Soy: The Underappreciated Allergy

N.B. - this is purely a rant post. Not a scientific, rational, evidence-based, or even thorough, post. It's a rant about my allergies, pure & simple.

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Peanuts: everyone knows they're an allergen. People warn others that the food contains nuts because it's a prevalent allergy.

Gluten: it took a while to become a thing, but I'm pretty sure it's the allergy that is catered to the most, after nuts. It's also a trend, but there are people who really cannot eat it. That is becoming known and accepted.

But soy? Not so much.

It isn't a trendy allergy. On the contrary, it's the "healthy" substitute, often marketed as the low-fat alternative to dairy. Starbucks offers soy milk in their drinks. To be allergic to soy is totally faux pax.

Or just lame.

Go me.

If you tell someone you're allergic to soy, they look at you funny. The most oft-heard response? "So what? You can't eat Chinese food?" If only.

(The other oft-heard response is "Is that really a thing?" So rude.)

Soy is in e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g.

Mayonnaise.

Flour tortillas.

Deli meat.

Chocolate.

Bread.

Everything in the frozen food section.

Cereal.

Salad Dressing.

Lotion. Shampoo. Soap. Toothpaste. (Not that I eat those things. They have soy in them, though. And skin contact is a problem, too, people)

I could go on, but we'd be here all day. You get the point, though. It's an allergen that is incredibly prevalent and why? Because it's a cheap filler.

You can't make wheat bread without wheat. Sorry, people with celiac disease. You're stuck with that one. You do have my pity. I would probably die without my noodles. (Although the alternatives made with quinoa, corn, rice, etc, have made leaps and bounds in improvement.)

But why is there soy in bread? Because soy flour is cheap. Soy lecithin is cheap. Because soy oil is cheap.

I can't eat 90% of foods because we make them cheaply.

There is no necessity in that.

Words cannot describe how angry this makes me.

The other thing that makes me angry is the fact that so many restaurants are getting "Gluten Free" menus. Not that those are bad. I have enough gluten-intolerant friends to appreciate that. It makes me angry for two reasons. First, because it's total allergy discrimination. Where's the nut free menu? The dairy free menu? The soy free menu??? 

Second, and more importantly, is the ignorant people in the world who respond to "what items are soy free?" with, "Well, we have this gluten free menu."

I don't freaking care. I don't need gluten free food. Gluten is not the same as soy. Can anyone understand this???

Oh, and another pet peeve before I go? The ingredient labels that read "Vegetable Oil (Canola and/or Soybean Oil)"

ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?????? I want to eat a damn chip, but it might kill me. It might not kill me. It might be perfectly safe. But it might kill me. 

I hate you, mass food productioners.