Top 7 Tips For Traveling While Diet-Restricted
Limits on diet doesn’t have to mean limits on adventure
--
You may be food restricted for many reasons. Perhaps you have an allergy, an autoimmune condition, have to maintain a specialized diet to minimize general gastrointestinal symptoms, or you choose a specialized diet (ex: vegan, vegetarian) due to moral reasons.
I have celiac disease which means I have an autoimmune reaction to gluten. I can’t have any food with wheat, barley, or rye, and I need to be careful that my food doesn’t come into contact with these foods. For example, I can’t have gluten free toast that is toasted in a normal, gluten- filled toaster as the crumbs will make me sick.
Traveling with a restriction like this can be extremely overwhelming. However, the more you do it, the more comfortable you become. I was diagnosed with Celiac in 2020 and since then I have become much more comfortable traveling with the condition.
Here are seven things I’ve learned that have made traveling with dietary restrictions much easier.
1) Talk to Your Companions
It is so helpful when the people you are traveling with know that you are food restricted. You may want to talk in advance about how many meals you’ll eat out together, or who will bring what food to contribute on the trip.
Many people are more accommodating than you might think. You simply have to make them aware. If they don’t know your restrictions, you’ll be faced with increased stress at every meal.
2) Research Restaurants
It can be so helpful to do some research on restaurants to eat at prior to arriving at your destination. You may not have the entire trip planned out, but at least look for a few places where you could get a safe meal near your hotel, or along routes you know you’ll take.
This way, you’ll have suggestions at the ready when your travel group is deciding…
