title: Food labeling issues in patients with severe food allergies: solving a hamlet-like doubt.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  We review the laws on labeling in the international community, the difficulties they pose to the food manufacturers to prepare the food labels and the methodologies to determine the concentration of potential allergens in foods.
  
  
  RESULTS
  European Food Safety Authority and International Life Sciences Institute Europe are evaluating strategies to identify the threshold level of allergen that can trigger a reaction in individuals. The most used techniques to detect the presence of protein in food are Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, polymerase chain reaction and real time polymerase chain reaction. Researchers are now trying to apply proteomics to estimate the amount of protein within the food.In order to protect the health of consumers, the Codex Alimentarius Commission updates constantly the list of allergens. In response to these regulations, some industries have also added some precautionary allergen labeling (PAL). It was generally agreed that PAL statements needed to be visible, simple, and safe. It was suggested that PAL be standardized, an action that would occur if the 'Voluntary Incidental Trace Allergen Labelling' process was made mandatory.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  So far, no laboratory technique is able to reassure the consumers about the composition of foods found on the packaging. International authorities produced increasingly stringent laws, but more is still to do.
authors.affiliation: aDepartment of Allergy bHuman Microbiome Unit, Bambino Gesù Children Hospital, Vatican City, Holy See, Rome, Italy.
authors.forename: Vincenzo
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Fierro
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Di Girolamo
authors.forename: Valeria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Marzano
authors.forename: Lamia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dahdah
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mennini
mesh_terms: D000485:Allergens / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology*; D003257:Consumer Product Safety; D005060:Europe; D005502:Food; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005515:Food Labeling; D059022:Food Safety; D033161:Government Regulation; D006801:Humans; D012015:Reference Standards
chemical_list: D000485:Allergens