Just HOW much is TOO much…

I recently read an article and thought it would be a good follow up to our discussion on “may contain” labels, of which I discovered – overwhelmingly – that you, too, are not a fan. : )

The article says that “may contain” labels are confusing. And it’s because these foods may ACTUALLY be safe to eat, despite containing or having come in contact with your child’s allergen(s).

Whaaaaatt?

“In a new study, researchers claim to have identified the levels at which five common food allergens – peanut, hazelnut, celery, fish and shrimp – cause a reaction in only 10% of people who are allergic to them.” – MedicalNewsToday.com

These researchers assembled a few hundred people who are allergic to these particular foods and put each through a food challenge, giving them small doses of their allergen while keeping an eye out for reactions.

Why?!

They wanted to determine at what level the most sensitive of these allergic people reacted to their allergen. And they did it with the goal to change the way those pesky “may contain” warnings are handled – to make their use more consistent, since there are no regulations for them currently, and to help people to know if they should truly steer clear of these foods OR if they are safe for them based on our kids’ levels of sensitivity.

What did they find?

Of the most sensitive 10%, these doses had to be ingested for a reaction:

1.6-10.1 mg of peanut, hazelnut & celery proteins
27.3 mg of fish protein
2.5 g of shrimp protein

So tell me… does this matter to you? Would you still take the risk if the label told you that your child should be fine eating a food even if it came in contact with their allergen?

And lastly, out of curiosity, how many of your kids have a celery allergy?

Iris

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