Detection of inadequate labelling and contamination as causes of allergic reactions to food

Malmheden-Yman, I. (2004) Detection of inadequate labelling and contamination as causes of allergic reactions to food. Acta Alimentaria, 33 (4). pp. 347-357. ISSN 0139-3006

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Abstract

Discrepancies between food content and label can lead to adverse reaction in people with hypersensitivity to particular food ingredients. Over a period of more than 10 years, 171 cases of adverse reaction to food have been registered. In all cases the offending foods were compound products where the ingredients were either hidden to the consumer as a cause of inadequate labelling (73 cases) or because the food was contaminated with the ingredient (64 cases). In 34 of the cases, the ingredient was inadvertently consumed. The largest number of cases is caused by milk, followed by tree nuts, peanuts and egg. However, the most severe reactions were caused by peanuts and soy, followed by hazelnuts and milk. Soy has caused severe anaphylactic reactions leading to death in peanut allergic individuals consuming meatballs, hamburgers and kebab containing high amounts of soy protein.  The presence of the offending ingredient was confirmed by analysis of the food item by immunological and DNA-based methods. In some of the cases we were able not only to detect the causative protein, but also to estimate the dose causing the allergic reaction. The doses range from less than 1 mg, causing emergency treatment, to several hundreds of mg causing stomach pain, vomiting and diarrhoea. A dose equivalent to 60 mg of casein in a sausage caused fatal anaphylaxis in a 15-year-old girl and a dose equivalent to 5.6 mg of peanut protein caused fatal anaphylaxis in a 22-year-old man.

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