London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Oct 04, 2025

Allergy deaths: Bereaved mothers call for 'allergy tsar'

Allergy deaths: Bereaved mothers call for 'allergy tsar'

Two mothers who lost their teenage daughters to severe allergic reactions are calling on the government to appoint an "allergy tsar".

Tanya Ednan-Laperouse and Emma Turay say allergy services and treatments should be made an NHS priority to prevent avoidable deaths.

They want to see a rise in specialist clinics and specialist allergy doctors.

Mrs Ednan-Laperouse's daughter suffered a severe allergic reaction after eating sesame in a Pret a Manger baguette.

Natasha, 15, from Fulham, west London, died of anaphylaxis after unknowingly eating sesame contained in an artichoke, olive and tapenade baguette she had bought at Heathrow Airport.

She fell ill and collapsed on a flight to Nice on 17 July 2016.

Tanya Ednan-Laperouse (left) and Emma Turay say they want a 'public champion' for people with allergies

Ms Turay's 18-year-old daughter Shante Turay-Thomas died from a severe allergic reaction after eating hazelnut at her home in Wood Green, north London, in September 2018.

The inquest into her death heard a combination of human and system error resulted in the student not being seen by ambulance crews until more than 40 minutes after Ms Turay dialled the NHS's 111 non-emergency number.

Ms Turay said: "Nothing can ever bring our Shante back but by appointing an allergy tsar the government can help prevent other families from suffering avoidable deaths."

The tsar would hopefully act as a "public champion" for people living with allergies, she said.

The mothers are also calling for GP and hospital services to be joined up to give patients coherent care, along with increasing the number of specialist allergy doctors and mandatory allergy training for all GPs.

Natasha suffered a severe reaction after eating sesame in a baguette

Prof Sir Stephen Holgate, a trustee of Natasha's Foundation, said allergies are at "epidemic levels in the UK", with one in three people now affected by conditions ranging from food and drug allergies to asthma and eczema.

He said: "Exactly what is causing the dramatic rise in allergies is unclear, however, with each disease the principle is the same - the body's immune system reacts to a substance as though it is harmful, triggering a reaction.

"Despite this growing burden of disease, there has been little investment in NHS allergy services for the last 20 years.

"Appointing an allergy tsar to act as a champion for people with allergies would be an important first step in addressing this unmet need."

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
×