Food Allergy First Aid: Using An Anaphylaxis Action Plan
Table of Contents
Food allergy first aid can decide whether a severe reaction settles or turns life-threatening. When someone reacts badly to a food, a few first aid actions in the right order give them the best chance. A severe reaction can set in within minutes, and it can worsen just as fast. But handled well, it can still pass without lasting harm.
What Are Food Allergies and Anaphylaxis?
A food allergy happens when your immune system treats a normally harmless food as a threat. Each time you eat that food your body releases chemicals that can trigger an allergic reaction. Common food triggers include peanuts, tree nuts, milk, egg, fish, shellfish, wheat, soy, and sesame.
Most reactions to food stay mild to moderate, with symptoms limited to on the skin and around the face. Anaphylaxis is the most severe type of allergic reaction. It affects the whole body, including breathing and blood pressure, and it can be life-threatening.
Signs and Symptoms of a Severe Allergic Reaction
Hives or welts, swelling of the lips, face, or eyes, a tingling mouth, and stomach pain or vomiting are the signs of a mild to moderate reaction. Difficult or noisy breathing, a wheeze or persistent cough, swelling or tightness in the throat, swelling of the tongue, a hoarse voice, and trouble talking are the signs of anaphylaxis. A person may also become dizzy, pale, or limp, or collapse.
Food Allergy First Aid
For food allergy first aid, you follow the order set out in the ASCIA Action Plan for Anaphylaxis. For a severe reaction:
- Lay the person flat. If their breathing is difficult, let them sit with their legs out in front. Do not let them stand or walk.
- Inject their adrenaline injector into the outer mid-thigh.
- Call triple zero (000) and ask for an ambulance.
- Phone the person’s family or emergency contact.
- Give them a second dose of adrenaline after 5 minutes if there is no improvement and another injector is available.
- Make sure the person goes to a hospital emergency department for at least 4 hours of observation, even if they seem to recover.
An adrenaline injector is made for anyone to administer, and giving it early could save their life. If you are not sure whether a reaction is anaphylaxis, use their injector anyway. Adrenaline is safe to give a person, and holding back is the greater risk.
ASCIA Action Plans
ASCIA, The Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy, writes the action plans used across Australia and New Zealand. An ASCIA Action Plan sets out your food allergy first aid as a clear list of steps, with the signs to watch for and the actions to take, so you can recognise a reaction and respond in order. Ask your doctor or a clinical immunology and allergy specialist to complete your plan and review it every 12 to 18 months.
The red ASCIA Action Plan for Anaphylaxis is a personal plan. A health professional, such as a doctor, nurse practitioner, or other prescriber, completes and signs it for a person with a confirmed allergy who has been prescribed an adrenaline injector. The orange ASCIA First Aid Plan for Anaphylaxis is a general version. Workplaces, schools, and restaurants keep it with their general-use adrenaline injectors, ready for anyone who needs help.
Enrol in First Aid Training
Food allergy first aid comes down to reading the signs and giving adrenaline without delay. A severe reaction can worsen within minutes, and there is rarely time to look things up once it starts. Being ready is part of helping someone through it. By enroling in a CPR and first aid course you can gain a clear understanding for how to spot a severe reaction early and use an adrenaline auto-injector in a medical emergency.
FAQs
Is an Adrenaline Epipen the Same as Epinephrine?
Yes. Adrenaline and epinephrine are two names for the same medicine, with adrenaline used in Australia and epinephrine used in the United States.
How Often Is a Mild or Moderate Allergic Reaction Mistaken for Asthma?
A severe allergic reaction and an asthma attack share signs like wheezing, coughing, and tight breathing. That overlap is why one can be mistaken for the other, though hives or swelling of the face and lips point to an allergic cause.
How Should You Store an Adrenaline Injector?
Keep it at room temperature, up to 25°C. Do not store it in a fridge or freezer, and keep it away from direct heat. Store it somewhere unlocked and easy to reach.
