NEW ORLEANS (AAAAI) - Insufficient and confusing food labels present a challenge for food allergic individuals which can lead to serious reactions. Actions need to be taken to eliminate these problems, according to researchers at the AAAAI Annual Meeting.

Aimee S. Altschul, MD, and colleagues from the Jaffe Food Allergy Institute (Mount Sinai School of Medicine) and the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) analyzed unsolicited calls from consumers to FAAN alerting them to problems concerning commercial food products. Over a period of 24 months, 221 calls were analyzed--one-third of which concerned allergic reactions to a food product.

A variety of problems were reported, the most common of which was unlabeled ingredients (54% of calls). Additional problems with commercial food products included: incorrect contents in a package (15 calls), outside package label differed from an ingredient list inside the package (13 calls), foreign language labels covered with incorrect English ingredient lists (3 calls). Patient errors occurred when frequently used products underwent an ingredient change (46 calls) or when different ingredients were used in different sizes of the same products (3 calls). Confusion surrounding ambiguous labeling was reported for "natural flavors" (9 calls), "spices" (1 call) and "modified food starch" (1 call).

Researchers concluded that current labeling and manufacturing procedures present a variety of challenges for food allergic individuals and their families. Stricter labeling practices, attention to manufacturing procedures, as well as increased awareness and education for patients can remedy to this problem.