Prevention and awareness is the key to reducing the risks because there is no cure.
David Curley has battled an allergy to dairy products his whole life.
Mr Curley, from Winmalee west of Sydney, says it could kill him if things go badly wrong.
"It's absolutely potentially fatal. And every time I'm exposed to an allergen, my sensitivity to it reduces, so each attack generally is worse than the last."
The swelling of the lips and tongue is followed by the airways closing up.
Anaphylaxis can come on within 15 minutes of contact with an allergen.
Allergy and Anaphylaxis Australia's Maria Said explains.
"It's an immune-system response to, usually, a food protein. So the body recognises the food protein once the food's eaten."
The National Allergy Strategy has launched a free, online food-allergy training program for people working in the food-services industry.
It comes in response to an alarming rise in episodes of anaphylaxis.
Hospital admissions for food-induced episodes have increased fivefold over the past 20 years.
Cross-contamination is a major culprit, and chef Alex Herbert offers simple advice on how to limit that risk.
"Take care, separate yourself, wash your hands, make sure you've got fresh utensils, and very much focus on that person's dish. There is a very simple online course that you can do which draws your attention to what are some of the simple steps that you can take to make your food safe."
Deaths from food-induced anaphylaxis are increasing at a rate of about 10 per cent every year.
University of Western Australia associate professor Richard Loh says there seem to be particular concerns for people of some ethnic backgrounds.
"There's some published data that more than 50 per cent of deaths of children in Australia from food allergies are in children from Asian background -- Indian, Chinese children."
Mr Curley says he hopes the allergy training program is the first step to an industry-wide standard on food-allergy education.
"I would like to see it move to a similar situation to the responsible service of alcohol, where it's mandatory for the food-service industry to have this type of formal training."
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