Allergies come in all shapes and sizes ...

Epi Kits for Emergency Medical Service in New York State

By Janet Goldman,
staff writer,
Allergy Advocacy Association
December 10^th, 2015

In our e-newsletters this past summer, the Allergy Advocacy Association explained the usage, effectiveness and perspectives towards Epi Kits, a new alternative to epinephrine auto-injectors (EAI) for Emergency Medical Service (EMS) crews. Unlike the auto-injectors, Epi Kits require the usage of a syringe and vial. Recently, we’ve investigated the efforts of New York’s EMS to adapt this technique.

To treat cases of dangerous allergic reactions known as anaphylaxis, all New York ambulances carry epinephrine and are staffed with crew members who can administer the drug to patients, regardless of whether they have a prescription. New York’s Bureau of EMS requires this provision. Not all states provide such accommodations. According to Dr. Michael Dailey, Medical Director for the Regional Medical Organization in Albany NY, “only 17 states require every ambulance to carry epinephrine.”

Read the article here.

Food Labeling Modernization Act to add Sesame to list of Major Food Allergens

By Cookson Beecher
November 30, 2015
Food Safety News

For the estimated 300,000 to 500,000 people in the United States who are allergic to sesame, the recently introduced Food Labeling Modernization Act of 2015 comes as good news. Included in the act’s provisions, which primarily seek to give consumers easy-to-understand labels on food so they can make healthy choices, is Section 8, which would require sesame to be placed on the list of major food allergens. That, in turn, would compel the Secretary of Health and Human Services to implement a final regulation no later than three years after enactment for determining how sesame must be disclosed on food labels.

Read the article here.

There's a patch that could fix your allergy problem

By Lydia Ramsey
December 7, 2015

An estimated 1.5 million children in the US are allergic to peanuts, an allergy that can often be so severe that the child who's allergic can't be in the same room as a peanut without their body freaking out and shutting down. 

To counter that extreme reaction, researchers are working on a patch that works to lessen that severity. And it's just become the first of its kind to enter phase 3 clinical trials, the last human trial needed before the FDA gets a chance to evaluate and (hopefully for the company) approve it.

Read the article here.

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