For people living with food allergies, it’s important to know about the condition and how to manage it. But some food allergy information can be misleading and cause concern. Most of the time, incorrect information is misinformation. But sometimes, disinformation is shared. Both can cause confusion and impact food allergy management.
Misinformation: when the person or organization posting the information doesn’t know it is false
Disinformation: when the person or organization shares wrong information on purpose
In 2022, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) and its food allergy division, Kids with Food Allergies (KFA), collected insights from 512 people and caregivers managing food allergies. The purpose of the survey was to better understand how people find reliable and correct food allergy information.
The survey found:
- While almost all (93%) of the respondents said they get food allergy information from their doctor, social media is also a powerful tool. More than half (57%) said they get at least some food allergy information from social media.
- Among people who get their food allergy information from social media, most (53%) have some trust in it as a news source.
- Patient advocacy organizations like AAFA and KFA also serve as trusted sources for food allergy information. More than four in five respondents said they have high (“four” or “five” on a five-point scale) trust in AAFA (85%) and KFA (86%). These organizations are trusted more than larger governmental organizations like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (70%) and the World Health Organization (74%).
Respondents also answered questions about their experiences with, and beliefs of, food allergy misinformation. The survey found that people are likely to believe misinformation they hear. In particular:
A large number (88%) of people heard that exposure to trace amounts of an allergen could be deadly. Among people who had heard that before, nearly all (95%) believed it.
Fact: While small amounts of an allergen can cause an allergic reaction, deadly reactions to trace amounts of food are rare.
People with food allergies can react to small amounts of their food allergen. But it is well-documented that there are threshold amounts. This means there is a maximum dose of an allergen a person can eat before having symptoms.
The threshold varies by food and person. For example, a single peanut can weigh from 500-800 mg. In controlled clinical trials, 450 people with peanut allergy were able to eat peanut amounts ranging from 0.1-8,000 mg of whole peanut without an allergic reaction.1
Other allergens, like soy, have a higher average threshold dose.
Most people with food allergies do not know their threshold dose for their food allergen. A double-blind placebo-controlled food challenge (DBPCFC) can find your threshold level. But most people with food allergies have never had a DBPCFC as part of the work-up for their diagnosis. And food labels do not list threshold levels of allergens. For these reasons, most people with food allergies are advised to avoid their allergen entirely.
More than one-quarter (27%) of respondents heard that injecting epinephrine into any other muscle besides the thigh can lead to serious consequences. Among those who heard that, more than three-quarters (78%) believed it.
Fact: Injecting epinephrine in another muscle may lead to slower absorption and may not be as effective, but it very rarely has serious consequences.
While very few (5%) people heard that oral food challenges are inhumane and unnecessary, of those who did, half (50%) believed it.
Fact: Oral food challenges are the gold standard for food allergy diagnosis. Oral food challenges are done under medical supervision. Doctors and nurses who conduct oral food challenges are specifically trained and will have emergency medicines nearby.
Around 13% of people who took the survey had heard food allergies and food intolerances are the same thing. Among people who heard that, 13% believed it.
Fact: A food allergy is when your immune system sees a certain food as harmful and reacts to it. A food intolerance often involves your digestive system (gut) when your body has a hard time digesting a certain food.
How Can I Make Sure Food Allergy Information Is Accurate?
There are a few steps you can take to stop the spread of food allergy misinformation:
- Check with trusted sources if you see food allergy information you think might be wrong. More than three-quarters (76%) of survey respondents said they look for other sources to check information they see. This is a good practice to make sure the information you see is correct.
- Use fact-checking tools. Most survey respondents said they use tools that can spot misinformed articles, fact-check news sources, and provide education in spotting misinformation. There are many free fact-checking tools available that can help spot false information and build skills in spotting misinformation, including some run through Google.
- Talk with your doctor. More than half (55%) of survey respondents said they make decisions about their health and food allergy management based on information they see from organizations they trust. You can work with your doctor to make decisions that are right for you.
AAFA and KFA create content based on current clinical guidelines and evidence-based studies. We also rely on our dedicated Medical Scientific Council (MSC) to help us ensure our information is up to date and accurate. The MSC includes doctors, scientists, health professionals, and other experts. They review medical and scientific content for AAFA, provide expertise as medical spokespeople for AAFA, and advise our board of directors and staff.
It is important to stay up to date on news about food allergies. By joining our community and following our blog, you will receive news about research and treatments. Our community also provides an opportunity to connect with other people who manage food allergies for support.
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Reference
1. Thresholds for Allergenic Foods. (2019). Food Allergy Research and Resource Program; University of Nebraska-Lincoln. https://farrp.unl.edu/thresholds-for-allergenic-foods
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