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Team:Linkoping Sweden/Human Practice/Surveys
From 2014.igem.org
Surveys
We wanted to investigate how the situation for individuals with a peanut allergy appears both nationally and internationally.
Therefore we have chosen to design two surveys, one of which is directed to individuals with a peanut allergy in Sweden. The second survey is to get an idea of how different countries around the world have adapted their society for individuals with peanut allergies.
National survey
The aim of this survey is to gain a better understanding of how individuals with a peanut allergy are affected by their allergy in everyday life. We want to find out if and how their allergy limits them in everyday situations. In this questionnaire, we investigate whether there is currently a need for a product for the detection of allergens in food and beverages.
The questionnaire:
- Do you know which allergen(s) you are sensitive to? (For example, Ara h 1) If yes, which one/ones?
- On a scale of 1-5 how bothered are you by your symptoms? Where 1 is no problems and 5 are major problems in daily life.
- Do your allergies make you avoid different situations? If so, which situations?
- How do you perceive the labelling of products containing peanuts in Sweden?
- How do you perceive the labelling of products containing peanuts in abroad?
- If there were a portable product obtainable to be able to detect if peanuts are present in food and beverage, would you be interested in one?
- Is there any such product available on the market today that you are aware of?
To spread our survey, we have mostly been using social media such as Facebook. We have also contacted a number of associations for individuals with peanut allergy and asked them to fill out our survey.
Link to national surveyInternational survey
Our international questionnaire was sent to 82 iGEM teams around the world and is designed to be answered as a group. The purpose of the survey is to find out how the teams experience that each country handles the problems associated with peanut allergies.
The responses collected are based on how the teams experience the situation in their home countries and do not represent the actual situation entirely. However, it gives us an overall picture of the differences between countries. By sending out this survey to iGEM teams around the world, we also create opportunities for future collaborations.
The questionnaire:
- How many in your team are allergic to peanuts?
- How many people do you know that are allergic to peanuts?
- How do you think the situation is for allergic people in your country?
- How dangerous is it for a citizen with a peanut allergy in your country to live day-to-day life?
- How does your society deal with nuts in public areas? Choose one or more of the alternatives below.
- When making daily lifestyle choices (like eating a snack containing nuts in public) do you take into consideration the health of allergic individuals in your surroundings?
- Do you believe that peanut allergies are increasing in prevalence in your country?
Results from surveys
The different maps below show the results from the international survey. In order to keep the analysed data relevant to the project and promote public understanding of our results, we have selected a number of questions and presented them below. From these results we can conclude that the knowledge about peanut allergy among the different teams seems fairly low. We can also conclude that the situation for peanut allergic individuals is not very good. This seems to be a general trend all over the world.
The charts below show the result from the national survey. In order to keep the analysed data relevant to the project and promote public understanding of our results, we have again selected a number of questions and presented them below. From these results we can conclude that people with peanut allergies often need to avoid every-day situations due to the fear of getting an allergic reaction. They think that the labeling of products containing peanuts in Sweden is fairly good but that the situation is significantly worse abroad, where they find it inadequate. Over 70% of the people surveyed would be interested in a portable device making it possible to detect if their food contains peanuts.
Fig 2. The chart shows that a majority of the people answering the survey is bothered by their allergies in their every day life.
Fig 2. The chart shows that a majority of the people answering the survey is bothered by their allergies in their every day life.
Fig 3. The majority of the people surveyed answered that they tend to avoid everyday situations because of their allergy.
Fig 3. The majority of the people surveyed answered that they tend to avoid everyday situations because of their allergy.
Fig 4. In Sweden the labeling of products containing peanuts is according to the surveyed people good.
Fig 4. In Sweden the labeling of products containing peanuts is according to the surveyed people good.
Fig 5. Labeling of products containing peanuts abroad is significantly worse than in Sweden and the majority of the surveyed people considerate it inadequate.
Fig 5. Labeling of products containing peanuts abroad is significantly worse than in Sweden and the majority of the surveyed people considerate it inadequate.
Fig 6. 74% of the people answering the survey would be interested in a portable product able to detect peanut proteins in food and beverages.
Fig 6. 74% of the people answering the survey would be interested in a portable product able to detect peanut proteins in food and beverages.
