i have some weird allergies, a couple are life threatening, but nothing i'm deathly allergic to would show up in a swap. ok, someone might include candy or something with tree nuts in it and that would be a problem. but i know enough to not eat cookies or candy until one of my food tasters tries it first. that's why i married and had kids, lolol. anyway, i take responsibility for my allergies, just as you do, jaba. but that doesn't mean i can't use a little help now and then. i try to be respectful. that's one reason i usually don't include candy, etc in swap packs. usually just fabric or something i've made, like a pincushion. it's not going to be much fun if we start killing each other off.
i once jokingly told my dr i was going to the mall to get a mrs fields' chocolate chip pecan cookie and end it all. ( he said that wasn't funny.) sometimes the truth isn't. anyway, it's good to know if your swap friends have allergies so you can at the least limit their exposure to the allergens. isn't that what friends try to do?