Allergy to invertebrates, eg. prawns, lobster, crabs affects about 1 percent of the population.  It tends to be life-long and is more common in adults than children.

Some people can be allergic to molluscs such as snails, squid, scallops, clams, oysters or mussels.

A downloadable allergen card for those with ShellFish allergy has been developed to help make shopping a little easier.

Quick tips

Fact sheets on shellfish allergy are available from the Children’s Hospital at Westmead and ASCIA websites.