Handle with care
Latex glove allergy problems on the rise.
By Ben Van Houten
Restaurant Business
August 1, 2000
WHILE THE BATTLE against foodborne illnesses continues
to rage harder than ever, a disheartening trend is threatening
to put a damper on the diligent food-safety efforts of
operators across the country: a growing number of employees
are having problems with latex allergies, hardly good
news for an industry where latex gloves are one of the
most common forms of protection against bacteria.
"This is definitely becoming a big-time problem,"
says Steve Grover, VP-technical services for the National
Restaurant Association. "It's a bad allergy to have,
and it's caused death before. And there's no doubt from
the number of calls we've been getting that this is becoming
a major problem for restaurateurs, especially as glove
usage continues to rise."
Grover says problems began last year, when the Food and
Drug Administration's new Model Food Code recommended
that foodservice workers not touch foods with bare hands,
instead relying on gloves and tongs, among other methods.
"As a result of that, a lot of operators simply started
requiring employees to wear latex gloves," he says.
"Because latex is tougher and more durable than any
other kind of glove, it was a natural move for a lot of
operators." In fact, states such as Minnesota and
New York now require glove use in restaurants, though
not specifically latex.
Latex allergies occur when a person's skin is exposed
to proteins found in natural rubber latex, leading to
a simple hand rash which could be a precursor to a much
more serious allergic response. "If someone has a
severe allergy, they're going to know it," says Grover.
"This is why we want to get the word out to operators,
and let them know their options."
Grower says the NRA is recommending alternative gloves,
such as vinyl or synthetic-latex gloves. "It's easy
for operators to switch to another type," he says.
"Also, if they use powder-free gloves, that reduces
the risk because proteins bond to powder and cause more
latex to reach the skin. Or an allergic person could even
inhale powder and have a reaction that way. Just as long
as everybody's doing proper handwashing, these problems
shouldn't be happening."
Gene Vosberg, VP of the Washington State Restaurant Association,
says the issue is "certainly becoming a big factor"
in his state, which has been trying to mandate glove use
for a few years. "We refuse to believe gloves are
the silver bullet of food safety, and this only strengthens
that point," he adds.
The NRA's Grover says the issue has become serious enough
in the industry that the FDA is now looking into it again.
"We see them taking this very seriously and possibly
rethinking some of their glove recommendations,"
he says. "Until then, I'm sure this problem will
only get bigger."
Reprinted with permission from Restaurant Business magazine,
copyright © 2000, a VNUUSA company.
