Incidence of Food Allergies Might Not Be As High As Thought

May 13, 2010 Allergies

Many who think they have food allergies actually do not. 

A new report, commissioned by the federal government, finds the field is rife with poorly done studies, misdiagnoses and tests that can give misleading results.

While there is no doubt that people can be allergic to certain foods, with reproducible responses ranging from a rash to a severe life-threatening reaction, the true incidence of food allergies is only about 8 percent for children and less than 5 percent for adults, said Dr. Marc Riedl, an author of the new paper and an allergist and immunologist at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Yet about 30 percent of the population believe they have food allergies. And, Dr. Riedl said, about half the patients coming to his clinic because they had been told they had a food allergy did not really have one.

Please Read the Full NY Times Report to learn more.  Very interesting indeed; this would jive with the change in recommendations in introducing [allergenic] solid foods to babies.

Introducing [Allergenic] Solids to Your Baby Early [Earlier] to Prevent Food Allergies

Apr 20, 2010 Allergies, Friendly Baby Food Advice, Resources, Solids and Weaning

It seems like the advice and recommendations for introducing solid foods that are top allergens is constantly changing.  Changes to recommendations can be a nightmare for new, and experienced, parents who are bombarded with [conflicting, old wives tales etc] advice on how to best feed their little ones.  There has been one confusing item in particular that a few parents are emailing about; starting baby on solid foods early, prior to 4 months of age.  This really needs to be cleared up and clarified so I thought I would post for all to read.

In particular,  the new studies have lead some to believe that the current winds of change mean that babies can be started early on solid foods.   In other words, some parents are believing/wondering if it’s now ok to start solids earlier than 4 months of age.

The only change regarding timing of introducing solid foods is the change in when to introduce foods that may cause allergies.  It is important to note that the AAP continues to recommend exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months, while the AAP Commmittee on Nutrition states that solids are fine to introduce anytime between 4 and 6 months of age.  One AAP report specifically notes that

“Although solid foods should not be introduced before 4 to 6 months of age, there is no current convincing evidence that delaying their introduction beyond this period has a significant protective effect on the development of atopic disease regardless of whether infants are fed cow milk protein formula or human milk. This includes delaying the introduction of foods that are considered to be highly allergic, such as fish, eggs, and foods containing peanut protein.” Click to view report

There are 8 foods that make up 90% of all allergenic foods.  These 8 foods are

• Milk
• Egg
• Peanut
• Tree nut (walnut, cashew, etc.)
• Fish
• Shellfish
• Soy
• Wheat

Since early 2008, several studies have been done that point to the conclusion that delaying these allergenic foods may not prevent “atopic disease” e.g asthma and eczema.   For families with a history of food allergies and intolerance, the recommendation continues to be one of caution and delay.

More Resources:

German Study “This study found no evidence supporting a delayed introduction of solids beyond 4 or 6 months for the prevention of asthma, allergic rhinitis, and food or inhalant sensitization at the age of 6 years.”

Dairy Introduction past 9 months ” More delay in introduction of cow milk products was associated with a higher risk for eczema.”

ESPGHAN study “Exclusive or full breast-feeding for about 6 months is a desirable goal. Complementary feeding (ie, solid foods and liquids other than breast milk or infant formula and follow-on formula should not be introduced before 17 weeks and not later than 26 weeks. There is no convincing scientific evidence that avoidance or delayed introduction of potentially allergenic foods, such as fish and eggs, reduces allergies, either in infants considered at increased risk for the development of allergy or in those not considered to be at increased risk.

Finnish Study – Late Introduction of Solids “Late introduction of solid foods was associated with increased risk of allergic sensitization to food and inhalant allergens. Eggs, oats, and wheat were most strongly related to food sensitization, whereas potatoes and fish were most strongly related to inhalant sensitization.

Oral Allergy Syndrome – Allergies to Pollen may prompt “food” allergies

Nov 17, 2009 Allergies

Every now and then we have a parent write in that their little one has experienced a reaction to a certain food that we have not listed as being an allergy issue. On our Allergy information page, we list those foods that are common and high allergens. We note this allergy risk information on the food specific page as well (i.e. on our Egg page).

It is very important to keep in mind that ANY food has the possibility of being an allergen.

We have updated our Allergy page as well as the food specific pages with information about Oral Allergy Syndrome. A visitor wrote to tell us her 6 month old baby had a plum allergy and wondered why we did not list plums as being a high allergen. Plums are not considered a high allergen and are not in the group of most common or highly allergenic foods. Plums may give someone with pollen sensitivity OAS. I hope to hear back from this Mom about the exact type of allergy her little one was diagnosed with. Due to this email, we set about adding OAS information to all those food specific pages where OAS is possible. We’re posting the information below as a quick read.

What is Oral Allergy Syndrome:

OAS occurs when a person sensitive/allergic to pollen develops a reaction to fruits/veggies that have a similar type of pollen or protein.

Symptoms of Oral Allergy Syndrome:

Itching & swelling of the lips, the mouth and/or throat are typical symptoms. These symptoms normally appear within minutes of eating the offending food and may be worse during the spring and fall pollen seasons. Rarely is an OAS life threatening.

Here are the common OAS culprits:

Birch Pollen Allergies

Birch pollen allergies are associated with apple, carrot, cherry, pear, peach, plum, fennel, walnut, potato, spinach, buckwheat, peanut, honey, celery, and kiwifruit.

Cedar Allergies

Japanese cedar allergies are associated with melon, apple, peach, and kiwifruit.

Mugwort Allergies

Mugwort allergies are associated with celery, carrot, spices, melon, watermelon, apple, hazelnut, and chestnut.

Grass Pollen

Grass pollen allergies are associated with melon, tomato, watermelon, orange, rice and cherry.

Ragweed Pollen

Ragweed allergies are associated with melon, chamomile, honey, banana, and sunflower seeds.

Latex (a natural rubber)

Those with Latex allergies may be cross-reactive to banana, avocado, kiwi and papaya.

Tags: allergy, food allergy, Fruits and Veggies