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November 11, 2005

There is hope in outgrowing child food allergies

A new study came out about childhood food allergies, specifically peanut allergy and tree nut allergy. The study found that 9% of children allergic to tree nuts outgrow their allergy over time, including those who’ve had a severe reaction such as anaphylaxis shock. The research was done at Johns Hopkins Children’s Center and was funded in part by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease.

The results are reported in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. One conclusion was that children with these allergies should be regularly re-evaluated. Previously reported research stated that up to 20% of children outgrow peanut allergy.

278 children, ages 3 to 21 years old, with a known allergy to tree nuts were evaluated. 9% of subjects passed oral food challenges, a standard test to see if a child has outgrown a food allergy. The test should only be done by the allergist... DON'T try this at home.

The study also found that, of children allergic to both peanuts and tree nuts, those who had outgrown their peanut allergy were more likely to outgrow the tree nut allergy. Children who are allergic to more than one type of tree nut are unlikely to outgrow their allergy.

Posted by David at November 11, 2005 11:06 AM