This €9million project sponsored by the European Commission 7th Framework Programme builds on an earlier €14.3 million research study and will involve the world’s leading experts in the UK, Europe, Australia and the US. Together they mark the biggest study of food allergy in the world.

 

Up to 20 million European citizens suffer from food allergy. However management of both food allergy (by patients and health practitioners) and food allergens (by industry) is thwarted by lack of evidence to either prevent food allergy developing or protect adequately those who are already allergic.

Overall the iFAAM project will produce a standardised management process for companies involved in food manufacturing. It will also develop tools designed to enforce these regulations and produce evidence-based knowledge to inform new health advice on nutrition for pregnant women, babies and allergy sufferers.

The follow-up birth cohort study is Work Package 1 of Module 1 and is just part of very large body of work within the iFAAM project (Figure 1- click on image to enlarge).

The University of Southampton will again be working with centres in The Netherlands, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Spain, Italy, Greece and Iceland.