Starting Out With Allergens on Food Labels

The US rules that require packaged foods to declare the major food allergens they contain.

Key takeaways

• Major food allergens: milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, soybeans and sesame
• Sesame added: the 9th major allergen, required on labels since January 1, 2023
• Most useful single change: Read the full label every time you buy a product, even a familiar one.
• Commonest mistake: Assuming a product with no "may contain" warning is safe.
• See a doctor if any of the signs under "When to speak to a doctor" below apply to you.

Why bother

Reading the label every time is the main way people with food allergies avoid reactions, and recipes can change without notice.

Start here

Two things, and nothing else until both feel routine.

• Read the full label every time you buy a product, even a familiar one
• Learn other names for allergens, such as casein and whey for milk

Then add these

Next, once the first two have stopped feeling like effort.

• Ask restaurant staff how food is prepared and tell them about the allergy clearly
• Carry two epinephrine auto-injectors if they have been prescribed for you
• Report a reaction to a mislabeled food to the FDA

The numbers, in one place

Common early mistakes

• Assuming a product with no "may contain" warning is safe
• Relying on the front of the package or the product name alone
• Trying a small taste to check whether a food is safe

Related topics

• Food Allergy: What the Evidence Actually Says (Allergies)
• The Evidence on Food Labels, Without the Hype (Nutrition)
• Reading Recipes Critically: What Published Guidance Supports (Healthy Recipes)
• Foods to Avoid in Pregnancy: What the Evidence Actually Says (Pregnancy and Postpartum)

Where to go next

• What the Guidance Really Says About Allergens on Food Labels
• Allergens on Food Labels, Explained Without the Jargon
• Allergens on Food Labels — the reference entry
• Food Safety: The Complete Guide
• Reading the Nutrition Facts Label: What the Evidence Actually Says
• Safe Home Canning: Sorting the Evidence From the Noise

When to speak to a doctor

See your doctor or an allergist if you have had a reaction to a food, so the allergy can be confirmed and a plan made. If someone has trouble breathing, throat tightness, swelling of the lips or tongue, repeated vomiting or faintness after eating, use their epinephrine auto-injector right away and call 911.

Where this comes from

• FDA — Food Allergies: What You Need to Know
• FDA — Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004 (FALCPA)
• American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology — Food Allergy

How this page was put together

Every figure, recommendation and warning above is taken from the guidance named in Where this comes from. Nothing on this page is inferred, summarized or generalized beyond what those bodies publish: where they give a number, it is their number, and where they are silent, so are we. Pages are rebuilt whenever the underlying record changes. Sign-off by a named clinician, where it has happened, is shown at the top of the page along with the date.

Medical disclaimer

This article is general information, not medical advice. It cannot account for your own history, medication or circumstances. Always speak to your doctor, pharmacist or another qualified health professional before making changes that affect your treatment, and never delay seeking medical advice because of something you have read here. In an emergency, call 911.