AllergyCard

Since the cards use established allergen terms rather than machine translation, were the 14 language versions checked by native speakers or allergy organisations? Mentioning that source on the preview would make me more confident handing it to a kitchen in Japan or Thailand.

Hi Fazier! I built AllergyCard because explaining a food allergy in a language you don't speak is stressful, and translation apps often turn allergen names into something a kitchen doesn't recognise. AllergyCard puts each allergen as a picture plus its local name, adds a cross-contact warning, and keeps your own language underneath so you can check what the card says. It covers 14 languages and you can preview your card free without an account. I'd love feedback on which languages or allergens I should add next.

Using the terms kitchen staff already recognise instead of a literal translation makes a lot of sense. For the Korean card, are the allergen names checked by a native speaker? Some ingredients have both an everyday word and the word used on menus in Korean, so I'm curious which one the card uses.

Keeping the card in the user's own language so they can check it themselves is a thoughtful answer to the translation-app problem. The one-time $8.99 for downloads is refreshingly simple too. Have you thought about adding a severity line, like anaphylaxis versus intolerance? Kitchens react differently to each.

Using the terms kitchen staff actually recognise, rather than a literal translation, is the right call. We hit the same problem translating official notices, where the literal word is often not the one people use. Who checks the allergen terms in each language, native speakers or a professional source? A line on the card saying how the terms were checked would reassure parents of children with severe allergies.

The cross-contact warning is the detail that sets this apart from a plain translation app. Translating "I am allergic to peanuts" misses how kitchens actually work, so including shared fryer oil and utensils is smart. Letting people type their own allergen is a good call for the less common ones. Does a custom allergen get translated into the 14 languages too, or does it stay in English?

The cross-contact line about fryer oil and shared utensils is a great touch, that's the part people forget to explain. For languages with regional differences, like Spanish in Spain vs Mexico or Portuguese in Portugal vs Brazil, do you pick one variant or can the traveller choose the country? A small wallet-size print layout would also be handy for kids' lunch boxes.

Using the terms kitchen staff actually recognize instead of literal translations is the detail that matters. A mistranslated allergen name is worse than no card at all. The cross-contact warning is a smart touch too.

The 'terms kitchen staff actually recognise' angle is what makes this useful — translation accuracy is not the same as kitchen comprehension. Two things I would want as a buyer: (1) who verifies the 14 translations — native speakers, or machine translation, and is that noted on the card itself? (2) a short emergency line on the card ('If I eat this, I need urgent medical help — please call an ambulance'), since that is the sentence that matters most during a severe reaction. Is that in the plan?

Using established allergen terms plus a cross-contact warning is the right call, since generic translation apps often miss that. Do you plan to add a dietary-restriction mode (e.g. celiac or halal) beyond the 30 allergens?

Really useful idea, and the cross-contact wording is clearer than anything a translation app would give. I looked at the Spanish card: it says "Soy alérgico", so an option for "alérgica" would help women using it. "Cacahuetes" is the Spain term too; travellers in Latin America will mostly see "maní" or "cacahuate", so a Spain / Latin America choice could make it safer. Also "mariscos" covers molluscs as well, while the Japanese card names crustaceans specifically, so those might be worth aligning.

I build multilingual pages myself, and right-to-left languages are where things quietly break. Is Arabic among the 14 languages? It would be a strong addition for travel to the Gulf, Egypt or Morocco. If you add it, check that the bilingual layout flips direction properly so the Arabic allergen names don't get jumbled with the English line underneath. A phone-friendly version (saved to Apple or Google Wallet) would also help travellers who never carry a printed card.