While it is believed by public and health care professionals that the incidence of food allergies are on the rise, no concrete studies have been carried out in the country by far to support the claim, noted the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.
Insufficient Food Allergies Studies
The studies that dealt with food allergies so far did not involve a sufficient sample size or people from different ethnicities and in most cases the studies likely overestimate the prevalence of food allergies in the given population, noted NASEM. In addition, other gastrointestinal and immune diseases, such as gluten sensitivity and lactose intolerance, are widely mistaken for food allergies.
"To prioritize food allergy as a public health concern and ensure that adequate resources are directed at the issue, the extent of the problem must first be defined," said committee chair Virginia Stallings, director of the Nutrition Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
Measure To Promote Food Allergy Safety
NASEM also noted that food allergies are experienced by people living in various environmental settings and therefore combined efforts of education, health care systems and food and travel industries are necessary to provide a safe environment for people with allergies.
The study suggests that physicians should make use of standardized methods to diagnose food allergies and avoid using procedures like electro dermal testing and kinesiology for the purpose. Since no specific test for food allergies is available, physicians must make sure to examine the patient's health history, perform finger prick tests and oral food challenge under supervision to diagnose the hypersensitivity.
A number of recent researches have noted that food allergies are developed when potential allergens like milk, eggs and peanuts are introduced to children late in their life. It is suggested in the report that clinical practice guidelines and public health authorities should make it a point to create awareness among parents about the right time to introduce allergenic food.
It is also recommended that World Health Organization and the National Institutes of Health update their food allergy safety guidelines that include prevention, diagnosis and management of food allergies from time to time with the help of evidence from emerging studies.
Food Industries And Food Allergy Safety
People from the food industry should also be informed about potential allergens, safety measures and how to deal with their customers on the issue. Personnel working in food establishments including grocery stores, retail food stores, restaurants and food processing sites should be trained to follow the existing food safety guidelines.
Furthermore, the current labeling system that informs customers about allergens found in food products are not found effective and therefore the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration and the food industries should work together to come up with better labeling method, noted the report.
