Eating Found to be a "Major Life Activity" Under the ADA

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has held a rejected job applicant with insulin-dependent diabetes has established that his condition is covered by the ADA because his complicated food-related restrictions make him substantially limited in the activity of eating and eating is a major life activity. Lawson v. CSX Transportation Inc., No. 00-1179 (7th Cir. Mar. 26, 2001) The plaintiff had to monitor his blood sugar levels by testing his blood four to six times every day and administering three insulin injections. In addition, he had to be vigilant that food was always available, that he ate at specific times, and that he ate the proper type and quantity of food. The employer argued that under the Supreme Court's 1999 decision in Sutton v. United Air Lines, plaintiff’s diabetes was not a covered disability under the ADA because it was mitigated by medication. The Court of Appeals held that the ability to eat is as integral to one's daily activities, as the activities listed the in EEOC's implementing regulations. These include caring for oneself, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working. The court also found that even though diet and medication mitigated the severity of the disease, the severe restrictions he faced many times a day meant that the plaintiff’s condition was not mitigated in the same way as the plaintiffs in Sutton. There, wearing corrective lenses neutralized the plaintiffs’ myopia. Furthermore, the plaintiff here was subject to side effects such as hypoglycemia: slurred speech, profuse sweating, shaking, and unsteady walking, as well as dizziness, weakness, and loss of concentration.