Britain's takeaway diet is fuelling a rise in people being rushed to hospital for allergic reactions, experts say.
The Sunday People uncovered figures showing 6,354 hospital admissions last year – more than 15 a day – because of a reaction. That is up 60% in five years.
Prof Hasan Arshad, allergy researcher at Southampton University, said the takeaway culture gives people less control over what they eat.
He warned: “There’s a greater tendency to go out, eat out, buy prepared foods at the shop or eat takeaways.
“This does increase the risk when you’re allergic to something.”
The ease of delivery apps has helped send UK spending on fast food to £9.8billion a year.
Campaigners also warn of a rise in the overall number of children with food allergies.
The number admitted to NHS hospitals in England last year with severe anaphylactic shock was 2,287 – up by half in five years.
In 2018 an inquest heard Natasha Ednan-Laperouse, 15, suffered a severe reaction to sesame seeds on a Pret à Manger baguette during a flight from Heathrow.
She died hours later at a hospital in Nice.
And in 2016, restaurant owner Mohammed Zaman, 54, was jailed for six years for the manslaughter of takeaway customer Paul Wilson, 38.
Mr Zaman was said to have had a “cavalier attitude” to safety and had substituted a ground nut mix containing peanuts in some dishes.
The Anaphylaxis Campaign yesterday urged all food businesses to focus on managing allergens in their ingredients – and to keep up to date with laws on food labelling.
They added: “It’s important adequate resources are available for local authorities to regulate and enforce allergen food laws effectively.”
The Food Standards Agency said: “We are now implementing new measures including requiring all pre-packaged food to have full ingredients labelling – with the allergens emphasised – from autumn 2021.
“We are also researching a system for consumers to report their allergic reactions, so they can be investigated and prevented in future.”
