Allergies to foods are a significant public health concern throughout the world. Nearly 2 percent of adults and 4-6 per-cent of children suffer from food allergies, which are defined as an adverse immunologically me-diated reaction to antigenic molecules present in foods. The allergic response is mediated by the interaction of cell-bound immunoglobulin E (IgE), a class of antibody molecules uniquely in-volved in allergic reactions with allergen (Sampson and Metcalfe 1991; Metcalfe, Sampson, and Simon 1996). Antigenic molecules, or aller-gens, typically are proteins that stimulate aller-gen- specific IgE production in certain individuals through as yet undetermined mechanisms (Lehrer, Horner, and Reese 1996; Taylor and Lehrer 1996). Inheritance and exposure to aller-gens are two factors that contribute to the devel-opment of allergy. The pathophysiological mechanisms of food allergies are distinct from other food intolerances such as gluten sensitive enteropathy (celiac disease) that are due to non-toxic, nonimmune reactions to foods even though symptoms may resemble those of 'true' food al-lergies. Food allergy symptoms can range from mild discomfort to life-threatening anaphylactic shock (Sampson and Metcalfe 1991; Metcalfe, Sampson, and Simon 1996).More than 90 percent of the allergic reactions observed in children and adults can be attributed to exposure to eight foods or food groups. These include eggs, fish, shellfish, milk, peanuts, soy beans, tree nuts, and wheat (Taylor and Lehrer 1996). Virtually all allergens are proteins; yet of the enormous numbers of proteins occurring in foods, only a very few are allergenic and only in certain people. Most characterized food allergens, with some exceptions, are stable to digestion and processing, and many of the major allergens are generally proteins that are present in large amounts in allergenic foods. The primary struc-ture of food allergens has been determined by molecular cloning and sequencing (Taylor and Lehrer 1996; Bush and Hefle 1996; Lehrer and others 1997; Reese and Lehrer 1998).Usually, food allergy develops as follows. An allergen or an immunologically active fragment of that particular allergen crosses from the lumen of the gut through the mucosal membrane bar-rier; this molecule or its fragment can stimulate different types of lymphocytes that ultimately result in the production of allergen-specific IgE antibodies. These IgE antibodies also have the unique ability to bind to surface receptors on mast cells and basophils; upon a second or subsequent exposure, allergen may bridge cell-bound IgE an-tibodies. The cross-linking of cell-bound IgE an-tibodies will lead to the release of both preformed mediators, such as histamine and newly synthe-sized mediators such as protaglandins, that cause smooth muscle contraction, vasodilation, bron-chial constriction, and cell infiltration, which in effect cause symptoms of allergic reactions (Sampson and Metcalfe 1991).