Food Allergies – Information Update

OTTAWA, May 7, 2012 /CNW/ – Health Canada is reminding Canadians of the importance of allergy awareness. For those individuals with food allergies, severe allergic reactions can occur quickly and without warning, and some foods can be life-threatening to people of all ages, particularly children.

It is estimated, based on clinically documented cases, that approximately 1.8 million Canadians may be affected by food allergies. Some studies indicate that these numbers are increasing, especially among children. Peanuts, tree nuts, sesame seeds, soy, seafood, wheat, eggs, milk, mustard and sulphites are the food allergens most commonly associated with severe allergic reactions in Canada.

When someone ingests even a tiny amount of an allergen, the symptoms of a reaction may develop quickly and become very serious. The most dangerous symptoms include breathing difficulties or a drop in blood pressure with shock, which may result in loss of consciousness, anaphylaxis and even death.

There is no cure for food allergies. Avoiding an allergen is the only effective way to prevent allergic reactions. There are many important steps that you can take to help protect yourself.  Some general tips include:

• Read product labels very carefully as manufacturers sometimes change the ingredients used in familiar products.
• Avoid food products that contain the specific allergens and/or derivatives of the specific allergens to which you are allergic.
• Avoid food products that bear a precautionary statement naming an allergen that you are allergic to; for example, precautionary statements like “may contain X” (where “X” is the name of a commonly known allergen).
• Avoid food products that don’t list their ingredients or food products that contain an ingredient that you don’t recognize.
• When eating at a friend’s or in a restaurant, tell your host/server about your food allergy, and ask specific questions about the food being served.
• If an allergist prescribes an epinephrine/adrenaline auto-injector, learn how to use it properly and carry it with you at all times.
• Always wear a MedicAlert identifier so that, in case of an accident, others know about your allergies and reactions.
• Look out for allergens listed by other names; food allergens and their derivatives are sometimes found in food under different names.

For more information on allergy awareness, please visit:

Government of Canada’s Tip Sheet on Avoiding Common Allergens in Food

Health Canada’s webpage on Food Allergies

It’s Your Health article on Food Allergens

Également disponible en français

If you require a high quality printout of this article, just click on the printer symbol next to ’Share and enjoy’, and we will do the rest.

Get the best website builder available anywhere –SBI! Lick here for more information

Return from allergies to Home Page

If you want to increase your site popularity and gain thousands of visitors – check out these sites THEY ARE FREE. Spanishchef more than doubled its ‘New Visitors’ last month simply by signing up to these sites:







Follow spanishchef.net on TWITTER