Ask the Food Standards Agency experts your questions about food allergies and intolerances - £200 voucher to be won

[LucyBMumsnet]

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Over the last year, many of us have indulged in more takeaways than ever before. While takeaways are a well deserved treat, we should always be mindful of the precautions we need to take when ordering food, especially if someone in the group has a food allergy.

Research shows that 18 - 21 year olds are at a higher risk of experiencing food allergy incidents.* While they may feel more confident about managing their food allergy, they could be less likely to tell a business about this allergy if they had eaten at the premises before, as they feel ‘safe’.

With this in mind the Food Standards Agency is bringing in a panel of experts to answer your questions about food allergies and intolerances, and help you to equip your children to be takeaway safe.

Whether you’d like to know the difference between a food allergy and intolerance, find out tips for helping your children order safely, or hear why it’s important to always speak directly to the restaurant each time you order food, the Food Standards Agency experts will be online on 10th March to answer your questions.

Here’s what the Food Standards Agency has to say: “Our research has revealed that young people are eating takeaways more often than before lockdown. With eating in being the new eating out, it is vital that young people with food allergies and their friends remember to speak to the restaurant every time they make an order. Even if it’s a meal they’ve eaten before, because ingredients, recipes and staff can change. That’s why we’re launching our #SpeakUpForAllergies campaign. We’re working with Mumsnet to provide parents with advice on food allergies – particularly around how to support 18 to 21 year olds, who we know from our research are at higher risk of experiencing food allergy incidents.*”

Want to know who will be responding to your questions and comments? Find out more about the Food Standards Agency’s experts below:

Arvind Thandi, Team Leader – Food Hypersensitivity, Food Standards Agency
Arvind works in the Food Hypersensitivity policy team in the FSA, on projects aiming to improve the quality of life for people with food allergies and intolerances.

Sarah Baker, Campaign Manager - Anaphylaxis Campaign
Sarah is a health professional with over 40 years of experience working in the NHS. Sarah has been leading the Anaphylaxis Campaign campaigns working closely with the information team and will provide insight into the development and impact of these today.

Holly Shaw, Clinical Nurse Advisor - Allergy UK
Holly is a Clinical Nurse Advisor in the allergy speciality. She has 19 years nursing experience including a Certificate in Allergy Nursing from the University of South Australia. Holly is also a member of the British Society of Clinical Allergy and Immunology.

All who post a question on this thread will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £200 voucher for the store of their choice (from a list).

Thanks and good luck!

MNHQ

Insight Terms and Conditions apply

*^www.food.gov.uk/research/research-projects/the-covid-19-consumer-research^

It's very common for restaurants to try to serve my DC with allergies gluten free foods even though that's not one of their allergies. There seems to be very poor understanding of allergies in many leaves we have eaten. Is there a need for more training for restaurant staff?

Is food intolerance and allergy awareness part of mandatory hygiene training for restaurant staff? In my younger years working in hospitality I was never made aware of the dangers or how serious food allergies could be. I am now very aware of the dangers but am very concerned that casual/part-time/temporary staff may be unaware and pose an unintentional but very real risk.

Neither of my DCs eat nuts. They both say that they worry about developing an allergy. Has the information about nut allergies turned many children away from a healthy food option, or do allergies sometimes develop in teenagers/ adults?

The labelling of "free from" food really concerns me. I think there needs to be more regulation and consideration to the risks of this labelling. I have spent a lot of time trying to teach my children and relatives etc that just because something says "free from" doesn't mean it won't contain milk or egg. Do you think there could be changes made so this labelling can only be used if a product is free from all the main allergens?;

Another thing that concerns me is ingredient changes - we got caught out recently when a product changed its recipe. Can more be done to make any ingredient changes very prominent? I am cautious and try and check every time but not everyone will.

A final question... Should we avoid all "may contain traces of" foods? This feels so restrictive and it is really frustrating when a food would be fine if it weren't for that disclaimer.

Finally, is more work being done to educate social workers/cafcass about allergies? My son was bullied by his father to try a drink containing something he was severely allergy (anaphylactic ) to, and disclosed this to his head teacher, but social workers and cafcass laughed at the idea this was risky behaviour by his father.... " It was only fruit juice!" (They said, and I quote)

Can you reduce the chance of children developing food allergies if we consume certain foods like peanuts, eggs etc during pregnancy? Some people believe that eating lots of peanuts in pregnancy means the child won't develop an allergy as they've been exposed to it already in the womb.

Is it true that by not exposing babies / children to certain potential allergens (nuts, celery, mustard etc), they are more likely to develop an allergy to that substance?

