on her way out. Her strength is that she has a lot more professional experience, talent, and sophistication than many of the locals.

Luann sure doesn’t have any problem chomping down on crap. The Evans’s continue to make Fay interesting. A sweet girl but with barriers to nearly everything. Two or three more lines from Fay on Thursday & Friday may help us to partially understand. Luann is a giver – she’ll help.

Cool’s overrated. I can’t help myself.

With all the food problems possibly retarding her growth – Fay may be a bit older than we thought.

No known allergies here but I’ve been on a strict diet since the mid-’70s. Yep, most of the fun, cool foods are off-limits.

I used to have a long list of food allergies too. Basically almost anything in fast food.

To me, the worst allergy to have would be an allergy to beef, the kind that develops from the bite of the Lonestar tick. I’ve read about it. A major symptom of this allergy is anaphylaxis (a very serious symptom that requires you to hightail it to the nearest emergency room) about 3-4 hours after consuming beef. A person with this allergy can consume no beef, whether it comes in the form of burgers, steak, roast beef, or meatloaf. I have to wonder, though, if a person with this allergy can consume poultry. Can they?

Today’s strip in Spanish, translated back to English:

Luann: “You brought your own lunch?”

Fay: “Yes. Salad. I have allergies to many foods, so …”

Luann: “Really? Like what?”

Fay: “Oh, things in ice cream, hamburgers, French fries, pizza …”

Fay: “Basically the whole social group that makes you feel pleasant.”

Luann: “Hey, sprouts and garbanzos are pleasant.”

I’ve translated “genial” as “pleasant” based on a dictionary. If “genial” is an appropriate analog for “cool,” there were no real changes to the dialogue today in the translation.

Can Vegans eat Ice cream and drink milk?

Sympathies for her. My mom has a tomato allergy, which makes a LOT of food in the US require a special order. Seriously, you ever stop and look at how many things we put tomatoes on? It’s crazy.

I know someone who is allergic to dairy, nuts and a few other things…. including mustard .

-

There is also someone I know who can’t have anything Caffeine or Cocoa related. The allergy had progressed from just severe headaches, to now also the possibility of “itchy throat/tongue”, with the closing sensation sometimes, as well. No Chocolate, no skin care products or food products with Cocoa Butter or the alkalis that have any cocoa related elements. When we go food shopping, it’s amazing how many products look like they contain no Cocoa or Caffeine, until you start reading the labels….

“Getting To Know You….” (♬)

“Food For Thought”

“They Don’t Grow On Pleasant-tries, Do They?”

“Taking Stock In An Exchange”

“When You Break The Bread, The Ice Is Sure To Follow”

“She Who Melts It, Dealt It”

“The Gradual Floe Of Conversation”

“Bedtime, For Garbanzo”

“Mustang Salad” (♬)

“Your Annual Celery”

“No Jack…But Plenty of Beans Talk”

“Salad, Go Round The Roses” (♬)

Or

“Minding My Peas And Cu-cumbers”

Okay I join some of my fellow Luann commentors on this blog, where the hell is my comment from last night? I wrote it, checked it out a couple times before bed, which is my habit, but it’s not there this morning. Wha??? Any thoughts? Let me just summarize what I said: Fay is a nice kid, hope we see more of her, Leslie is showing concern, which may mean he does have a conscience, Luann is being Luann, and Pru should not be attacked so much for feeling like she failed. She did, but I think she is the type who will learn from that and do a lot better going forward.

Would have been a tad funnier if Luann had a stack of about 50 hot dogs on her plate…

Awwwww, what a Sweet, Kind, Gentle Soul this Fay Is. That’s one of the Great things about this Strip. For every new Slimeball character Introduced, (like Jonah Daytona, Dirk, Les Knox and Elwood Druit) they also manage to bring aboard new folks We actually CARE about, like Prudence and Fay, here.

Too Bad that one day, Fay will probably end up falling in Love with and Marrying a Belching, Knuckle-Dragging, Chest-Thumping, Ill-Tempered, Carnivore……,

When my cousin was about 12 years old, she developed an allergy to dairy products. Entering into her teens, she couldn’t eat pizza.

Some people with food allergies are very sensitive. Even tiny amounts can trigger an attack, and the tiny amounts don’t necessarily have to be eaten. Sometimes the smell is enough.

I’ve been watching this arc with interest, because I’ve been involved in kids theater camps for years. I don’t think Pru particularly messed up just because there weren’t a lot of kids, because that is hard to get the first time you have a camp, and depends on a lot of factors. They could learn and do better next time. But where she REALLY dropped the ball, and the reason I wouldn’t let her handle it again, is that she didn’t KNOW there weren’t going to be a lot of kids. For a program like this, you need to have the kids sign up in advance. Planning to have children simply show up at the door is a recipe for chaos. The fact that with her experience, she had no plan for advance sign ups shows serious incompetence.

