First your eyes begin to itch, then your nose is runny and before you know it you have to blow your nose all the time. A lot of people suffer from allergies, approximately 20% of people living in Switzerland are affected. There are therapies and medication available but it isn’t nice to always have to rely on medication to alleviate symptoms.
With food allergies like lactose or celiac intolerance, gluten sensitivity and others you can avoid the intake of certain ingredients to get away from suffering from the annoying to severe symptoms. But you have to know what products not to eat or choose a product that doesn’t contain the problematic ingredient. That’s not always easy and sometimes impossible because of impurities and bad labeling of certain products.
In Switzerland there are many different labeling systems for foods, for non-celiac gluten sensitivity the label of the crossed-out ear of wheat in a circle is easy to spot and an award winning symbol to look out for.
The bigger stores have more often than not appropriate labeling for the most common problematic ingredients(*). For example Coop offers a variety of products and even has a whole line of gluten-free and lactose-free products(**). The Free Form line comprises over 350 products and is easy to spot thanks to their labelling.
You can also check out our post on where to eat with special diet + needs here.
Helpful links:
Swiss Association for Allergies
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