Survey on school lunch provision for egg, milk, and wheat allergy patients in elementary schools throughout Aichi Prefecture

Purpose: To conduct a survey on patients regarding the actual situation of school lunch provision to children with food allergies.Methods: In July 2017, we surveyed food allergy patients visiting our department who had asked their elementary schools to eliminate food items included on the menu list and obtained details concerning the provision of eggs, milk, and wheat.Results: The number of valid responses was 184 from 36 municipalities (33 communal kitchens). Twenty-five (13.6%) did not receive school lunch and brought their own lunch every day for their meal, and the other 159 asked their schools to provide school lunches catering to food allergies (eggs in 94 (59%), milk in 67 (42%), and wheat in 24 (15%) ). The frequency of menu lists that restricted to provide food items containing eggs, milk, and wheat as side dishes for 0 to 2 days were 32%, 55%, and 0%, respectively. Regardless it was a main dish or a side dish, 58% of egg-, 79% of milk-, and 84% of wheat-containing dishes were almost canceled to the allergic children. Using processed foods requiring cooking only in the final preparations made it difficult to provide alternative meals.Conclusion: The number of meals not using eggs, milk, or wheat should be increased, as should the use of processed foods not containing wheat, in order to safely provide as many meals as possible to patients with food allergies while also taking into consideration the cost of school lunches and the burden on schools.