Ingredient · Allergen
Almond
Also known as: MANDELN
Almond is a nutritious food but one of the most common tree-nut allergens.
For most people almonds are a healthy source of protein, fibre and vitamin E with no meaningful toxicity risk. For people with a tree-nut allergy, even small amounts can trigger a serious, sometimes life-threatening reaction, which is why almonds must be labelled as an allergen.
Why it matters
Almond is the seed of the almond tree, eaten whole, ground into flour, pressed into oil, or used as a flavour/ingredient in drinks and baked goods (this data shows it appearing in beverages, e.g. almond milk). Nutritionally it's a dense source of unsaturated fat, protein, fibre, vitamin E and magnesium. The main safety issue isn't toxicity - it's allergy. Tree-nut allergy is one of the most common food allergies and can cause reactions ranging from mild itching to anaphylaxis, a rapid, dangerous whole-body reaction. People without a nut allergy have essentially no reason to worry about eating almonds.
