Girl with dairy allergy dies after drinking hot chocolate in Costa with milk

Her mum had told the barista about Hannah Jacob's dairy intolerance, the family's lawyer say.

A schoolgirl died from a suspected severe allergic reaction after drinking a hot chocolate at Costa Coffee in London.

The mother of Hannah Jacobs, 13, who was intolerant to dairy products, fish and eggs since she was a toddler, ordered the hot drink thinking it had soya milk.

Hannah took a sip of the to-go drink in the dental practice’s waiting room while waiting for her appointment, only to realise it had dairy milk.

The mother had told the barista about her daughter’s dairy intolerance, the legal firm Leigh Day said.

The family went to a pharmacy for help and gave Hannah an EpiPen, or an epinephrine auto-injector, which treats life-threatening allergic reactions by relaxing the airways.

It was too late. The teenager, from Barking, east London, died following a suspected anaphylactic reaction on February 8 last year.

Ambulance crews pronounced Hannah dead at 1pm.

An inquest is set to be held at East London Coroner’s Court on Monday.

The inquest will hear from 11 witnesses and experts as it looks into the schoolgirl’s death.

In anaphylaxis, your immune system turns against you. The body releases histamines, which basically act like bouncers at a club, chucking out the things your body doesn’t want in it.

But these chemicals can rev up allergic reactions, causing breathing difficulties, swelling, hives and decreased blood pressure.

Deaths from anaphylaxis are rare. Experts estimate that there are less than 10 fatalities due to allergic reactions to food every year.

About 6% of Britons are allergic to a type of food, with nuts like peanuts or almonds among the most common.

Costa Coffee has been approached for comment.

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