Hey my youngest is 6 months and has had on going issues with a milk intolerance/ allergy we are waiting to see a paediatrician. A few days ago she had egg (scrambled ) for the first time and had a reaction very red blotches within minutes of eating.
As we are weaning and her drs appointment is a good few weeks away is there any foods you suggest avoiding / introducing before we are seen? Apprehensive about trying mew foods after the egg reaction! I’ve never had to deal with allergies before as my 3 year old is fine with everything 🙈
Thanks 🙏

How often do intolerances tip into allergies?

Would you consider making "may contains" mandatory. I check labels for allergens but then have to find out if companies label for may contains or not. It makes reading labels just half of the battle. Reading labels should give enough information to decide if it is safe to consume. Not having to contact companies and finding out their allergy policy.

@KeyboardWorriers

The labelling of "free from" food really concerns me. I think there needs to be more regulation and consideration to the risks of this labelling. I have spent a lot of time trying to teach my children and relatives etc that just because something says "free from" doesn't mean it won't contain milk or egg. Do you think there could be changes made so this labelling can only be used if a product is free from all the main allergens?;

Another thing that concerns me is ingredient changes - we got caught out recently when a product changed its recipe. Can more be done to make any ingredient changes very prominent? I am cautious and try and check every time but not everyone will.

A final question... Should we avoid all "may contain traces of" foods? This feels so restrictive and it is really frustrating when a food would be fine if it weren't for that disclaimer.

As an example of what keyboardwarrior is talking about have a look at these two products from sainsburys:

www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/Product/sainsburys-deliciously-freefrom-beef-lasagne-400g

www.sainsburys.co.uk/gol-ui/Product/sainsburys-deliciously-freefrom-beef-lasagne-400g-

We came a cropper with these. My DH picked up the top one on the shelf read the ingredients and seeing that there was no milk picked up several. Unfortunately one of the ones containing milk had become mixed up on the shelf and was underneath the safe one.

The packaging looks almost identical. It's so dangerous. Thankfully my DS didn't have a really serious reaction as he knew it wasn't safe for him as soon as he touched it to his lip.

have also had near misses with free from items containing nuts.

I have an intolerance to cheese, I haven't eaten it for 30 years now, it seemed to kick in at puberty. Is there any link between intolerances and hormonal/ age changes? I'm curious to know if I would be able to eat cheese again now I'm of a menopausal age, I really do miss being able to eat it.

A comment rather than a question sorry, but just to add my voice to those of Graffitiqueen and KeyboardWorriers. I have been dealing with allergies for a long time now, and labelling is much better than it used to be. Those who have driven the improvements are to be commended. But there is still a long way to go. I have been an obsessive label reader for a couple of decades now, and my multi allergic 15 year old has been so his whole life - he has never known any different. But last year we both misread a label with serious results. The labelling was perfectly legal, with the allergens in bold and it was a serious error that as the mother I have to take responsibility for. But on this particular item the print was very small and right on the line where the edges of the wrapper were crimped together. Also the word "Ingredients" was in bold, followed by the allergen in bold, then all the rest of ingredients in light print, so something like this:
Ingredients: Allergen
Blah blah blah blah blah
Blah blah blah blah blah
So in this case, far from drawing our eyes to the allergen, we were distracted from it.
Fortunately my son was ok after treatment but it was a very unpleasant experience as it was his first accidental exposure for 11 years - I really am normally very careful. It was my mistake and I'm sure the label met the current regulations, but it shows that potentially fatal errors can still happen with the current rules. Personally I would like to see more prominent warnings on foods that contain the major allergens - maybe some kind of universal symbol or colour coding?
Ironically we've had more problems since the current vogue for plant based foods took off. My son has multiple allergies including dairy and eggs so the increase in vegan desserts available is great - but they often contain nuts which he is anaphylactic to. I've really had to quiz servers in a number of cafes etc about the nature of their vegan and dairy free offerings as many seem oblivious to what is in them. There's still a long way to go with allergy awareness in the food industry, though things are definitely improving.

Some restaurant chains have now said they are unable to cater for customers with allergies during Covid? Surely allergy contamination is as important as food hygiene?

Food labelling could be much better. Standardisation eg some in bold, others in caps... why is consistency not required? Used to be much clearer. Also I often have to use a magnifying glass to read allergy warnings on some items as the font size is miniscule and often in folds of packaging. Could may contain and factory produces type messaging be put with the ingredients and not often hidden away elsewhere on packaging? So many times people have bought things for us that have no allergens in the ingredients, but they miss the other warnings as they are sited far apart from the ingredients on the item.

It should be mandatory for manufacturers to list 'may contains' - these should be genuine and not as a cover up catch all to protect retailers/producers. I have seen ridiculous may contain warnings (covering all 14 major allergens) on things like fresh lettuce and a bunch of roses at Sainsbury's. It's lazy. Also all online retailers should be required to ensure their online product info ingredients and may contains are accurate for every food product. Can the FSA look to tighten this?

