Man Dies After Eating Seafood Dish at Ruby Tuesday

[KissMyGrits]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,378064,00.html

I only have a few things to say about this.

1) Being allergic to seafood, I always carry my epi-pen with me whenever I go out to eat.

2) Secondly, I always make sure I tell the waiter or waitress that I am highly allergic to ANY type of shellfish and to make sure that nothing I order comes into contact with any type of seafood.

That being said, I can't say if he did any of that, but with ANY type of food allergy and eating out, you have to be especially cautious because mistakes do happen. I remember one time I went to a chinese restaurant and told the waitress that I am allergic to shellfish. Well, she bring me my wonton soup and I stirred it up a bit and thank God I did, because sitting at the bottom of the bowl was a HUGE piece of shrimp. I called the waitress back over and explained the situation to her and she took it back and brought me a new bowl, but I still couldn't eat it. I was afraid that all she'd done was get some from the same pot and if it was cooked with the shrimp in it, it could've killed me.....

LOVEJOY, Ga. — A man with a shellfish allergy is dead after eating an entree with crab at a restaurant.

An autopsy Monday confirmed that 35-year-old Rodney Hawkins went into anaphylactic shock and died after eating the dish at a Ruby Tuesday restaurant in Lovejoy last week.

Georgia Bureau of Investigation spokesman John Bankhead said Hawkins had ordered a chicken dish that contained no shellfish but was served another chicken dish that contained crab.

But Rick Johnson, spokesman for the Marvyille, Tenn.-based Ruby Tuesday company, told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the server's order pad and the kitchen ticket indicate that Hawkins ordered the Chicken Oscar, a dish with crab meat.

Johnson called the situation "tragic" and expressed condolences for Hawkins' family.

[Zoneboy]

This is really sad to hear, One of our local postal workers died after eating shellfish at a restaurant and he had no idea he was even allergic to it because he had never had any until that night.

I've heard about the epi-pen but know nothing about it. If this is something that can possibly save a life then why don't restaurants keep one on-hand for just such an emergency? I think it should be a law that all public places should have that and a defibrillator readily available for these situations and all personnel should be trained on how to use them.

Several years ago I read about a girl with a severe peanut allergy who died after eating chilli at a restaurant. Turns out that the owner used peanut butter as a thickener and didn't see the need to tell anyone. I'm very grateful that I have no allergies of any kind but for those that do this just proves that you can't be too careful.

[PrettyinPink55]

Originally Posted by KissMyGrits

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,378064,00.html

I only have a few things to say about this.

1) Being allergic to seafood, I always carry my epi-pen with me whenever I go out to eat.

2) Secondly, I always make sure I tell the waiter or waitress that I am highly allergic to ANY type of shellfish and to make sure that nothing I order comes into contact with any type of seafood.

This is really sad.
I am deathly allergic to peanuts and nuts of all types, so I have my epipen on hand with me always when I plan on eating out. It's also very important to keep your epipen up to date as well! I had a bad experience with that recently where I had to be rushed to the ER.
I also always tell the waiter/waitress where I'm eating that I'm severly allergic to nuts, and it can affect me even if they use the same pots and pans/utensils while cooking without washing them first.
It's really scary when something like this happens. It's a jolt to the rest of us with food allergies that slip ups can happen!

[KissMyGrits]

Thanks goodness I know about my allergies. I think most restaurants don't have an epi-pen for two reasons. 1) Most people like me carry theirs with them. 2) They are usually only prescribed by a doctor and therefore would be hard for restaurants.

I never used to be allergic to shellfish. That changed when I turned 21 and was eating out at an all you can eat seafood restaurant. I pigged out on everything shellfish related. Crab, lobster, shrimp. You name it, I ate it. On the way home that night, my hands started itching and I couldn't figure out what happened. Well, later on that night, my boyfriend had to take me to the hospital because my face was swollen and my hands were so swollen I couldn't close them anymore.

Turns out, that's when my allergy to shellfish started. My allergist advised me to stay away from all types of shellfish.... Even the tiniest bit can be deadly to me....

Makes me afraid to eat out sometimes..

It's scary not knowing if your allergic to something.

[Zoneboy]

Originally Posted by KissMyGrits

Thanks goodness I know about my allergies. I think most restaurants don't have an epi-pen for two reasons. 1) Most people like me carry theirs with them. 2) They are usually only prescribed by a doctor and therefore would be hard for restaurants.

I can understand that about the Dr.'s prescription but what if someone is dining alone in a restaurant and suddenly has an attack? If the victim is carrying an epi-pen will they be able to use it themselves or does it depend on the severity of the reaction?

[Janice]

How sad. I think if I had an allergy that was potentially fatal, I'd never eat out, and I'd prepare all my own food.

[Larenz09]

That is so sad!

I'm not allergic to anything, but if I don't eat for a while, my glucose level drops to the point where I start to go into a hypoglycemic attack and could possibly go into a diabetic coma.

[robyrob]

Originally Posted by Zoneboy

This is really sad to hear, One of our local postal workers died after eating shellfish at a restaurant and he had no idea he was even allergic to it because he had never had any until that night.

I've heard about the epi-pen but know nothing about it. If this is something that can possibly save a life then why don't restaurants keep one on-hand for just such an emergency? I think it should be a law that all public places should have that and a defibrillator readily available for these situations and all personnel should be trained on how to use them.

