How Waterloo Road's powerful food allergy storyline could save lives

It’s a shocking and upsetting watch – particularly for those who have lost or nearly lost loved ones to food allergy, and the millions of people in the UK living with them.

The number of people with food allergies in the UK has more than doubled since 2008, and more than 5,000 people a year are hospitalised in England with food anaphylaxis.

My daughter Natasha died when she was 15 years old after eating a baguette sandwich containing sesame which she was allergic to. Sesame was not listed on the ingredients list on the packaging, and the seeds were not visible. Had the sandwich been properly labelled, Natasha would never have eaten it. Her death was entirely preventable.

Following Natasha’s death, my husband, Nadim, and I set up The Natasha Allergy Research Foundation to improve the lives of people in the UK living with food allergies through clinical research, campaigning and education.

With so many people now affected, it is vital that food allergies are portrayed correctly in the media which, after all, can be a wonderful vehicle for educating and shaping opinions. But too often, food allergies are misrepresented in films and TV shows.

Take the recent film The Roses, staring Olivia Colman and Benedict Cumberbatch. There are many criticisms but the most dangerous is the medical inaccuracy.

With so many people, especially children and young adults, affected by food allergies, widespread knowledge of the correct treatment in a medical emergency is essential.

In the film, Colman’s character Ivy has an allergy to raspberries – and on several occasions her allergy is used for dramatic and comedic purposes.

Withholding treatment from someone who is experiencing an allergic reaction, as depicted in The Roses, is dangerous and irresponsible.

Furthermore, the way the adrenaline auto-injector (AAI) was administered in the film was inaccurate – Ivy’s EpiPen is injected into her arm and not into the correct site, her outer thigh. This mistake alone could cost Ivy her life.

Accurate storytelling of food allergies and anaphylaxis could raise awareness, but instead this scene weaponises a medical emergency for shock value. Food allergies are not remotely funny and they are not a lifestyle choice; they are a serious medical condition, caused by a faulty immune response, and for some they can be life-threatening.

So it was refreshing when the Waterloo Road team asked to collaborate with Natasha’s Foundation on their new food allergy storyline.

The process started many months ago, with conversations about how someone with food allergies could end up eating an allergen they are allergic to.

We also worked closely with the writers, providing advice and guidance on the signs and symptoms of anaphylaxis, and how to respond to a food allergy emergency: immediate administration of an AAI into the outer thigh, make sure the person is lying down, call an ambulance and give a second AAI if symptoms don’t improve after five minutes.

I am sure that Waterloo Road’s decision to include this storyline and their commitment to getting the facts right will help raise awareness of food allergies in a way that could truly save lives.

Natasha’s Foundation is also supporting schools directly to help keep children with food allergies safe and included in the classroom.

Around two pupils in every classroom have a diagnosed food allergy and one in five allergic reactions to food happen in school. With more children with food allergies in schools, staff need to be properly trained, yet according to research the charity carried out with the NASUWT teachers’ union, 67 per cent of teachers have had no allergy awareness training.

To address this gap, the charity has created Allergy School, an educational programme offering free resources to schools to help increase awareness, safety, and understanding of food allergies.

To coincide with the Waterloo Road storyline, we have launched new resources for secondary schools. This includes a self-assessment for secondary schools, best practice guidance to ensure policies and safeguards are in place to better empower, protect and include students in their care, and a free short film for staff and students about how to respond in a food allergy emergency.

Hopefully, this positive collaboration with Waterloo Road marks a new chapter in the way food allergies are represented in the media.

Greater awareness and understanding will, without doubt, help to improve the lives of people with food allergies.

For information and support, please The Natasha Allergy Foundation.

Waterloo Road continues today at 6am on BBC iPlayer, and tonight on BBC One from 9pm. Previous seasons are available to stream on BBC iPlayer now.

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