FAACT's Roundtable

Ep. 260: Halloween Thrills and Chills for Young Adults

• Season 5 • Episode 260

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As kids, we often rely on our families to help keep us safe from allergens. But what happens when you’re an adult heading out to restaurants, clubs, or Halloween parties? Today we’re joined by Food Allergy Content Creator, Influencer, and Sarah and Spices founder, Sarah Danna, who’s here to share practical tips for staying safe while still having a fun, worry-free Halloween.

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Caroline: Welcome to FAACT's Roundtable, a podcast dedicated to navigating life with food allergies across the lifespan. Presented in a welcoming format with interviews and open discussions,

each episode will explore a specific topic, leaving you with the facts to know or use.

Information presented via this podcast is educational and not intended to provide individual medical advice.

Please consult with your personal board-certified allergist or healthcare providers for advice specific to your situation.

Hi everyone, I'm Caroline Moassessii and I am your host for the FAACT Roundtable Podcast.

I am a food allergy parent and advocate and the founder of the Grateful Foodie Blog. And I am FAACT's Vice President of Community Relations.

Before we start today's very interesting conversation, I just want to pause for just a moment to say thank you to DBV Technologies for being a very kind sponsor of FAACT's Roundtable Podcast.

As kids, we often rely on family to help keep us safe from allergens on Halloween. But what happens when you're an adult heading out to restaurants, clubs or Halloween parties?

Today we're joined by food allergy influencer Sarah and Spices founder Sarah Danna,

who's here to share practical tips for staying safe while still having a fun and worry free Halloween.

Welcome Sarah, to FAACT's Roundtable podcast. I'm absolutely thrilled and excited you are here because you represent the voice that we need to hear from. This is gonna be a great podcast for listeners because we need to know how to tackle Halloween.

Sarah: Thanks so much for having me. I'm so happy to be here.

Caroline: Well, you're very welcome.

You've already made your mark on social media and connected with so many people in the food allergy community.

So can you tell us a little more about your journey and then what's keeping you busy these days? Like, how did you get here?

Sarah: Yes. So I share my life with food allergies online, Sarah and Spices on all major social media platforms.

And I really started my accounts because I didn't want others to feel as alone as I did growing up. I really hope to be that source of inspiration I wish I had while growing up with food allergies because there's so many challenges and like we're going to talk about today with Halloween,

every holiday,

every stage of life, it comes with new challenges. So just to have someone there that has either gone through it or is going through it can be so helpful.

Caroline: It's always so good to know that you're not alone and it's really good to hear from a peer, from someone who really understands it.

So let's just jump right in and let's focus on Halloween and how as an adult, you enjoy this holiday. Like, how does a young adult, a vibrant young person even begin to tackle this?

Sarah: I love Halloween. I mean, any holiday or any reason to celebrate. I love hosting parties. And I think that's something that ties so closely in with food allergies, is that when I'm hosting, I have full control of the food there and just like the environment in general.

But I also do love going to other celebrations,

going out to bars, clubs, restaurants, even just Halloween events in general, like haunted hay rides and pumpkin painting and pumpkin picking, all the fun things.

Caroline: I totally confess. I absolutely love Halloween too. I mean, just everything about it, the rides, the corn mazes, anything I can get my hands on. So I love that you love that.

So now what tips do you have for people who might be going out to, say, a restaurant, a club or a party? So they're not going to stay home, but they're going to head out.

Sarah: So let's start with restaurants first. I think anytime you're dining out with food allergies, but especially on very busy times like Halloween night, I think it's a great idea to maybe email or call the restaurant ahead to ask your allergy questions.

And that way you get really in depth,

detailed answers. And then also you know when you show up that most likely they will be able to handle your food allergies the way you need them to be handled.

And you're not hopping around to different restaurants trying to find a place on a very busy night. And then of course, like once you're there, of course, tell the waiter about your food allergies re ask those questions so you make sure that all the info was correct.

But I do find it really helpful to email or call ahead and then for bars or clubs, one of the best things that helps me is just before I go,

I will pick a staple drink. I think drinking with food allergies can be very challenging just because it can be very hard to find ingredient information about alcohol brands.

So personally, for my food allergies, a margarita is usually a safe bet. And I know what, like tequila brands are safe for my allergies. So kind of preparing myself that way going into it, and then that way when I'm ordering, I can say, can I please have a margarita with this specific brand?

