‘Free-from’ food increasingly unaffordable in UK, experts warn

Patients who need it due to allergies and health issues are left with painful symptoms or permanent damage

• How higher costs affect those with special dietary needs

Patients with food allergies and health conditions affecting the digestive system are increasingly unable to afford supermarket “free-from” products, leaving them with painful symptoms or permanent damage, experts warn.

About 2.3 million people in the UK have either a food allergy or intolerance, or coeliac disease, an autoimmune disorder that leaves people unable to eat gluten.