Abstract
Obligatory labeling of allergenic ingredients is necessary for the safety of food allergy patients. However, in the process of out-grow, patients' tolerability to allergens would increase. Without knowing allergen concentrations, the labeling might lead to over-limitation of food selection, leading to lower QOL. We measured allergenic substances (wheat) in commercial foods sold at supermarkets in Oita prefecture; 9 foods labeled as containing "wheat" ingredient, 36 cooked and processed foods which labeled as using compound ingredients "containing wheat ingredients", 9 foods labeled to be called to attention for contamination, and 9 foods commonly taken as substitution foods for wheat allergic patients. ELISA method using the FASTKITTM Wheat ELISA Kit was applied. Most of rice confectioneries and frozen foods labeled as containing "Shoyu (contains wheat)" actually contained wheat proteins less than 10 micro grams per gram or below the detection limit. In milder cases of wheat allergy, the more detailed labeling of foods would lead to the wider selection of foods in allergic patients and their families, securing their safety.
