This is simplified information about seed allergies – there are more resources available at the bottom of the page for further reading for those who are interested in knowing more.

Seeds are plant embryos protected by a hard outer shell. Not all seeds are edible, but they can be an important food source as they are rich in nutrients and protein.

As with other groups of foods we cannot lump all seeds together in terms of allergy – different seeds contain different combinations of allergenic proteins, so they are not easily defined or categorised.

You may be allergic to one specific type of seed or a combination of seeds. For those who are anaphylactic it may be best to avoid all products containing seeds due to the cross contamination during production.

Grains, Nuts, Legumes and Pseudocereals

In terms of edible foods 'seeds' can be a very broad group. For the purposes of grouping in terms of allergy, we are going to keep seeds separate from:

Grains - like rice and wheat in the Poaceae family are the edible seeds of various grass plants. This family of foods also contains millet and sorghum, which are commonly described as seeds.

Nuts - Botanically edible fruits with a hard outer shell and come from various plant families.

Legumes - like mung beans, pea and lentils.

Pseudocereals - like plants in the Amaranthaceae family include amaranth and quinoa. These again are edible seeds of plants.

You can click on the links above to go visit the group page for these foods.

Fruit Seeds

Fruit seeds have been included in this allergy group as there have been many recorded incidences of the seeds of fruit, most commonly kiwi and citrus fruits, causing severe allergic reactions. These allergic reactions have been later linked to seed storage proteins.

Which seeds are related?

Working out which seeds are related can be confusing as many of them have the same species and genus name but are known by multiple names.

In the table below you can see some seeds are closely related as they have the same family name, but the genus and species name is slightly different. For example, coriander, cumin and fennel all look very different but are in same family – Apiaceae.

Table showing which seeds contain which allergenic proteins

Table is sorted alphabetically by family to show which seeds are the same but have multiple names.



Information in this table is from multiple resources – please visit the Food Allergy Index for information on each food.

You can download a Nuts & Seeds Factsheet from the Allergy Resources Ko-fi Shop for just $0.90 (£0.69 or €0.82).

Seed Storage Proteins

Seed Storage Proteins are split into three main types, 2S seed storage albumins, 7S seed storage globulins (also called vicilin) and 11S seed storage globulins (also called legumin). Albumins are water soluble proteins found more often in nuts and seeds, globulins are found more often in nuts.

Seed storage proteins are the most common allergen associated with nut, seed and legume allergies and have a greater potential to cause a severe allergic reaction which may include anaphylaxis if accidentally ingested.

Seed storage proteins are heat stable, meaning that heating (and in many cases, freezing or processing) does not damage the shape of the protein, so it does not lose its ability to cause allergic reactions.

You can download a Seed Storage Protein Factsheet from the Allergy Resources Ko-fi Shop for just $0.50 (£0.40 or €0.45). This has up to date information on which foods contain linked allergens and what to avoid if you think you have an allergy to seed storage proteins.

Other foods containing seed storage proteins are tree nuts, peanuts, kiwi and coconut.

Lipid Transfer Proteins

Lipid Transfer Proteins (also called LTPs) are panallergens found in many groups of foods and can cause serious allergic reactions. It is often the allergen found to be linking what initially looks like lots of random food allergies together. Lipid transfer proteins are stable when cooked or processed.

Foods containing LTPs are almonds, apple, banana, cherry, celery, kiwi and peach.

Bet v 1 Proteins

Bet v 1 allergens are linked to Pollen Food Allergy Syndrome, which was previously called Oral Allergy Syndrome. These terms are still used interchangeably.

In this syndrome a person first becomes sensitised (allergic) to a tree or plant pollen. The most common in Pollen Food Allergy Syndrome is birch tree pollen. The allergenic protein in birch tree pollen is called Bet v 1. A person can then find themselves allergic to other proteins in foods which are similar to Bet v 1 proteins, often called Bet v 1-like or Bet v 1 homologues. Bet v 1 proteins are found in a wide range of foods including fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and grains.

The symptoms of this syndrome are called oral allergy symptoms as they can cause sneezing, itchy mouth and lips as well as a scratchy throat and tongue. All in all, these fruits can cause a general irritation of the mouth, nose and throat. It is very rarely serious enough for the throat to close as it does in anaphylaxis.

The Bet v 1 allergens are often referred to as ‘heat labile’, meaning that the proteins are damaged by heat and lose their ability to cause an allergic reaction. There are more proteins in the skin of the fruit than in the flesh and seeds. If you can eat the fruit once heated or peeled with no or reduced allergic reactions then you should be able to determine if this is Pollen Food Allergy Syndrome or a true IgE allergy (an IgE allergy will have immediate symptoms which may include anaphylaxis, swelling and/or hives).