Several years ago I read about a girl with a severe peanut allergy who died after eating chilli at a restaurant. Turns out that the owner used peanut butter as a thickener and didn't see the need to tell anyone. I'm very grateful that I have no allergies of any kind but for those that do this just proves that you can't be too careful.

a lot of restaurants don't seem to educate their employees or understand about food allergies when creating their menus, you have to be extremely careful and always assume that someone has made a mistake; if its chinese food, or a place i am unfamiliar with, or a place that is really busy that does seafood I always let my wife taste stuff first and inspect it very closely. I've had enough close calls, and I know that my next exposure will probably be my last, pen or not.

depending on the severity of your allergies an epi-pen really just buys you some more time, shelllfish and peanut allergies get exponentially worse with each exposure.

Originally Posted by Zoneboy

I can understand that about the Dr.'s prescription but what if someone is dining alone in a restaurant and suddenly has an attack? If the victim is carrying an epi-pen will they be able to use it themselves or does it depend on the severity of the reaction?

once you've experienced going into anaphylactic shock you recognize the symptoms pretty quickly and know when to get the epi-pen out, its a pretty quick procedure you could probably do one-handed in just a few seconds.

[KissMyGrits]

It's definitely do-able if your dining out by yourself.

The first symptoms with me is always itchy hands. If that starts happening, I know I'm in serious trouble. So, before I eat, I take out my epi-pen and set it out on the table in front of me. That way, I don't have to go into my purse and get it out. Makes it much easier to get to if something happens.

It can be done one handed. Mine has to be administered in either thigh. It has a hypodermic needle that administers the epinephrine into body. Not fun or painless, but it can be done in an emergency.

I never go into a restaurant like Red Lobster or anywhere that just serves seafood. Too many things can go wrong there! I know my limitations and know when to resist.

Robyrob is right. It really only buys you time until the ambulance gets there. The only thing that will stop a full blown attack is going to the hospital.

The worst thing, is that they can't test for allergies to shellfish. The only time someone knows if they are allergic is when they have a reaction. Which really stinks, because you can eat it once and be fine and then another time you might react.

The BEST place for people with any kind of food allergies is Disney World. Their chefs are specially trained to deal with all kinds of food allergies. The chefs there have always been wonderful. In fact, if you contact them ahead of time, they will gather all of the information about you allergies and the chefs will meet with you personally at any of the restaurants you dine at. If there isn't anything on the menu that you can eat, they will make something for you. Top notch in my book....

[Zoneboy]

robyrob and KMG, Thank you so much for the very informative posts.

[InspectorExstead]

my gosh. that's so scary. i didn't know that they couldn't test allergies to shellfish. that's frightening. i'm not allergic to anything, but my best friend is allergic to tons of things so she's always on the lookout. i would be so paranoid & would never eat out. a lot of employees don't understand how serious food allergies are, which is sad. they definitely need to be trained in that.

[PrettyinPink55]

Oh, I know almost right away when something is wrong. It's an instant reaction. The feeling is like no other.

What gets me is that everything nowadays has "may contain peanuts" or "processed/manufactured in a facility that uses peanuts," or however other ways they can say it. I know it's just to protect themselves, and there's probably nothing there, but I still don't touch ANTHING that says that! It's better to be safe than sorry!!

[InspectorExstead]

Originally Posted by PrettyinPink55

Oh, I know almost right away when something is wrong. It's an instant reaction. The feeling is like no other.

What gets me is that everything nowadays has "may contain peanuts" or "processed/manufactured in a facility that uses peanuts," or however other ways they can say it. I know it's just to protect themselves, and there's probably nothing there, but I still don't touch ANTHING that says that! It's better to be safe than sorry!!

in my high school spanish class, one of the girls was extremely allergic to peanuts. one day a student sitting next to her started eating peanuts & she started to have an allergic reaction. it was pretty scary. has that ever happened to you?

[PrettyinPink55]

Originally Posted by InspectorExstead

in my high school spanish class, one of the girls was extremely allergic to peanuts. one day a student sitting next to her started eating peanuts & she started to have an allergic reaction. it was pretty scary. has that ever happened to you?

Luckily I can stand people around me eating peanuts/nuts, but I am sure to keep my distance from them, and ask them to wash their hands if I'm going to shake their hands, etc. But I know this is going to sound weird, but I can smell when there are peanuts in the room. I know peanut butter has a very distinctive smell especially, but when someone is eating something with peanuts in it in the room, I am usually the first one to notice...weird how that sense is heightened...I think it may be a survival mechanism? Or maybe a sixth sense lol.

[KissMyGrits]

Originally Posted by PrettyinPink55

Luckily I can stand people around me eating peanuts/nuts, but I am sure to keep my distance from them, and ask them to wash their hands if I'm going to shake their hands, etc. But I know this is going to sound weird, but I can smell when there are peanuts in the room. I know peanut butter has a very distinctive smell especially, but when someone is eating something with peanuts in it in the room, I am usually the first one to notice...weird how that sense is heightened...I think it may be a survival mechanism? Or maybe a sixth sense lol.

I definitely think that's what it is. I'm the same way with shellfish. Whenever someone in the room is eating something, I can smell it before I can see it.

The really strange part is that sometimes I can be around people that are eating shellfish and not have a problem. The one shellfish that I seem to have a huge problem with is Shrimp. Anytime, my husband eats it, he has to be in another part of the house and when he's done, he has to wash his hands and brush his teeth before he can touch or kiss me. LOL!!

The reason they can't test for the allergy is because of the way the shellfish allergies morphs. Basically, what happens is that when you eat the shellfish and it mixes with your saliva and digestive juices causes the allergic reaction. My allergist told me that the FDA won't allow them to mimic the process and there are too many variables involved. I wish the could come up with a definitive test for it. I would love to be able to eat shimp, crab and lobster again and not have a reaction.

I know how hard it is for me, I can only imagine how hard it is for someone like you that is allergic to peanuts. They are everywhere and have to be hard to know for 100% that it's safe.