There is not enough awareness in Malta about food allergies and intolerance, which could cost a person their life or get them bullied, registered clinical nutritionist Mariella Porter is warning.

“According to the world’s largest NGO dedicated to food allergies (FARE), one out of every three children with food allergies is bullied because of the condition. 

Registered Clinical Nutritionist Mariella Porter is encouraging wearing allergy or intolerance bracelets at schools, especially at a very young age. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

“How many schools in Malta are well prepared for such bullying?” she asked, noting that harassment was not limited to verbal abuse, but also pranks.

But this was not the only discrimination children with food hypersensitivity had to deal with. 

Ms Porter referred to milk which is distributed at schools, including that which is lactose-free. While this was a step in the right direction, children who were allergic or intolerant to milk protein were not being given anything.

Ms Porter, who spent several years in schools as an educator, has focused her research on food hypersensitivity among students.

In 2016, she found that 2.5 per cent of children aged between five and six years had food allergies or intolerance, with tree nuts, milk and milk products being the most prevalent causes of hypersensitivity.

While hypersensitivity to cow’s milk and milk products was prevalent in most countries, allergies and intolerance to peanuts and nuts was higher here when compared to European countries.

Ms Porter had issued a document about safety recommendations, which had been distributed among educators. However, she hopes she can help develop a more detailed one that could also serve as guidance to parents and carers.

It was especially important to raise awareness about cross-contamination, which, in cases of food allergies, could kill a person and when it comes to intolerance could cause huge discomfort. In some serious cases, certain food that students could do without while at school, such as fish, should be prohibited across the school, considering that young children loved to hug and share food.

Ultimately, she hopes that while awareness kicked off at school, there was nationwide awareness.

“Sometimes awareness kicks off in cases of tragedies – let’s hope we don’t leave it so late,” she said, flagging the lack of a proper code when it comes to hypersensitivity even at restaurants.

Recommendations in case of food hypersensitivity at school

- Students and school staff should always wash their hands with soap and water before and after lunch.

- The child with an allergy or intolerance should have the desk cleaned with soap and water before eating, and his place should be one which provides the least risk of possible cross-contamination with other students’ lunches.

- Birthdays should be celebrated with plain cupcakes to reduce the risk of cross contamination when cutting cakes with many ingredients. If there is a student who is hypersensitive to wheat, cupcakes should be given last thing during the day and consumed at home.

- All students should be educated about food hypersensitivity using age appropriate material and taught not to share food.