Dietary Needs

An Apple a Day...Is Not for Everyone
Food Allergies January 9, 2018

An Apple Day…Is Not for Everyone

Food Allergies January 9, 2018

How One Meeting Eliminated Apple to Create a Safe Space for a Food-Allergic Attendee Last month I met a woman with an apple allergy. Yes, an apple allergy. I’m sure some of you can’t believe it, but it’s a real thing, and it can be fatal. While I’ve known others with an apple allergy, Leticia’s is the most severe I’ve encountered. As she explained in her registration form, she is “highly, deathly allergic” to apples, “both ingested and inhaled from others eating nearby.” This was vital information to know about her, since I was analyzing and coding catering menus to…

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Turn-it-teal
Food Allergies Food Safety October 18, 2017

Turn-It-Teal for October & Thrive! for the Holidays

Food Allergies Food Safety October 18, 2017

The Turn-It-Teal project began in 2014 as a way to increase awareness around food allergies. Now it’s a movement and it’s keeping kids safe on Halloween. Every year, children across the country dress up as their favorite heroes and action figures to collect those precious sweets, door-to-door. However, there is a growing challenge these kiddos face. For many, candy is just a decadent one-night sugar coma.   For a growing number of kids, the unknowns in that handful of candy, can be life-threatening. And while overeating candy is going to lead to a stomach ache for most kids on Halloween,…

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Dietary Needs Religious Dietary Practices September 29, 2017

Yom Kippur: A Time of Reflection and Food Restrictions (G’mar Hatima Tova & G’mar Tov)

Dietary Needs Religious Dietary Practices September 29, 2017

Dietary restrictions come in many shapes and sizes. They can be health-related, but they can also be religious dietary restrictions. For Yom Kippur, religious dietary restrictions are an important part of this holy day. When menu planning, we always need to take into account whether we have any religious dietary restrictions among our attendees, such as the need for Kosher meals. During holy days, it’s also important to recognize the timing of meals and traditional foods to have available. We don’t have to restrict everyone in attendance, of course. However, having traditional foods available to attendees during the traditional pre-fast…

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National Anti-Boredom Month
Dietary Needs July 21, 2017

Banish Boring Banquets – National Anti-Boredom Month

Dietary Needs July 21, 2017

Is it possible to actually die of boredom? Well, scientists have found that people who complain of boredom actually live shorter lives. That’s right. People who complain of boredom are more likely to die young. I thought National Anti-Boredom Month would be a great time to publish a light piece on boring food and beverage.    In a longitudinal study of 7,000 participants over 25 years, respondents who complained they were bored were 40% more likely to have died by the end of the study. Specialists from the department of Epidemiology and Public Health at the University College of London reported…

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Safe Food and Beverage
Dietary Needs July 13, 2017

Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: An Action Plan for Safe Food and Beverage – Part Six

Dietary Needs July 13, 2017

This is part of a series. Check out the following if you would like to see more: Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: The Care and Feeding of Employees – Part One » Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Health and Wellness Programs – Part Two » Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Supporting Employees Dietary Needs – Part Three » Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Legal Implications – Part Four » Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: How to Spot “Covering” in the Workplace – Part Five » In this final post in my series for HR departments, I’ve laid out some guidelines…

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Covering
Dietary Needs Food at Work July 6, 2017

Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: How to Spot “Covering” in the Workplace – Part Five

Dietary Needs Food at Work July 6, 2017

This is part of a series. Check out the following if you would like to see more: Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: The Care and Feeding of Employees – Part One » Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Health and Wellness Programs – Part Two » Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Supporting Employees Dietary Needs – Part Three » Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Legal Implications – Part Four » And now, let’s talk about covering… A meeting planner manages and hosts recruiting events for employers. The events bring in thousands of young applicants to meet with potential employers of major…

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Legal Implications
Dietary Needs Food Allergies Laws & Regulations June 15, 2017

Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Legal Implications – Part Four

Dietary Needs Food Allergies Laws & Regulations June 15, 2017

If you’ve been enjoying this series, make sure you are up to date on all previous installments: Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: The Care and Feeding of Employees – Part One » Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Health and Wellness Programs – Part Two » Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Supporting Employees Dietary Needs – Part Three » Legal Implications Any good human resources professional understands that fostering a safe and inclusive workplace is good business—but in some cases, it is also the law. The Rehabilitation Act of 1973 prevents discrimination on the basis of a disability in programs and…

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Employees-with-dietary-needs
Dietary Needs June 8, 2017

Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Supporting Employees Dietary Needs – Part Three

Dietary Needs June 8, 2017

This is part three in a series of Lessons for Human Resource Professional and they can support employees with dietary needs. To read the first installment in this series: Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: The Care and Feeding of Employees The second article in this series: Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Health and Wellness Programs Providing healthful food goes a long way toward fostering well-being in the workplace—but it is not enough. Today, more than ever, there is a growing occurrence of individuals with special dietary needs. Let’s take a look at some current statistics.  [list icon=”icon: check-square-o” icon_color=”#d81c5c”] “The Food Allergy…

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Health and Wellness
Dietary Needs Duty of Care May 30, 2017

Lessons for Human Resources Professionals: Health and Wellness Programs – Part Two

Dietary Needs Duty of Care May 30, 2017

In recent years, the dramatic rise in corporate health and wellness programs shows that companies understand (or are beginning to) the benefits of a healthy workforce. According to the Society for Human Resource Management, more than two-thirds of U.S. employers currently offer a wellness program as part of their benefits packages. The main focuses have been on exercise and eating healthier, but unless these programs address everything employees are eating, they are doomed to fail. Take, for example, the case study presented by Alison Acerra, MS, RD, national nutrition and wellness manager for Guckenheimer, a national workplace foodservice provider during…

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Feeding Employees at Work
Food Allergies May 16, 2017

Feeding Employees at Work: A Lesson for Food Allergy & Celiac Disease Awareness

Food Allergies May 16, 2017
Feeding Employees at Work: An Opportunity to Enhance Well-being As a meeting planner, I have a duty of care to ensure that the food I order for an event is delicious and safe for all participants. Every good meeting planner, CEO, and human resources professional understands that fostering a safe and inclusive workplace is good business—but in some cases, it is also the law. And, if you didn’t know it before, the law includes food and beverage served in the workplace. Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE) estimates that 15 million Americans (5 percent of the U.S.) have food allergies,…

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