Food Allergen Detector

  Current Technology

• Avoidance of the allergen is the best method.

• In ELISA testing, the sample of food has to be crushed and put in a solution. This solution must be mixed and put on a test strip, and consequently is time-consuming. Each allergen also needs separate tests. It can produce false negatives and is expensive.

• Detection dogs can smell the specified allergen up to ppb (parts per billion), but if the food is odorless, the dog is unable to sniff it. The level of odor, age of food, environmental conditions, physical barriers, and amount of substance can all affect the odor of the food.

• Many products have the label “may contain peanuts,” which means the manufacturers aren’t sure. This sort of labeling limits food options for allergic individuals. The only tests which can verify if the food has peanuts or not are done in laboratories.

• PCR testing is a sensitive DNA-based test done only in laboratories. Therefore, milk, oils, and egg whites cannot be tested. The results are available within 12-26 hours, which is too long.

• Mass spectrometry is extremely accurate and sensitive, but it is time-consuming, expensive, and strenuous. It is also only performed in a laboratory.

 

Only avoidance or

extremely expensive

and time-consuming

methods of allergy

detection exist

today!