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Allergy Articles & Updates

food allergy labelling

1/13/2022

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Food allergy labelling
Also known as⁣

𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐀𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐋𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 (𝘗𝘈𝘓)⁣

This is of extreme importance to improve the quality of life of allergy sufferers.⁣ ⁣
Despite its existence, often, there are still episodes of allergic reactions.⁣

Almost half of adult patients have suffered moderate to severe allergic reactions to pre-packed food.⁣

Recent research has shown both allergic and non-allergic sufferers struggle to understand what the different 𝘗𝘈𝘓 mean.⁣
In fact, they incorrectly associate different wording to different risk levels.⁣

The higher the health education of people in the study, the more they would give different risk levels to various food labels.
Interestingly, non-allergy sufferers give a higher risk to food labels than allergy sufferers.

According to the research, consumers felt “𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲” was associated with less risk than “𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧” or “𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟”.⁣

To make matters worse, a high proportion of allergy sufferers do not read 𝘗𝘈𝘓 and rely on their own previous experience.⁣

The problem is that there are 𝐧𝐨 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬 on 𝘗𝘈𝘓 wording or when they should be used.⁣
It is also not compulsory in the 𝐄𝐔, being of voluntary use by producers.⁣
In the 𝐔𝐊, it became compulsory due to 𝘕𝘢𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘢’𝘴 𝘓𝘢𝘸.⁣

There is an urgent need to enforce legislation, making the wording better and clearer.⁣

It would start with the sole use of “𝐌𝐚𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧” in 𝘗𝘈𝘓, this way levelling the information, potentially decreasing the risk for all allergy sufferers.

www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=336565208470697&id=100063516604410

14 main allergens
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food industry and allergies

7/27/2021

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Food Industry and Allergies
Eliciting Dose for 14 major Allergens
Often people ask me what they should do when they see a "𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯" label.⁣
⁣
My first question to them is, how many variations of that wording have they seen?⁣
⁣⁣
  • In a study done many years ago, the researchers found over 20 different ways of writing an allergy warning in food.⁣
  • They asked people how they would act, depending on what was written, and the variability was incredible.⁣
⁣
𝐒𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰, 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐯𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞.⁣
⁣
Several other studies went to see what was the actual variation of allergen concentration.⁣
⁣
What did they find?⁣
  • In products with a warning, 6.5 to 93% contained an allergen.⁣
  • In products without a warning, 11 to 53% contained an allergen.⁣
⁣
In reality, there is still a significant risk of a not labelled food, to contain a substantial amount of allergens.⁣
⁣
But why is it that the food industry has this massive variability in warnings they use and still have so much potential cross-contamination of allergens?⁣
⁣
The problem tracks back to political parties, the way they are funded or the individual politician's financial interest.⁣
What I am saying might be controversial, but let's look at what is known.⁣
⁣
Most of you have never heard of the "𝘌𝘶𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘯 𝘍𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘶𝘮".⁣
  • This is the most powerful lobby within the 𝘌𝘜 – the 𝐟𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲 𝐥𝐨𝐛𝐛𝐲.⁣
  • They have offices inside the 𝘌𝘶𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘯 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 and manage to block all resolutions that can lead to improvement of food quality when this affects the profit the food industry has.⁣
  • It is easy to see what they have done so far, as most are widely published. (the list is far too long for me to place it here).⁣
⁣
In the 𝘜𝘚𝘈 alone, in the 2014 elections, the food industry donated $𝟏𝟕𝐌, in total, to both parties.⁣
⁣
This comes to the 𝐏'𝐬 I have spoken about before.⁣
Those, also called 𝐄𝐃'𝐬 (𝘌𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘋𝘰𝘴𝘦), look into the dose needed to cause an allergic reaction and the percentage of allergic people who will react.⁣
⁣
So a 𝐏𝟏 or 𝐄𝐃𝟏 means that the potential cross-contamination in a particular food will lead to 1% or fewer allergic people reacting to that food.⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
The best collaboration done so far is the one between the food industry in Australia, the Government and Allergy Organizations.⁣⁣⁣
(see the attached table to see the ED for the 14 main allergens)⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣




















Such an agreement does not exist in the 𝘌𝘜 at present.⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
The hope for the 𝘜𝘒, at the moment, is that the so called "𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐚'𝐬 𝐋𝐚𝐰" will lead to a change in this practice.⁣⁣⁣
⁣⁣⁣
But we need to go deeper than simple labelling, look into manufacturing practices, and avoid allergens altogether.⁣⁣
⁣⁣
www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=218423533618199&id=100063516604410
​

Exercise and lack of sleep can lead to increased allergic reactions
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    Dr Costa is a Consultant Paediatrician and fellow of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.

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