LivIng with a nut allergy in china

[flowerpowergirl]

We are considering a move to china but our DD has a nut allergy and I have heard china is a v difficult place to cope with this due to lack of understanding of such allergies there. Does anyone have any experience of this please? Thanks

I wouldn't risk eating anything you haven't prepared yourself, and don't use bottled oils for cooking, cook from scratch nothing pre prepared , correct labelling is not strong their strong point.

and take your epipens with you, don't risk the ones available there.

and take your own soaps and shampoos.

Hi

I know a few people with this allergy happily living in china and not dead yet

Its like anywhere, sensible precautions. Marks and Sparks have a food hall here for groceries and there are many supermarkets that specialise in imported food with brands you would recognise.

If you are particularly interested in eating street food or very local restaurants then you could be asking for trouble. I had a visitor with this allergy and I keep a note that a Chinese friend kindly wrote in mandarin and showed it to places we are in. Just to reassure ourselves.

Good luck!

Thanks, all good advice

HI we are in Shanghai and my daughter is severely allergic to Cashew nuts. The advice above is all good..I carry a laminated card in Mandarin with her info on it, but sadly, we have to avoid local restaurants, as I know for a fact that even if they read it, they would not do anything about it or take it seriously. Epi pens are impossible to get. We stock up when we go back or get someone to bring them in for us. The hospitals are so far away through terrible traffic and there are no ambulances of the type that we know. we only go to restaurants that we know and the school has a no nut policy, but even there I am sceptical that all families respect it or understand it. It is a worry, but then I tend to worry more about one of us getting seriously ill and there being no ambulances/ not being able to get through the traffic. Please let me know if I can be of any further help.

Agree with the others - no street food and avoid local restaurants.

If you are coming on a 'look see visit' I would ask at the medical centre what precautions they recommend. Nanjing and Beijing have SOS clinics and there is United Family hospital in Shanghai.

I agree with all the other posts and have just added a bit about this in the other thread about moving to Beijing. I like the idea of a laminated card but i would also not risk it in a local restaurant. The expat supermarkets all have lots of imported foods but unfortunately there's no M&S here in Beijing

Thanks all. Our relocation company has arranged an appointment with the hospital for us so we can find out more (great suggestion, thanks) and they have offered to type up a card in mandarin for us to carry around which is also good. Thx again. (No M&S?? How will I survive?! [Smile])