Also, I don’t know why people think the child is vegan. She has allergies, which is totally different. Vegans could eat fries for one thing. Being vegan is a choice and you can quit any time you want, allergies mean you get sick if you eat the wrong thing.

Today’s “Dear Abby” has this same topic of kids with food allergies. The letter writer was very ignorant, but the comments were good: http://www.uexpress.com/dearabby/2017/7/26/1/exasperated-mom-has-little-patience-for

What’s being said is that other teens/peers (like Axel) tend to ostracize those who do not (or in this case, can’t) eat certain foods: “Dude! Ya can’t eat pizza?!? Bummer!” It’s likely led partly to Fay’s shyness. Luann is being supportive, if a teeny bit oblivious-looking as she munches on a hot dog. BUT, they are bonding – which is what I like about this story arc! :)

My 23 yo daughter has a severe and very sensitive milk protein allergy. I can attest to the “cool social food group” line. No pizza parties growing, not many invites to parties because of the allergies and so on and on

Does she have them, or does her parents tell her she have them?

7

Very interesting movement in the story today. It really is a “whole-Fay” focus day. With pipe in hand and my coffee mug at my side, I offer these points that I am pondering:

1. With this full focus on Fay today, it seems more possible that Fay will become a more permanent character. I am a little surprised by this, as she is a wholly different age/character dynamic from the rest of Luann. If she is being written in for some longer term role, I am extremely curious how Greg will handle this… especially with my hope and presumption that Greg will avoid the “Cousin Oliver” sort of contrivance.

2. I am amazed at the extensive talk about various sorts of food allergies in the comments today. As a biologist, I, of course, knew these various allergies existed. But, the pain, significance, and heartfelt worry expressed about these allergies by so many here was to me quite eye-opening. I am far more fortunate than I had realized that I have absolutely no known allergies, and no one in my family exhibits any sort of allergies as well.

3. While I can readily understand the “social food group that makes you cool” sentiment Fay is expressing… and I feel her pain at feeling “different” from the others at her school, but I do hope that Fay (as a teen) is now beginning to realize that food and food choices are a relatively minor aspect of socialization and that she can overcome this feeling of being “different”. I mean, I know it can still be hard for her, but I would suspect it was far more difficult when she was, say 4-10 years old than it should be now that she is (perhaps) 13-15 years old.

4. While it IS hard to feel “different”, I think that in 2017 it is a bit easier than it was in the past because SO MANY kids and adults have more specialized diets (being vegetarian, being vegan, being lactose intolerant, being on a gluten-free diet) that I would suspect that Fay has others at her school who have a similar sort of dietary restriction….

… they are dealing with so that she wouldn’t feel quite as alone about this.

5. I REALLY like the encouragement that Luann is showing here today. By saying that “sprouts and garbanzo beans are cool” she is showing a lot of maturity, and is showing again how she interacts well with kids. Perhaps this whole arc is designed to be about Luann coming into a real awareness that she wants to become a teacher… and we see that this leads here to show a lot more focus, drive, and determination to reach that goal?

6. Luann is being depicted here as being left-handed. I believe this has been a discussion point before, so I think that is has been established that she has been shown being left handed several times. But, notice that Fay is also apparently left-handed. This has me wonder…. a) is Greg choosing left-handedness for Luann (and Fay) in a purposeful way to encourage or highlight left handed folks, or b) do Luann (and Fay) end up being left-handed because Greg feels that flows better from an artistic stand-point where folks read and view the coming from left to right?

Coffee is finished and just ash remains in the bowl of my pipe. Back to work for me.

Right….I eat food because it’s in the popular “social food group” Whatever happened to just sustenance?

PIPE:

Neurogenetics:

https://www.nih.gov/news-events/news-releases/residual-echo-ancient-humans-scans-may-hold-clues-mental-disorders

I have a hard time understanding what causes food allergies and how they’re treated. From what I understand parents can inadvertently cause allergies by raising their children in too sterile an environment, but can’t some allergies be alleviated by medicine like Benadrill or something?

I am allergic to bananas, avocados, and cherries.

