Smart Advice on Dealing with Food Cross Contamination

Even with the most diligent care in avoiding foods that cause allergic reactions, there are still problems with cross contamination. This phenomenon occurs when you have a food with no allergens come in contact with an allergen during the serving, cooking, or even preparation process. Cross contamination happens all the time in restaurants and manufacturing plants and even at home, regardless of how diligent you may be.

Some people with food allergies have severe ones so the slightest cross contamination can trigger reactions. For instance, severe peanut allergies can be set off just by smelling peanut butter without touching or tasting it. In order to head food allergic reactions off at the pass, here is some advice on preventing cross contamination:

1.  Read food labels! Just by doing so, you can find out whether your "safe" product was even prepared in a facility that also packages the very food item you are allergic to. Cross contamination is quite common in plants that can and seal vegetables or even make different kinds of cereal or candy.

2. When in doubt, call the manufacturer. Sometimes, there is no information on the food package about the possibility of cross contamination. If you want to be absolutely sure, call the 800 customer service number. You can bet they do not want to be sued over any possible health hazards as a result of consuming their products so they should give you a straight answer.

3.  Keep your home free of the offending food products that trigger allergic reactions. This is the only true way to be safe when cooking and preparing food at home, especially when a reaction could be fatal.

4.  Create a food preparation procedure at home and follow it. Preventing cross contamination is important in the home. You could designate certain areas of the kitchen for special types of food preparation. Choose one cutting board for one specific food item. Institute hand-washing after touching food. Clean up any crumbs and food remnants immediately instead of waiting until after the meal.

Avoid wood cutting boards as they are porous and can harbor the essence of offending food items even after cleaning it. Use glass or plastic boards that are easier to clean and won't harbor germs of food particles.

5.  Inform your friends and family of your food allergies so that they do not unwittingly spread an allergen to you through a hug, handshake or kiss. There have been news reports of people going into anaphylactic shock after a simple kiss from a friend who ate shrimp or even peanut butter crackers. Brushing teeth after a meal and thorough hand washing is essential.

6.  Be wary of restaurant meals. Call the restaurant and speak with the chef in advance and explain your food allergy and cross contamination issues. Let them know that you love their food and would like to dine there safely. Most places are very accommodating if you educate them in advance. If your order is wrong and the plate contains an offending food item, explain to the server and chef that you need an entirely new plate of food sans the allergen as the food could have been cross contaminated, even if it wasn't touching the remaining meal.

There are many more ways food allergens can cross contaminate safe food items. Talk with you doctor about the many ways this could happen and take the proper steps to protect yourself