Preventing food allergy: Emerging technologies

Food allergy represents a largely avoidable threat. Technologies are presently available or are under development that better define the molecules (allergens) responsible for food allergy, better detect the presence of allergens, and can reduce or even eliminate specific allergens from the food supply. The incidence of food allergy and fatal anaphylaxis triggered by food allergens is expected to decline as a result of the application of a combination of key technologies such as biotechnology, bioinformatics and immunodiagnostics, and of the Internet, as well as following the development of well-defined science-based public health policies.