Use these downloadable resources to explain food allergies and anaphylaxis to friends and family, such as posters, fast facts, topic sheets (like myths surrounding allergies and stress and anxiety), tips, checklists and more.
Congress recently passed a law mandating that food allergens such as milk, eggs, wheat, soy, fish, Crustacean shellfish, tree nuts and peanuts be identified on food labels. Sesame was later added to this list.
Allergens
Allergies develop when your immune system misinterprets substances that usually do not present any threats for foreign invaders – allergens. These allergens include airborne pollen, pet dander, pollen from trees or grasses (especially pollen pollen in pollen dust), certain foods (including peanuts, shellfish, wheat soy and milk products), insect stings latex products or medicines like penicillin.
Immune systems exist to defend our bodies against foreign materials and infectious microorganisms that enter, such as bacteria. But when an allergen enters, your immune system produces antibodies against it that overreact and cause runny nose, watery eyes, itching, sneezing and difficulty breathing symptoms – including runny noses, watery eyes, itching, sneezing and difficulty breathing.
Most allergens are water-soluble proteins with molecular weights under 50kDa. Airborne allergens that most frequently trigger allergic rhinitis and conjunctivitis include pollen, animal dander, dust mites and mold spores; food allergies often arise from eating nuts, eggs, fish, milk, soya wheat or cow’s milk products that contain allergens that trigger a reaction in the nose and throat (allergic rhinitis and conjunctivitis).
Allergens can be present in both prepackaged and unpackaged foods. Our food law (Opens in a new window) requires all packaged food products to include an ingredient list and when known, any allergen must be declared when possible. CFIA has developed methods to detect undeclared allergens.
Symptoms
Allergies occur when your immune system mistakes an otherwise harmless substance for an aggressive threat and produces antibodies to deal with it, creating antibodies for that allergen which, upon exposure to said allergen, release chemicals that produce allergic symptoms.
Allergic symptoms may affect any one or more of these areas: skin, nose, eyes, throat, ears, respiratory tract or gastrointestinal tract. Reactions can range from mild to life-threatening depending on its severity.
Most allergic reactions appear within seconds or minutes of being exposed to allergens; however, others can take several hours. A severe allergic reaction called anaphylaxis is extremely serious and life-threatening; thus it is important that you are familiar with its signs and symptoms in order to seek immediate medical assistance should an anaphylactic episode occur.
Allergies are an increasingly prevalent condition among people of all ages, races and socioeconomic statuses. Allergies may be caused by various substances including pollen, pet dander and dust mites, mold spores, certain foods (like peanuts or shellfish or dairy products), insect stings or medications used against latex allergies – they can even develop after repeated exposure to certain allergens or in response to another disease or medication treatment. Seasonal allergies tend to flare-up more often; others remain year-round – these issues often plague those more vulnerable in terms of developing them than seasonal ones! People with family histories of allergy are at an increased risk; other symptoms could include seasonal or year-long seasonal allergies affecting them both.
Treatment
Allergies may be treated using prescription or over-the-counter (OTC) medicines prescribed by your doctor, home remedies or simply avoiding allergens that trigger symptoms. If your symptoms are severe, carrying a premeasured dose of an anaphylactic reaction antihistamine auto-injector could save your life in case it happens again.
Allergy patients can use immunotherapy to retrain their immune systems and alleviate allergy symptoms. Immunotherapy uses injections of very small doses of allergen to gradually build tolerance over time; there are two forms of immunotherapy treatment: subcutaneous immunotherapy (allergy shots) and sublingual immunotherapy (SLIT).
Immunotherapy can help those with allergies to pollen, pets, molds, dust mites, bee venom or other stinging insects; and may also work for food allergies as well as sinusitis, rhinitis and hives.
OTC medications can provide temporary relief of mild symptoms like sneezing, runny nose or itchy eyes and ears. Antihistamines, decongestants and bronchodilators may help with mild reactions; an epinephrine auto-injector could save your life in cases of life-threatening allergic reactions; it’s essential that family and friends learn how to use an epinephrine auto-injector should they encounter severe allergic reactions themselves.
Prevention
Preventing allergy symptoms requires avoiding foods containing known allergens, consulting your physician about treatment options (including an epinephrine/adrenaline auto-injector), and always keeping emergency medication close at hand. People living with allergies should also receive instruction on how to avoid cross-contact in food service establishments using allergy training materials.
To prevent accidental inadvertent contact between non-allergen foods and products containing allergenic ingredients, develop procedures to ensure non-allergen ingredients are staged and stored below allergenic products; or segregate and store ingredients and labels whose allergen declarations do not match product specifications in an area with restricted access.
Food allergens should be added as late in food production processes as possible to limit how long processing equipment comes into contact with an allergenic substance, combined with effective cleaning and sanitation procedures between changeovers of allergenic-containing products.
Store all containers containing allergen-containing ingredients and WIP in clearly labeled areas that are clearly marked and labeled, using color coding or tagging to identify containers and pallets containing different food allergens when practical; dedicate marked utensils, cutting boards and serving ware for the preparation of allergen-rich meals where applicable; limit personnel from switching processing lines that contain different allergens during a shift to ensure quality service delivery;
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