Could it be a legal requirement to break down nut warnings further? My child is allergic to all tree nuts except almonds and we have been instructed to actively eat those now but it is impossible to find almond only products without general warnings about 'may contain nuts' or produced in a factory that handles nuts. Consumers with peanut and tree nut allergies cannot make an informed choice whether in restaurants or off the shelf. Contains nuts is a catch all used everywhere.

Would be so much easier in these categories if we were told which nuts.. eg may contain almonds and walnuts due to manufacturing methods etc. Onus is always on the parents/allergic individual to ring up/email manufacturers and much of the time you get conflicting information from customer service.

FSA product recall messages...would be great to have an actual image of the product not just words please? Surely retailers and manufacturers can provide you with that?

Might there be the possibility of having some kind of retail scheme that restaurants etc that are allergy aware/friendly can apply for accreditation for and which allergy sufferers know will take their needs seriously? Like the food hygiene stars system but specifically for allergy?

Should restaurants be required to have a printed list of ingredients and allergens for their food rather than being able to verbally respond to queries about allergens in their meals?

Why are cosmetics and health care products not required to list ingredients and warnings in English. Everything is in
Latin - eg almond oil, peanut oil, sesame etc. Same with makeup, toothpaste, soaps etc. Very tricky for teens and adults.

Also medicines.... last time I checked, Nurofen for children chewable tablets has a 'not suitable for peanut / soya sufferers' hidden in small print on the information sheet within the box, nothing is visible on the box itself. So you have to buy it to find this out. Even the pharmacist was unaware when I enquired about the safety of this product for a nut allergic child, until we opened a box and found the warning hidden away in tiny print.

Should Epipens be available everywhere like defibrillators?

Should everyone be able to buy AAIs over the counter in the UK like you can in Europe? I bought several in Spain on holiday previously. Absolutely no issues and like buying paracetamol. With GPs restricting supply to allergy sufferers, such access would be very welcome. Many teens forget to take them out, but could be much safer if, on realising they had forgotten, could head to Boots for example, and buy one at a sensible price?

Thank you!

Could you make it more widely known that as some people get older their bodies do not produce enough of the lactase enzyme, making them intolerant to milk (and products containing milk). If only I had known this before.

I have a severe allergy to corn as well as oral allergy syndrome. I'm also struggling to conceive and am in the process of having IVF. Is there any link between food allergies and the antibodies that make it difficult to conceive/have an embryo implant?

Crossed grain products. Once you give the certification, is the product checked at any point again? I struggle when products are even derived from others, regardless of 'gluten free' status. For example - glucose syrup can be derived from wheat or corn. I have a problem with wheat and one time I spent a week being ill from a 'crossed grain' product until I worked out what it was. I had to e-mail the company and ask how their glucose syrup was made: answer 'some is corn and some is from wheat' On a crossed-grain product!

Pectins: sometimes derived from apple, one of my allergies, sometimes from lemons, which I'm fine with. It's not mandatory to say which derivative the product uses, thus after a few instances of being poorly, I have to avoid all pectin containing products - I can't tell you how limiting that is.

So, two issues there - checks on cross-grain status and common products in food that are derived from allergens. How can this be improved?

I can't eat out because of this and unfortunately, my daughter is looking to grow up with a similar sort of set of issues, so we really struggle to eat out. Gluten free is NOT the same as wheat free and I find that restaurant staff really have no idea.

From the preamble: Research shows that 18 - 21 year olds are at a higher risk of experiencing food allergy incidents

What does this actually mean, please? Does it mean that people who are currently this age are at higher risk (i.e. this generation)? Or does it mean that in any given generaton, anyone who is at that particular age is more vulnerable (and then their vulnerability reduces as they get older)?

And why?

How accurate are the home testing kits? Are they worth doing?

What age do food allergies usually manifest and what sort of symptoms should a parent look out for?

Oh and yes - 'may contain'. Completely the most unhelpful phrase ever created by manufacturers. If it's because of derivatives, or because of food handling issues - can that not be made clearer?
And if it's due to handling, for the love of God, why? Why aren't these places clean from contaminants?

How can I help my child avoid the bad hay fever and dust intolerances both my and my husband get?

I hear you on the May Contain bit

The new guidelines look interesting about that

www.food.gov.uk/sites/default/files/media/document/fsa-food-allergen-labelling-and-information-requirements-technical-guidance_0.pdf

What tests do you think are most reliable for determining an allergy and how can you determine the level of an allergy - in other words, if a test says someone is allergic to something, how do you determine who gets an Epi-pen?

I guess it's linked to this campaign?

medicalxpress.com/news/2021-02-deaths-food-allergy-rare-decreasing.html

Which is reassuring reading.

Can you have contact allergy on a food you’re fine to eat? Trying to work out what triggers my skin but doesn’t seem to upset internals at all!