Food Allergy Knowledge, Attitude and Practices of Restaurant Employees in İstanbul, Turkey

Abstract

With the significant increase in fatal cases of allergic reactions, the issue of food allergy has attracted the attention of authorities, particularly food allergy competence and practices among food handlers. The purpose of this study is to determine food allergy knowledge, attitude, and practices among restaurant employees in Istanbul, Turkey. This observational cross-sectional study was conducted among 490 restaurant employees included restaurant managers, cooks and service workers. The questionnaire used in this study was developed by researchers based on previous studies. The mean knowledge score for participants was 41.74±20.27, the attitude score was 69.42±2.42 and the practice score was 75.26±13.1. According to these results, the level of food allergy knowledge and attitude of the restaurant employees were ‘moderate’ and the practice level was evaluated as ‘low risk practice’. It was found that only 22.9% of the participants attended food allergy training and only 26.9% stated that they could provide appropriate service in order to prevent food allergy. The knowledge (47.45±20.77) and practice (82.02±10.06) scores of the participants receiving food allergy training were statistically higher than those not receiving food allergy training (39.99±19.80 and 73.25±13.23, respectively; p<0.05). A significant weak positive correlation was observed between knowledge with attitude (r=0.12, p<0.05), knowledge with practice (r=0.39, p<0.05) and attitude with practice (r=0.25, p<0.05). This study is very important since it is the first comprehensive study conducted to measure the level of food allergy knowledge, attitude, and practices of restaurant employees in Turkey. Understanding the knowledge, attitude, and practices of restaurant employees on food allergies may help managers to plan the most appropriate policies and training for their employees.