Can One Outgrow a Food Allergy?

This is one of the very first questions a parent will ask when a child is diagnosed with a food allergy. According to foodallergy.org approximately 50% of food allergies among children have increased between 2007 and 2011 and there is no  definite answer as to why so. Researchers have observed that the nine common food allergies are milk, peanuts, shellfish, tree nuts, egg, fish, wheat, soy and sesame. Traces of food a food allergy can also cause a reaction.

However there were many studies and research that shown that children were able to outgrow their food allergy. One study that was done by the Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Clinical Immunology, surveyed about 40,000 children nationwide. Of those children about 3,100 currently still have an allergy and about 1,200 have outgrown it. The study concluded that about 26.6% of children were able outgrow their allergies at about 5 years old. Children who were allergic to milk, egg or soy were most likely to outgrow their allergies however those with a shellfish, tree nut and peanut allergy have a lower chance.

Peanut and tree nut allergies are usually developed during childhood however are lifelong. The peanut allergy is one of the most common food allergies among children and only about 20% are able to outgrow it. The allergy has tripled between 1997 and 2008.  In another study that was conducted, prick tests and blood tests measured the amount of IgE (“the antibody that triggers the symptoms of a food allergy”) in children’s blood. Those who had low levels of IgE were allergy-free before eight years old while those who were still allergic to peanuts had an increasing amount of IgE in their system as they got older. Fish and shellfish are also common allergies that are lifelong in many people. There are about 6.5 million adults who still have the allergy.

Unfortunately there is not really a cure for food allergies. Many doctors and health care professionals highly recommend that people should carefully select the foods they eat and to simply avoid eating foods they are allergic to. It is important to take precautionary measures that could prevent serious health consequences. 

Posted by Sarah Ona

https://www.foodallergy.org/facts-and-stats 

http://blog.foodallergy.org/2013/09/13/who-is-likely-to-outgrow-a-food-allergy/