Incidence of sesame allergy increasing

International News on Fats, Oils and Related Materials : INFORM, December, 2005 by Anonymous

A literature search carried out through the PubMed database found a remarkable increase in the number of reports of hypersensitivity to sesame over the past 50 years, with most reports originating in developed countries. The European Commission and the Canadian government have placed sesame on their lists of major food allergens to be included in food labeling, but the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not yet acted.

According to researchers Venugopal Gangur, Caleb Kelly, and Lalitha Navuluri of Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan, there has been little research and there is little public awareness of sesame allergy even though the use of sesame seed and oil in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmetic industries is growing.

Most reported sesame allergy...