In the midst of a food allergy epidemic, it is important to be aware of all of the possible allergens that people eat, knowingly or unknowingly.
About 2 billion people on the planet eat insects, with about 2000 species ingested in Latin America, Africa, and Asia.[1] The most commonly ingested insects, in descending order, are beetles (31%), caterpillars (18%), stinging insects (ant/wasp/bee, 14%), locusts/crickets (13%), and cicadas (10%).[1] Farther down the list are termites (3%) and flies (3%), which seem to be the least appetizing of the insects.
There are a number of case reports but few published studies on this topic. In Laos, about 8% of insect eaters are allergic to this food, and surprisingly, in China, 18% of fatal anaphylaxis cases were attributed to insect ingestion.[1]
Even in the Western world, we each unwittingly eat about half a kilogram of insect traces per year. In the United States, one might find edible whole insects sold as a novelty (eg, chocolate-covered ants). However, parts of insects or derivatives are commonplace in the North American diet.
For example, the red dye carmine is a product of the desiccated bodies of female cochineal insects. It may be found in many "red velvet" baked goods and surreptitiously in other foods.
