As a Food Allergy Crisis Continues to Grow Two Leading Food Allergy Organizations Join Forces

For a growing number of individuals in the United States and around the world, food allergies are a severe and potentially life-threatening disease. In a recent announcement, the top to food allergy organizations in the U.S. have stated their intention to merge into one in an effort to expedite the way to a food allergy cure and to promote education for food allergy.

Pending regulatory approval to move forward with their plans, The Food Allergy Initiative (FAI) and the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network (FAAN) will merge into a single entity to combine their resources. Through the merger FAAN’s expertise in information, programs, and resources related to food allergy and anaphylaxis will mesh with FAI’s leadership as the world’s largest private source of funding for food allergy research.

According to recent studies, food allergies present an increasing and significant public health issue. Statistics which will come as no surprise to any parent with children attending school, there are approximately 2 children in the average classroom (one in thirteen children) who have a moderate to severe food allergy. Close to half of those with a food allergy, according to the reports, have at some time experienced a severe or life-threatening food-allergic reaction.

“In the United States, food allergies send a person to the emergency room every three minutes. This is a serious disease with potentially deadly consequences, but a cure is within reach,” said John Lehr who will serve as the new organization’s chief executive officer. “By unifying the efforts of these leading organizations, we can continue to secure the private and public support needed to advance a cure for food allergies, and provide critical resources for food-allergic individuals and families.”

Together the combined food allergy organization will focus on funding research to find a cure, advocating for food-allergic people, increasing awareness about the severity and growing prevalence of food allergies, and educating the public and other key stakeholders about the disease and the urgent need for a cure.