I have food allergies.

I love for them to make it in my cup instead of a shaker. But one really important tip that I've experienced,

especially on busy nights like Halloween, is watch them make your drink because even if you ask them to clean the shaker, they might just rinse it under the water for a few seconds instead of actually thoroughly clean it.

So I think that's really important on Halloween, especially when it's super busy.

Caroline: These are great tips that I think we don't think about at all, especially if it's a busy night and Halloween night, you know, a bar and a club is just packed and so to.

How about parties? If you're invited to a party, what strategies do you use?

Sarah: Yeah, so when I'm invited to a party, I'll usually reach out to the host beforehand to see what food they're going to serve or what drinks they're going to serve. And then we decide maybe they get some things that are great for my food allergies or I'll bring things to share.

And then for drink wise, same thing goes.

I know what specific alcohol brands are safe for my allergies. What like mixed cocktails in cans are safe and if I want, I'll also bring a drink as well. That way I'm covered and I don't have to worry about it.

Caroline: That's really smart. Just bringing your own cocktails.

That's actually very, very clever. I'm sure you have a cute little ice pack thing that you carry and that's a really, that's really a great idea. And actually just kind of on that note too, how do you navigate making sure you don't grab somebody else's drink?

Because you know, when we go to a party often people will buy you know, reusable cups or, or things like that. Do you have any tips for that?

Sarah: I usually just always hold my drink. Fits in like a solo cup,

just label my name on it.

And I love using like a drink cover.

There's sticky ones that are just you throw out or ones that like are scrunchy and it like goes over your drink. And of course just being safe around alcohol, but also that way people know like that's your drink, that's my drink.

And also that no one touches like the rims and nothing falls into the drink.

Caroline: I have never heard of drink covers. This is pretty cool. This is really exciting and informational. And of course you know, I'm going to run and tell my kids. I have a 22 year old daughter and a 27 year old son.

So you know who's going to be listening to this podcast,

staying on that theme of Going out on Halloween and maybe going to a party.

What ideas might you have about carrying epinephrine and informing your friends about your food allergy and then how to handle one if it arises. So if you've been invited to a party and you're heading out, what are these strategies?

Sarah: Yeah, this is one of my favorite topics to talk about leading up to Halloween because I'll often see like on TikTok, people mention like, oh, I'm just gonna go out with epinephrine because it doesn't fit in my purse or like with my outfit.

And one thing I always say is like,

you might think it makes your costume look more uncool to carry a bag or carry epinephrine, but there's nothing more uncool than having a reaction and not having your epinephrine with you.

So just bring a purse. And one thing fun you can do is pick a costume that you can have a bag with it or that it like complements the costume and then it's just like part of your outfit in general and makes the costume even cooler.

And then for handling allergic reactions and talking to your friends about how to use epinephrine. I love teaching my friends how to use epinephrine. It just makes me feel more empowered if I'm going to have a reaction that I have their support if I need it.

And not just for Halloween, but year round,

every couple of months, I'll like reteach them and just show them again. That way it's like top of mind.

And just really talk to your friends about possible symptoms or maybe what will happen if there's a reaction. And I'm sure they'll be very receptive to it if they are true friends, because true friends will go above and beyond to keep you safe.

Caroline: That is such a great point you make. And can we talk about that for just a minute?

When you're making friends, like, when do you start talking about your allergies and then how do you start bringing that in? Because you are very confident and comfortable with your health and then working with your friends.

Do you have any tips you could share with our listeners?

Sarah: Yeah, I don't think there's one, like, perfect time to bring it up. But personally I just love for it to, like, come up naturally. So if they invite me to an event or a restaurant, I'll mention like, oh, I have food allergies.

Can we go to this restaurant? Because it's really good with my allergies or when we share socials, they'll know right away when my page comes up. So I love for it to just come up naturally.

I feel like it also just gives them the opportunity to ask you any questions or anything they're wondering. And I think as a friendship goes on,

you can talk about it more and they'll become, like, even more receptive.

Caroline: And I think your suggestion is so brilliant of every few months or so or before a holiday or before a big time,

just refreshing everybody. And I love that, that it's ahead of time and not like the day of or something where maybe that can feel stressful. I think that's so clever.

You're so smart.

So now with Halloween just around the corner, what are your plans?

