Read the Label, Then Read It Again

We are just under 1 year into our allergy journey and I have already had several instances of label reading failure. Whether from misunderstanding the multi-sylable words used in processed foods, or   just not knowing that casein is dairy or albumin is egg, label reading can be both frustrating and misleading at times.  Thankfully, the FDA stepped in help those who suffer from food allergies to better understand and know what ingredients are truly included in their food.

Allergen Labeling

THE FOOD ALLERGEN LABELING AND CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT OF 2004 - See more at: http://www.kidswithfoodallergies.org/resourcespre.php?id=50#sthash.E6SWcLv7.dpuf

The Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 was created so that food manufacturers were required to label ingredients in their food according to their food source if that source is among one of the top 8 allergens (milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, fish, shellfish, and wheat).  Label listings for allergens now read as: casein (milk), albumin (egg), flour (wheat).

In some cases, manufacturers have chosen to also label allergen information at the bottom of an ingredient list with a highlighted "Contains" warning statement.

It is still important for those living with food allergies themselves or in their families to know what to look for in ingredient listings.   A great resource for this is the FARE (Food Allergy Research and Eduction) website, which has a listing of how all the top eight food allergens can be listed in product labels, found here.

Cross Contamination Statements
It is currently through voluntary action only that manufacturers can choose to list cross contamination statements on their food. Such statements usually read "Manufactured in a facility that processes..." or "Processed on shared equipment with...." Since not all manufacturers use these statements, a label devoid of any of the these statements does not mean that there have been no cross-contamination in the creation of that food product. 

Reading labels can be very tiresome and I frequently find my eyes crossing as all the words and letters get jumbled together.  Nevertheless, I understand its importance, and in the end it is just that many more "child-free" minutes spent at the grocery store.