Do you speak allergies?

Allergese is a phrase I coined to describe the complicated words you can come across by reading labels. According to FALCPA (the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act), the top 8 allergens (milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, shellfish, soy, and wheat) must be stated in plain language. Of course, if your allergies are not in the top 8, you should read the labels much more carefully. Note to Readers: You never want to be behind me at Trader Joe’s.

Unusual terms / foods that indicate the presence of wheat:
Gelatinized starch
Durum
Gluten
Modified food starch
Hydrolyzed vegetable protein

Common wheat-containing foods: most breads, cakes, pastries, bread crumbs, pasta, couscous, breakfast cereals, kamut, pretzels, enriched flour, spelled, bulgar, farina, whole wheat flour, bran, natural flavors, soy sauce, vegetable gum

Unusual terms / foods that indicate the presence of milk:
Caseinates
Lactalbumin
Lactalbumin phosphate
Lactoferrin
Serum
Lactulose
Nisin
Casein hydrolyzate
Rennet casein
“Non-dairy” actually means there is milk protein, but “dairy-free” doesn’t.

Common milk-containing foods: butter, cheese, milk, ghee, cottage cheese, curd, custard, coffee creamers, half and half, nougat, pudding, sour cream, yogurt, artificial butter flavor, caramel candies, chocolate flour with high protein, cold cuts, sausage, hot dogs, margarine

Unusual foods / terms that indicate the presence of egg:
Albumin
Surimi
Lysozyme
Lecithin

Common egg-containing foods: meringue, eggnog, marzipan, pasta, nougat, marshmallows

Unusual foods / terms that indicate the presence of peanuts:
Artificial walnut
Beer nuts
Artificial nuts
Beer nuts
Walnuts, pieces of walnuts

Common peanut-containing foods: obviously peanut butter, peanut flour, enchilada sauce, monkey nuts, artificial nuts, egg rolls, Goobers, baked goods, candy (including chocolate), chili, marzipan, nougat

Unusual foods / terms indicating the presence of soy:
Hydrolyzed soy protein
Vegetable gum
Tamari
Soy protein isolate, concentrate
Soy (albumin, flour, milk, nuts, flour)
Shoyu sauce

Common foods that contain soy: vegetable broth, vegetable starch, miso, tempeh, soy sauce, textured vegetable protein, tofu, edamame.