A Champion For Nut Allergy Research
"Awareness is great, but that’s a band-aid..."
"Awareness is great, but that’s a band-aid..."
“I was looking at what was already out there, and there’s really nothing out there for purely fundraising to find a cure. It’s all about awareness. Awareness is great, but that’s a band-aid; it’s not the long run.”
Roshnee Sharma was 2 years old when she was diagnosed with a severe peanut and nut allergy. Growing up, she couldn’t visit friends’ houses because of the risk of exposure. Even at Carolina, her teammates on the women’s golf team have to be conscious about keeping nuts out of the locker room.
Her allergies are a hindrance, she said. But she’s never allowed them to define her. In December 2014, she founded the American Research Foundation for Nut Allergies (ARFNA), whose recent donation to a UNC-Chapel Hill researcher holds the promise of a vaccine for those with nut allergies.
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This is story number 94 in the Carolina Stories 225th Anniversary Edition magazine.
