Kokova Magazine

If your life depended upon how you do your weekly shop, how would you cope? The FoodWiz app may be the help you need.

The thought of shopping fills many of us with apprehension, the weekly haul to the supermarket; hours spent deciding on menus for the week, and then on top of that looking at calories or salt content for those of us watching our waistlines or trying to eat a healthy diet.

Add to this food allergy or intolerance and it can become a nightmare that can be potentially life threatening for many sufferers.

Monday 24th January 2011 sees the start of Food Allergy and Intolerance Awareness Week, with exciting new developments for allergy sufferers.

FoodWiz is a revolutionary new iPhone and iPod Touch (4th Gen) application that will transform the lives of people who suffer from food allergy or intolerance. Just by scanning the barcode of food products whilst in the supermarket you are told immediately if it is safe to eat, giving you peace of mind, and making shopping with an allergy or intolerance so much easier.

FoodWiz is available first on iPhones but versions for other mobile platforms will follow shortly.

The app is programmable with details of your particular foods that you need to avoid and does not need a mobile signal for it to function in the supermarket.

Both Asda and Tesco’s are providing vital product information on their own brand goods along with thousands of brand name products.

To register for a free month’s trial go www.allergyuk.org and see the latest news on FoodWiz.

With food allergy affecting approximately 2% of adults¹ and up to 7% of children² in the UK, finding safe foods can be a painstaking task, something that Allergy UK has long recognised so they are delighted to be working with FoodWiz and its creator James Lay.

It’s brilliant! I can do my shopping in half the time – and know that I haven’t made any mistakes. I know Foodwiz won’t cure my allergy, but it can make living with it much more manageable.

Rosalind Unwin, a 21-year-old student who is allergic to nuts has been trialling the application.

Thousands of people suffer from food allergy and food intolerance related symptoms such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Coeliac Disease, Migraine, Eczema and joint pains etc., and this is where Allergy UK can help.

Advice on how to shop is one of the biggest concerns of people contacting Allergy UK; with already restricted diets, alternatives to everyday foods such as milk are necessities. Allergy UK can help people find such alternatives.

Through the helpline 01322 619898 and website www.allergyuk.org people are able to receive individual advice, download fact sheets and watch videos of specialists explaining the difference
between food allergy and food intolerance.
www.allergyuk.org

SYMPTOMS OF SEVERE FOOD ALLERGIC REACTION

Tingling of the lips
Swelling of the lips/tongue/throat
Projectile vomiting
Difficulty in breathing
Faintness and collapse

TYPICAL SYMPTOMS OF FOOD INTOLERANCE ARE:

Urgent need to go to the loo
Bloating
Nausea
Migraine/Headaches
Skin rashes
Joint pain
Runny nose
IBS

Food Allergy and Intolerance Awareness Week, supported this year by Rice Dream and the Rainforest Cafe, aims to raise awareness for people living with these conditions.

THE RAINFOREST CAFE
The Rainforest Cafe caters for allergy and intolerance, working very hard to try and make a safe eating adventure environment for young and old, they too are highlighting the initiative week by
way of holding a children’s colouring competition to all families that dine at their restaurant during our initiative week. The winner will receive a voucher for a meal for a family of 4 at the Rainforest
Cafe.

RICE DREAM
Rice Dream are so committed to serving the needs of people with problems with milk that they have milk alternative products made from rice which is one of the least allergenic foods available and also naturally lactose free and easy to digest.