Allergy Awareness Week 2015

Did you know that it’s Allergy Awareness Week?

National charity Allergy UK is dedicated to supporting those suffering from allergies, and has launched the awareness week to raise knowledge about the seriousness of the allergies suffered by millions of people across the UK.allergy-uk-logo-strap

From new research, the charity found that a whopping ‘68% of people do not know what to do if they saw someone suffering an allergic reaction’.

Yet ‘44% of allergy sufferers admit they live in daily fear of a reaction’.

As you are aware, for some people, an allergic reaction can be lethal. Anaphylaxis is the extreme end of the allergy spectrum.

Lindsey McManus, Deputy CEO of Allergy UK says: “Anaphylaxis is a sudden and severe allergic reaction which can be terrifying at best and fatal at worst. There is a concerning lack of awareness of this fatal condition. Thousands of people are being admitted to hospital every year and the number of sufferers is soaring. Yet allergy is still a relatively ‘hidden’ epidemic. More must be done to raise awareness of the deadly condition if lives are to be saved.”

Learn here about what to do in a situation where somebody is suffering an anaphylactic reaction, and how to use a Adrenaline Auto-Injector.

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Allergy UK is calling on people to ‘recognise the symptoms, recognise the FEAR:

  • Face – is their face/are their lips swollen? Have they gone pale? Are they lightheaded?
  • Eyes – is there a look of fear in their eyes? Are they red, watery and puffy?
  • Airways – are they wheezing/uncontrollably coughing? Do they have a shortness of breath? Are they unable to talk? Are they making a strange sound?
  • Rash – is there a red, raised, itchy rash anywhere on their body especially their face or neck?

Allergy UK asked Twitter users to contribute to the campaign by using the hashtag #LivingInFear, to ‘write down their individual fear on a piece of paper, along with #LivingInFear, and post a selfie on social media, nominating a friend to share their own fear in support of allergy sufferers.’

The campaign hopes to make people more aware of what we can do to help those suffering from allergies, as the number of people diagnosed continues to increase.

The NHS report that: ‘hospital admissions in England for allergic reactions are soaring to more than 20,000 each year’.

By being aware of the seriousness of the harm allergic reactions can cause we can be prepared to help those in need. 

For further resources and information about Allergy UK’s aims and campaigns, head over to their website. You can also read more on their Twitter page.