Allergy : 6th report of session 2006-07, Vol. 1: Report

Allergy in the United Kingdom has now reached epidemic proportions.

In the UK the incidence of common allergic diseases has trebled in the last twenty years to become one of the highest in the world.

Treatment of allergies is a significant cost to the National Health Service and there is a severe shortage of allergy specialists in the United Kingdom.

Allergies can have a detrimental impact upon the education of children at school or the performance of adults at work.

Problems with data collection mean that statistics are imprecise and a significant proportion of general practitioners are unable to diagnose and manage allergic disorders and have nowhere to refer patients with complex allergies.The report recommends that allergy centres led by a full-time allergist should be developed, where various specialists come together to diagnose and manage patients with complex allergic disorders.

These allergy centres should be a source of education and training for doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers at every grade.

They should also advance research, enabling effective treatments to be developed, and should provide the clinical database required for epidemiological studies. Clinicians within the allergy centre should work together with local schools, employers, charities and others to educate the general public, and particularly patients and their families, on allergy matters.Other recommendations include: maintaining clinical surveillance systems to monitor allergic disease; calling for further research into the ways in which the indoor environment influences allergy development; reviewing how children with hayfever are supported throughout the examination system; assessing the training that teachers receive in dealing with allergic emergencies; assisting individuals with occupational allergies to return to work; amending food labelling legislation to specify the amount of allergens contained within products; analysing the costs and benefits of immunotherapy treatment; and, withdrawing advice which recommends peanut avoidance for pregnant women.The accompanying 'Allergy, 6th Report of Session 2006-07 - Volume 2: Evidence (HL 166-II)' (ISBN 0215032616) is available to buy separately, see below.

This publication also includes a CD-ROM which contains the report (HL 166-I) and the accompanying evidence (HL 166-II).