It seems like there’s been a marked increase in food allergies since I was a kid. When I was in elementary school, I’m largely certain that nobody in the school had any severe peanut allergy, since peanut butter and bread was always available at lunch, and no one ever went into anaphylactic shock from touching surfaces contaminated with peanuts. I knew one kid with dairy allergies, but that just made him stuffed up a little, and wasn’t life threatening. Epi pens were only around for bee stings it seemed. Maybe since this was pre-internet era and I was dealing with a smaller sample size, it’s always been as wide spread and I just didn’t hear about it.

My daughter and grandson are allergic to dairy. It’s amazing how many people don’t know that no dairy means no butter as well as no milk. Not to mention the restaurant that told her the cheese bread was vegan. Uh…

Allergic to cool food!

Tomorrow: Luann downs another dog!

My daughter with a very sensitive milk protein allergy eats vegan to be safe but loves her steak, chicken and fish!

No one is allergic to pizza. You can be allergic to various ingredients in it, but pizza can be made without dairy, gluten and tomatoes.

Poor Fay! It’s hard enough having a host of food allergies, but to choose to be vegan on top of all that (Monday’s strip, 24 VII 17) seems almost masochistic to me….

Let’s clarify something here. Most people who claim to be allergic to X, aren’t.If you are truly allergic, keep that epi-pen with you at all times.Possibly most people who think they are allergic to X are actually sensitive to it (or some chemical in it). That means they may have reactions to that substance – migraines, stomach problems, etc.Allergies kill, sensitivity doesn’t, at least not directly.That doesn’t minimize sensitivity issues: some can be severe enough to be debilitating to many people – sick enough you want to die but won’t.Sensitivities are on a spectrum, sometimes bad enough that even doctors might call it an allergic reaction – unless they are writing for a picky scientific periodical.All people are sensitive to some chemicals, but for most of us we are completely unaware of it.One last point – many people make a big deal about chemicals in their food. Duh! Everything you can see, taste, feel, smell, is composed of chemicals. And only chemicals. Everything you think is good for you (or bad for you) is just a bunch of chemicals. Basically are are natural chemicals in that they are produced in nature, by nature – and humans can also produce most of them. [Only a few chemicals could be tryly considered man-made, and even those come from natural chemicals.]OK, The Chemist will get off his soap box (made of a bunch of chemicals!]

If you’re a vegan with multiple food allergies I doubt you’d be able to get enough calories to live.

This is a really strange arc. If Fay is a new and significant character that’s fine. But why did we have to have a failed theatre camp in order to meet her? Hopefully some dots will be connected.

It has been a long time since Luann was interesting. A failed drama camp – surprise, only 2 campers signed up for it – just to introduce Fay? Who is she going to play off of being the sole camper? I would not buy Luann hanging with a teen, and no one else in the strip is Fay’s age. It just feels sloppy and boring as of late. Tiffany and Gunther are far more interesting as are Jack and Emo/Luann and Bernice and Knute and Krystal. By the way, silently sending Delta away has never felt right.

Pt 1: Fay looks like an American Indian. (That would be the indigenous people of the Americas, not people from India.) From what I’ve heard and read, Amerindians often have problems eating foods not native to the Americas. The foods historically available in the Americas tended to be very low in calories, and so the bodies of American Indians evolved to be especially diligent about storing up fat. That’s why in the modern America where basically anyone can eat as many calories as they want, so many Indians are so fat. They also are more likely to be lactose intolerant than are people of the European races. That’s because dairy farming didn’t exist in the Americas prior to the arrival of European settlers, and so there was no evolutionary incentive for the gene which codes for the production of lactase to remain active after they were weaned. On top of that, American Indians are far more likely to have problems with alcohol. Alcohol isn’t really a food, but it is something which tends to be pretty devastating to races of people who have had limited historical exposure to it. You see the same problem with Polynesians. Of course, a lot of the problems with alcohol have to do with behavioral choices which are a result of the inherent psychological traits of the individuals as well as of the various circumstances they face. That said, the mechanism that metabolizes alcohol in American Indians is different from the mechanism that metabolizes alcohol in people of other races, and some Indians suffer an allergic reaction if they drink it. Actually that might be a good thing considering how many other problems they tend to have with alcohol. There seems to be a general tendency for races of people who were more geographically isolated throughout their history, to suffer more health problems in the modern world, than races who were less geographically isolated throughout their history.

Pt 2: It’s true of American Indians, and I imagine of Polynesians and Australian Aborigines as well. I assume it’s partly because they haven’t been exposed to as many things throughout their history, and so haven’t had the opportunity to evolve tolerances to as many things, and also because they’ve had less opportunity for interbreeding with people of other races and therefore have had less opportunity to acquire genetic alleles which would give them tolerances to various things. I doubt Greg was thinking about any of this stuff, but it’s interesting to note.