Sarah: I think my plans this year, every year I do something different. So I've gone to restaurants and clubs and bars, but I think this year I just want something a little bit more chill.

I'm thinking about hosting a Halloween party.

Something super low key. We'll have some snacks. I'll probably bake something, and we'll watch some Halloween movies.

Caroline: I love that. And so now when you host parties,

how do you, like, strategize it for not only yourself, but then for people attending who might have allergens or dietary issues that are different than yours? So how do you go through that process?

I think that'd be kind of interesting for us to hear your thoughts.

Sarah: Yes. So I love hosting, and I will usually send an invite out on an app called Partyful. And I love it because you can create a questionnaire. And then on that questionnaire, I have, do you have any allergies or dietary preferences?

Is there anything else I should know? Are you planning to bring any foods? And that way I get a good understanding of what foods people are bringing, what foods I should make, and either preferences or dietary needs I should look out for.

And I always. One thing about me is I always go above and beyond. Even if it's just like a preference, someone doesn't like mushrooms, or,

I don't know, they don't like chicken, I am totally fine making another option for them because I found, like, the more I've done that, then when I'm invited to other people's places,

they ask the same questions. Do you have food allergies? And they cater to me very well. So I feel like that's a good way to maybe even teach your friends how you want to be treated.

And I,

I allow certain allergens in my home. I don't bake with certain allergens. It really just depends on which one it is, but I just really take it party by party and we'll usually make lots, obviously lots of options that I can eat.

Caroline: These are absolutely great tips. Partyful. Oh, my gosh,

that's amazing. I love that because you're right. If you start asking people those questions, you're now establishing the new norm.

Sarah: Right?

Caroline: This is just so normal. Why wouldn't I ask you if you have a dietary restriction or a religious restriction or something different, or you just have a health condition going on at the very moment and you know, or you prefer wine over beer or soda over sparkling water?

I love that. That is. These are so clever.

Well, thank you again. These have been very good, very practical tips that I think everyone can sink their teeth into.

But let's turn our attention actually to you and Sarah and Spices. I love your website,

I love your Instagram.

I mean, all ages can follow it, but you are so authentic. So can you talk about what Sarah and Spices is and how people can find you?

Sarah: Yes. So I'm on all major social media platforms, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube,

and it's really just a space where I share my life. I share tips, maybe things I'm going through, how I handle events like Halloween or telling like a new job about my food allergies or really anything in between.

And I also love sharing a little bit more about how my parents handled my food allergies growing up, because I have a lot of parents with children who have food allergies that follow me.

So I love sharing those tips for them as well.

Caroline: Well, you're so important to parents because when my kids were little, I was always looking for the mentor, the examples like the, the people to aspire to in terms of safety and confidence and how they're handling their allergies.

So I could see where you would have a large population following you who's older than who's learning from you to share with their kids. But then I also can see how a peer would just love you to death just because you've got all these great ideas and you're very pragmatic and just very clever.

And our time is actually winding up together. This went really, really, really fast.

So before we say goodbye today, is there anything else you want listeners to hear from you?

Sarah: One more tip I have, especially for Halloween. But all year round, especially with food allergies, it can be sometimes challenging to find safe food drink options, especially as I was mentioning, fine ingredient of alcohol brands.

So one of one things I love doing is if I go to a bar or a restaurant. I'll just order a sparkling water and ask them to put a lime in it so it looks like I'm drinking with everyone.

No one knows there's no alcohol in it, but then it just takes off the pressure of having to find safe alcohol. And I personally feel better when I don't drink and I choose not to drink fairly often.

So that's like one fun way to feel included without having to feel that pressure. And you can do it with anything, like even just ordering like a Pepsi or a Coke.

No one's going to know that it's not actually a cocktail.

Caroline: That is clever.

Well Sarah, thank you so much for your time. You're very busy and we just appreciate you authentically sharing your life with us and your tips and tricks because the goal is just to keep everyone safe and having fun and especially on Halloween.

So we wish you you a happy and fun and safe Halloween. And again, thank you for being here.

Sarah: Thank you so much for having me.

Caroline: Once again, I would like to say thank you to DBV Technologies for being a very kind and generous sponsor of FAACT's Roundtable Podcast. Please note that today's guest was not sponsored by DBV Technologies or compensated in any way by the sponsor to participate in this specific podcast.

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