Food allergies are nothing to cringe about

We all have cringe moments, like walking around with toilet paper stuck to your shoe, but talking to friends about your food allergy shouldn't be one of them!

We spoke to some young people who shared their 'cringe' moments with us

Nearly 30% of people who completed our recent survey live with a food allergy, and 44% of them wouldn’t always tell the person they’re buying food from in a restaurant or café that they have a food allergy.

Working in partnership with Young Scot and supported by Allergy UK, we want to highlight the importance for young people to make others aware of just how serious food allergies can be, and to check food labels and menus when they’re eating out to ensure the food they choose is safe. 

Get involved

Help us reach the young people of Scotland by downloading the campaign materials below. If you have any questions please email marketing@fss.scot.

• Press release (for media enquiries contact communications@fss.scot)
• Share social media posts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram 
• Suggested social media posts to share on your own channels
• Case study
• Posters
• Leaflet
• Podcast (coming soon)

Information and advice about food allergies

Most allergic reactions to food are mild, but some can be very serious.  The only way people can deal with a food allergy is to avoid the foods that make them ill, so it's really important that if you have a food allergy that you speak up when you're eating out. If you have a food allergy, there are three really important things that you can do to stay safe if you're eating out:

1. Always ask about the ingredients when you're ordering or buying food.
2. Remember to tell people about your food allergy when you're eating at theirs.
3. Rememember to take your allergy pen whenever you leave the house, if you have one.

Allergy Alerts

If food is recalled due to reasons relating to allergens in food, for example if a product has been mislabelled, we issue an allergy alert with instructions about what to do if you have this product. You can sign up to receive these alerts for free by text or email.