No, according to a 2023 study, researchers looked at the number of in-flight medical events related to allergic reactions. They discovered that, even with the increasing number of people travelling by plane over the past 30 years and the rise in the number of people with food allergies, the rate of recorded moderate to severe allergic reactions during air travel has not increased during this time.1 Allergic reactions account for approximately 2-3% of medical events on flights, which equals about 0.7 cases per million passengers.1. Importantly, severe allergic reactions that required adrenaline were extremely rare, occurring in only 0.08 cases per million passengers.1. The researchers found that people are 10 to 100 times less likely to experience an allergic reaction to food on a plane compared to their everyday lives.1.
Passengers with food allergies often do things to reduce the risk of having an allergic reaction, such as taking food from home and avoiding food given to passengers by the airline flight crew.1. These steps help make travel safer showing that with proper planning, the risk of having an allergic reaction is low, and the chances of needing to use adrenaline are very low.1.
1. Turner PJ, Mamula J, Laktabi J, Patel N. How Common Are Allergic Reactions During Commercial Flights? A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Allergy Clin Immunol Pract. 2023;11(11):3400-3406.e4. doi:10.1016/j.jaip.2023.07.025