Other foods containing Bet v 1 allergens are peanut, celery walnut, cherry, apple, peach and pear.

Profilin Proteins

Profilins are panallergens which have the potential to cause allergic reactions over lots of groups of foods and cause people to suffer from multiple food allergies.

Allergic reactions to profilins are linked to oral allergy symptoms, more specifically they are linked to Celery-Mugwort-Spice Syndrome, which is a subtype of Pollen Food Allergy Syndrome.

Profilins are less likely to be cause anaphylactic allergic reactions and the proteins themselves are easily denatured with heat and processing.

Other foods containing profilins include celery, peanut, walnut, lupin, almonds, various fruits, grains and vegetables.

Gibberellin Proteins

Orange seed, lotus seeds and Chilli seeds contains a gibberellin protein. These are lesser known plant hormone allergens. They maintain their shape even after cooking or freezing and so can continue to cause allergic reactions.

Foods containing gibberellins include cherry, apricot and peach.

Thaumatin Proteins

Orange seed and Chilli seeds also contains a thaumatin protein.. Thaumatins are a lesser known allergen found in plants. It gives plants the sweet taste and is often used as an additive to foods to add flavour. It is also sometimes referred to as thaumatin-like proteins (TLP). Thaumatin proteins have been shown to maintain their shape after thermal processing and are resistant to digestive enzymes. This makes them an important allergenic protein of note.

Foods containing thaumatins include kiwi, apple and banana.

Oleosin Proteins

Oleosin proteins are a lesser-known allergenic protein found in plants. The proteins are involved in preventing the build up of oil molecules and may have a role in lipid store degredation during plant germination.

Oleosin proteins have been shown to maintain their shape after thermal processing, for example, studies have shown that roasted peanuts (in their shell) had more allergenic oleosin proteins than peanuts which were not heated.

Other food containing oleosin proteins include peanut, hazelnut, sesame, buckwheat and quinoa.

If you are interested in which foods contain which allergenic proteins you can visit the Food Allergy Tool Page.

Why do some foods have no named allergens?

Some of the seeds in the table above have no allergens listed. The World Health Organization (WHO) has a database where they record all well studied allergens in certain foods. If there are none recorded then there have not been enough studies into this food. If you are interested in what is needed by the WHO before they add an allergen to their nomenclature database you can look at that HERE.

Most of the entries in the table above are supported by the WHO allergen database and some are from individual studies.

If you are interested in cross reactivity of foods the most up to date information is on the Cross Reactivity Tool.

What are salicylates?

Salicylates are chemicals made by plants as a defence against insects and disease. Some people have an enzyme deficiency which means they don’t digest salicylates very well, causing gastrointestinal and asthma symptoms.

Seeds which contain salicylates include caraway seeds, chilli, cumin, fennel, grapeseed, kiwi, mustard, pine nut, pumpkin seeds and rosehip.

What are lectins?

Lectins are carbohydrate binding proteins found in lots of plants. They are very common in legumes and nuts, but also found in some seeds. They can cause gastrointestinal symptoms which can be reduced by cooking or soaking seeds.

Seeds which contain lectins include cherry, grapeseed, lotus seeds and pumpkin seed.

NY Allergy & Sinus Center - Seed Allergies

Allergy UK - Sesame Allergy and other seeds

Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy - Peanut, Tree Nut and Seed Allergy

Anaphylaxis Campaign - Sesame Allergy

FARE - Other Food Allergens

Oral immunotherapy with sunflower seed butter and a review of seed allergy, 2024

Immediate Hypersensitivity Reactions to Chia Seed Ingestion, a Novel Food Allergy, 2023

A review of cannabis allergy in the early days of legalization, 2023

A critical review of current technologies used to reduce ginkgotoxin, ginkgotoxin-5′-glucoside, ginkgolic acid, allergic glycoprotein, and cyanide in Ginkgo biloba L. seed, 2022

Seed Storage Protein, Functional Diversity and Association with Allergy, 2022

Unraveling the Diagnosis of Kiwifruit Allergy: Usefulness of Current Diagnostic Tests, 2022

The importance of the 2S albumins for allergenicity and cross-reactivity of peanuts, tree nuts, and sesame seeds, 2021

Defining challenge-proven coexistent nut and sesame seed allergy: A prospective multicenter European study, 2020

Lemon seed allergy: a case presentation, 2020

Sunflower seed allergy, 2016

The use of serum-specific IgE measurements for the diagnosis of peanut, tree nut, and seed allergy, 2008

Poppy seed allergy: A case report and review of the literature, 2006

Identification of oleosins as major allergens in sesame seed allergic patients, 2006

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