How do you say, "I am deathly allergic to nuts" in French?

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Lisa D.

je suis allergique Ã l'arachide et aux fruits secs

There is no generic word for nuts. This is the most broad based I can think to say.

If you just said Je suis allergique a noix, that would just mean walnuts.

If you look on a box of cereal and see this:
Peut contenir des traces de lait, d'arachides et fruits Ã coque"
It is saying that it may contain traces of nuts.

My best advice is to write it on a notecard and show it to the waiter - I am allergic to nuts as well and understand the severity of it. I never get to order the decadent sweets because more often they garnish the food with almond shavings. I stick to the creme brulee. Never a nut in site. :)

Cinq_Mars

I think Lisa D. is right ("J'ai une allergie mortelle Ã l'arachide").

Regarding your concern over French restaurants, I think that the best thing to do would be to speak to the chef. Ask what oil is used in the dishes or in sauces...Yet, my best advice would be to remain really careful.

Take a look at this site :
http://www.allergytranslation.com/Home/home.php
http://www.allergytranslation.com/media_lib/Chef_Sheets/French_Chef_Sheet.pdf

ChocoBN

Lisa D is absolutely right. Carry a note with you. French salad dressings are often made with peanut oil, sometimes walnut oil, so make sure to ask.

The biggest risk will be pastries as they often use almonds and almond or hazelnut powder. If you buy a chocolate crepe from a street vendor make sure it is chocolate and not nutella which is hazelnut-based.

Since there is no generic word for nuts, there are a few words you need to know and watch out for:

- peanut : cacahuÃ¨te / arachide
- hazelnut: noisette
- walnut: noix
- cashew nut : noix de cajou
- almond: amande
- pine nuts: pignons (I think, I'll double check)
I can't think of any others but let me know if I forgot one.

There is definitely less awareness on food allergies in France than in the US so restaurants won't be as used to dealing with it as in the US. Cinq_Mars is right too, make sure you say "mortelle" in the translation so they understand how serious your allergy is. Tell them that anything based on nuts can be a problem, even in the smallest quantity.

EDIT: If you haven't made any reservation yet you should rent a flat rather than stay at a hotel so you can eat most of your meals at home or make packed lunches. It is very easy to buy fresh produce at the local market or supermarket as well as unprocessed foods. This way you can eat out only every other dinner or so at really nice restaurants where they will know exactly which ingredients they use. It would be a pity not to enjoy restaurants in France so you must definitely plan a few meals at the restaurant.

Cabal

As said above we have much less awareness of nut allergy in France, probably because we have way less nut allergic people (peanut butter is not one of our staple food). And we use a lot of peanut oil in cooking or hazelnut oil in salads.

Write this down and show it when you come in the restaurant, if they start to hesitate instead of saying that they would check go to another restaurant. Don't hesitate to show it to the server as well when you order. And as said above, avoid the cheap restaurants in tourist areas.

J'ai une trÃ¨s grave allergie aux noix de toute sorte (noix, noisettes, pignons, amande, cajou, cacahuete, etc...) et Ã l'arachide.
Toute trace de ces produits cause une reaction allergique grave (choc anaphylactique) qui peut me tuer en quelques minutes. Pouvez vous vous assurer qu'il n'y a aucune trace de ces produits dans ma commande ni dans les huiles et graisses utilisÃ©es pour la cuisson.

I have a dangerous allergy to any kind of nuts (list...). A trace of those products can kill me in a few minutes. Can you make sure that there are no trace of those products in what I order, or in the oils and fats used for the cooking.

I would also recommend that you carry a paper with that first sentence in your wallet, just in case. Best is a paper in English and French with basic information (blood type, allergies, medication...) with a big red cross at the top to catch the eye. I travel abroad quite often and that paper saved my life once.

David

Lisa D is right. Yasmiiinaaa is not wrong per se, but it should be noted that "noix" refers specifically to walnuts. As Lisa D pointed out, there isn't really a generic word for "nuts" in French.

yasmiiinaaa

je suis allergique aux noix

Bugs Bunny

J'ai une allergie tres serieux contre les noix et les arachnides.

Best if you avoid all chocolate of any kind bc you cannot be sure that it was processed on equipment shared with nuts. Ask your dr if you should carry an epi pen for emergencies. Many wait staff don't know what's going on. Safest to buy groceries from supermarkets. Good luck.

If you are seriously allergic to nuts (life and death matter something that many ppl don't understand), you have to be extra careful. As I alluded to earlier, many wait staff just go through their shift and might not be aware of all the ingredients used in their kitchen. I'd rather caution you and save your life than worry about offending the occasional waiter/waitress or restaurant owner reading yahoo answers!

Professor Sheed

J'ai une allergie mortelle Ã l'arachide or j'ai une allergie tres serieux Ã l'arachide

ralph

Je suis morte allergique aux noix

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