Prevalence of Food Allergy and Common Food Allergen Among Saudi Adults in Makkah Region, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Introduction

The prevalence of food allergy (FA) in the Makkah region has received little attention, so we conducted this study to estimate the prevalence of FA in adults.

Methods

This descriptive, cross-sectional, survey-based study was conducted online among 531 participants with or without a prior diagnosis of FA. The collected data related to socio-demographics (age and gender), whether the participant had been medically diagnosed with any food allergens, and assessing the prevalence of different food allergens.

Results

Only 93 (17.5%) of the 531 people screened positive for FA; females (65.6%) predominated, with 37.6% aged 40–59. The type of food for allergy was: eggs (47%), seafood (44%), fruits (40%), nuts and legumes (37%), milk and dairy products (25%), vegetables (17%), sesame (11%), wheat (9%), soy (8%), 2% to chili peppers, and only 1% honey and chocolate.

Conclusion

Both genders were allergic to eggs, followed by seafood, fruits, nuts, and legumes, and milk and dairy products, respectively.

Keywords:

• food allergy
• Makkah
• food allergen
• eggs
• seafood

Data Sharing Statement

All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article.

Ethical Approval

The Biomedical Ethics Committee, College of Medicine, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia, granted ethical permission with approval No (HAPO-02-K-012-2021-03-631), and we conducted it in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge all the participants for their generous participation in this study.

Author Contributions

All authors made substantial contributions to the conception, design, acquisition of data, analysis, and interpretation of data; took part in drafting the article or revising it critically for important intellectual content; agreed to submit it to the current journal; gave final approval of the version to be published; and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Disclosure

The authors declared no potential conflicts of interest.

Additional information

Funding

The authors received no financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.