Determining avenues for improved food allergy support and safety on college campuses

Food Allergy (FA) is a chronic disease with public health importance affecting an estimated 1 in 13 children and 1 in 10 adults. Limited research is available on policies and support available at the college level.

To better understand the experiences of college students with and without FA to determine avenues to improve safety and quality of life for college students with FA.

An online, cross-sectional survey was distributed to college students with and without FA in the United States from 2021 to 2023. Descriptive statistics were used to determine respondent demographics, FA knowledge, student reaction history, effects of FA on social life, and recommendations for improvement of FA safety and awareness on campus.

A total of 204 students-78 with FA-completed the survey from 72 US universities. Of the students with FA, 41% reported that their university was not aware of their FA and 28% experienced a food allergic reaction in their campus dining hall, with the most common cause being food mislabeled with allergen (43%). Students with FA mostly endorsed wanting regular FA training for campus dining staff (71%) and increased availability of stock epinephrine in the dining halls (59%) to improve safety on campus.

To ensure the safety of students with FA and reduce reactions on campus, it is imperative that universities improve the identification of students with FA, increase regular FA training for dining staff, and increase the availability of stock epinephrine in dining halls.