Spotlight of the Month – @freefromden

This month I have the amazing Grace from @freefromden as my spotlight this December. I have had the pleasure of sitting alongside Grace in a panel at the Allergy & Free From Show and have heard about her amazing journey so far having food allergies. I hope you enjoy the blog!

1. Tell us a little bit about yourself?

Hello, my name is Grace Wilkinson. I am a 4th year medical student in Edinburgh and the person behind the Free From Den blog. DEN stands for my allergens: dairy, eggs and nuts. The aim of my blog (@freefromden / freefromden.wordpress.com) is to create recipes that are both allergen free and full of flavour! When I started my blog 8 years ago, I was 13 and had just started baking. There were less ‘free from’ options available in shops then but like many allergy families, mine went to so much effort to ensure I never felt like I was missing out. The incredible allergy companies in our supermarkets now, like Creative Nature, are making life so much easier! My grandma has always baked wonderful things for me and began teaching me my favourite recipes in school holidays. I decided to use my newfound enthusiasm for baking to recreate all the recipes I wanted to try, without allergens.

The summer I started baking, Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, a student from my high school in London, tragically passed from an anaphylactic reaction. Suddenly allergies were in the headlines. Natasha’s story is now familiar to the allergy community with the monumental impact the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation are making in research and creating a safer, more considerate and inclusive world for living with allergies. I was, and still am, deeply impacted by Natasha’s death and the idea that we had walked past each other in the corridors without ever knowing we were quietly managing similar allergies and their associated challenges, especially in the teen years. Hearing Natasha’s story and her parents’ plea for awareness inspired a sense of urgency for me to begin raising awareness. Recipes felt like a way I could make a positive impact. When I began posting, I discovered a whole network of people like me who were determined to prove that allergy friendly food, and life with allergies, could be exciting and joyful with the right adaptations! From then onwards, I was immersed in a community of bloggers with allergies and I began to find advice for living with allergies alongside food inspiration, which helped me feel empowered and a lot less alone.

As a medical student, I have become more confident at using my voice and expanding the ways in which I raise awareness. Previously, I consulted on the Patient Charter by Allergy UK and collaborated with the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation. I am now part of the British Allergy Education Network, regularly attend the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology conferences and am doing what I can do improve education for healthcare professionals. This summer, I had the opportunity to speak alongside Julianne and other inspirations of mine on a panel at the Allergy & Free From Show in London. As someone who has attended the show and felt the power of connection and community, it was a huge honour. A true full circle moment! If anyone reading this is interested in getting involved with the blogging community, I can promise it is the most welcoming and empowering environment to create change and improve your own life with allergies along the way.

2. What inspired you to write your dissertation on GP Experiences of Managing Adult Allergy in NHS Lothian?

At the University of Edinburgh, we have the opportunity to do an intercalated year as part of our medical degree. This meant I could choose a different subject to study for the year and I knew that it was the perfect opportunity to focus on allergy services in Scotland. I had been interested in this subject ever since moving here as a teen and discovering that allergy services are very different across the UK! I chose to do my BMedSci degree in primary care and saw this as a chance to learn more about the foundations of general practice in the UK and the role of a generalist. This set me up well to consider how and where patients with allergies are treated in the health service, alongside allergy training and education for GPs. I am very fortunate to have supportive and enthusiastic supervisors for the project and am continuing the project further. I am very grateful for what I have learnt along the way, both in terms of research skills and becoming more educated in allergy as a specialty in the UK. It has even led to getting involved with other research projects about allergy training and services.

3. What advice do you have for those with food allergies and travelling abroad?

My advice for travelling with allergies comes from a combination of personal experience and tips picked up from the community. The main message I would pass on is to be confident and trust your instincts. It is completely possible to have a wonderful holiday where you make all your own food and equally I have eaten brilliant meals out with the right precautions. We all have our own comfort zones and I think ensuring that the people you travel with, or meet along the way when solo travelling, understand your allergies is important. I find eating out in the UK challenging, so the expectation that I would eat out all the time in a different language may not be realistic and managing expectations is important. My favourite piece of advice is to find your own ways to enjoy local food when travelling. If you can stay in an apartment with the option of cooking, you can buy local ingredients and make your own dishes! I did that this summer when staying in a more remote part of France, as I felt nervous about the butter-based cooking but wanted to try the famous local potatoes. Exploring supermarkets is so much fun and many have expanded free from ranges now. While vegan doesn’t necessarily equal milk and egg free (as Julianne has raised awareness of!), I found so many options in the vegan section of German supermarkets.

In terms of safety advice, allergy cards have transformed my experiences of eating out in countries where I can’t speak the local language confidently. I am now an ambassador for Equal Eats because I believe so much in their value to empower and equip travellers! Thanks to allergy cards, I have enjoyed delicious pizzas in Italy, desserts in France and even eaten out more confidently at home with the extra level of communication they provide. Equally, the cards have made me safer when staff identified cross contamination or hidden allergens in meals which I might have expected to be safe. I would also recommend carrying an ‘emergency’ snack with you when travelling so you don’t feel pressured to out if hungry but unsure about safety. Ingredients that you could add to a plainer menu item like a salad are also helpful so you don’t miss out on nutrition or flavour!

4. As someone with food allergies yourself, what advice can you give others who are navigating university with food allergies?

Explaining your allergies and comfort levels to friends is really important. Allergies are so common now that many people will have a friend or relative with an allergy, but we all manage these differently. For example, I am more comfortable bringing my own food or cooking with other people. I often invite friends over or suggest ‘pot luck’ style events where everyone can bring a dish. Not only is this fun, easy and affordable but you can also enjoy your own food without feeling left out.

When first starting university, there might be more meals out or social events where alcohol is involved. Understanding the allergens in alcohol is important and something that people often forget! While you shouldn’t ever feel pressured to drink, if you do want to it is a good idea to have a few things in mind that you feel safe with. I also think explaining allergies before events is important to avoid any misunderstandings in the moment. Socials or dances are often loud and not the best environment to discuss ingredients!

Finally, I would recommend taking advantage of the increased independence you have at university compared to high school. For example, society trips away usually involve staying in hostels and cooking your own food compared to school trips where you might end up eating something different to everyone else. I recently went on a wilderness medics trip away and had the best time cooking cosy meals to enjoy in the snowy highlands!

5. Can you tell us about the Allergy Angle Group that you have put together for those with food allergies and intolerances?

Since starting the Free From Den blog, I have made so many friendships within the allergy community. I never imagined that posting cupcakes would lead to holidays, meals out and allergy charity fundraising with other people with allergies who are now among my closest friends! During the pandemic, I started ‘The Allergy Chat’ to provide connection at an isolated time and I was keen to create something similar for adults with allergies. We are a group who are often forgotten about but for whom resources and connection is increasingly important.

It is hard to put into words the immense sense of joy that connecting with other people with allergies brings. We are not alone! I was introduced to one of my friends at a party because of our shared allergies and we immediately hit it off. Allergies weren’t the only thing we bonded over, but there were so many similar experiences or behaviours we have that made me feel completely understood. We discussed how wonderful it would be if more people could access this kind of friendship, as it isn’t always easy to be honest or share experiences. The Allergy Angle Group has since involved online meet ups, regular discussions on a chat and next year I am hoping that more of us can connect offline! If any readers would like to join the group, you would be most welcome. All the details are available via my Instagram @freefromden or via this link: https://freefromden.wordpress.com/allergy-angle/