Food Allergy News and Research

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Food allergies occur when the immune system identifies the proteins contained within food as foreign bodies and mounts an attack in the same way as it does when microbes and bacteria are detected.

New approach to cultivate hypoallergenic tomato and strawberry varieties

The incidence of food allergies has increased in recent decades: It affects three to four percent of the adult population and five percent of children.

16 Jul 2018

Children with pre-existing allergies should be screened for eosinophilic esophagitis

Children with known skin, food and respiratory allergies should be screened for an emerging, chronic food allergy called eosinophilic esophagitis, a painful inflammation of the esophagus, the food tube between the mouth and stomach.

25 Jun 2018

Study identifies key food allergy policies that parents want in schools to improve safety of kids

One in five parents did not feel that their child with food allergy was safe while at school, according to results of a national survey published in BMC Pediatrics.

23 May 2018

New award will help research into immune system differences that trigger food allergies

Adora A. Lin, M.D., Ph.D., an attending physician in Children's department of Allergy and Immunology, was awarded $240,000 to improve understanding of how children's immune systems tolerate or react to certain food allergens--sometimes triggering a cascade of side effects that can be fatal.

13 Apr 2018

Intranasal spray shows promise for peanut allergy suppression

A vaccine delivered in the form of an ultrafine nasal spray has been shown to protect against allergy symptoms peanut sensitive mice.

13 Apr 2018

Nasal vaccine may suppress peanut allergy in mice, study shows

A vaccine may successfully turn off peanut allergy in mice, a new study shows.Just three monthly doses of a nasal vaccine protected the mice from allergic reactions upon exposure to peanut, according to research from the Mary H. Weiser Food Allergy Center at the University of Michigan.

11 Apr 2018

Acid-suppressing medicines and antibiotics in infancy linked to later allergic disease risk

The use of acid-suppressing medications or antibiotics in the first 6 months of infancy was associated with an increased risk for the subsequent development of allergic diseases in childhood.

2 Apr 2018

Many parents still hesitate to try early peanut introduction, survey finds

In January 2017 guidelines were released urging parents to begin early introduction of peanut-containing foods to reduce the risk of peanut allergy. A new study shows those who are aware of the guidelines are still hesitant to put them into place and not everyone has heard of them.

20 Mar 2018

Survey of school nurses underscores dire need to develop more feasible food allergy policies

Nearly all school nurses participating in a national survey (96 percent) reported that staff at their school received training on handling severe allergic reactions to food. Over 80 percent asserted that their school had an emergency epinephrine auto-injector on hand to stop a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction.

14 Mar 2018

New suggests different approach to eczema treatment

Eczema affects about 17 percent of children in developed countries and is often the gateway to food allergy and asthma, initiating an "atopic march" toward broader allergic sensitization.

6 Mar 2018

Children persistently allergic to cow's milk may remain shorter, lighter than kids with nut allergies

Children who experience persistent allergies to cow's milk may remain shorter and lighter throughout pre-adolescence when compared with children who are allergic to peanuts or tree nuts, according to a retrospective chart review to be presented March 4, 2018, during the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology/World Allergy Organization Joint Conference.

5 Mar 2018

Study connects challenges of food allergies with personality traits

The first study published connecting challenges of food allergies with personality traits finds that higher openness to experience is the biggest predictor of more allergy issues, while neuroticism does not lead to more frequent allergy issues.

1 Mar 2018

New study identifies possible target for treatment of dangerous allergic reactions

Prospects for inhibiting the most dangerous symptoms of allergic reactions may be brighter with the publication of a new study that identifies a possible target for drug therapies.

23 Feb 2018

Kids show signs of mental disorder soon after being diagnosed with chronic illness

Children commonly show signs of a mental disorder soon after receiving a diagnosis involving a of a chronic physical condition, according to a recent study in BMJ Open.

4 Jan 2018

Special precautions not required when people with egg allergy take flu shots

For years, people with an egg allergy have been told to avoid or take special precautions when getting a flu shot because most influenza vaccines are grown in eggs and contain a tiny amount of egg protein. An updated practice parameter from the Joint Task Force on Practice Parameters stresses that people with egg allergy should receive their yearly flu shot, and that no special precautions are required.

19 Dec 2017

Study uncovers genes that drive peanut allergy reactions

Mount Sinai researchers have identified six genes that activate hundreds of other genes in children experiencing severe allergic reactions to peanuts.

5 Dec 2017

Got food allergies? Add milk to the worries for your meal

Since her son Matt was an infant, Lynda Mitchell knew he had a milk allergy. She controlled the symptoms by switching his baby formula. But when he was 1, Halloween proved horrifying. While trick-or-treating in a pumpkin costume, Matt grabbed a chocolate bar and bit through the wrapper. Although he spit out the candy, his violent allergic reaction morphed into a mess of hives, swelling and labored breathing. He ended up in the emergency room.

22 Nov 2017

Mother's diet can protect nursing newborns against food allergies, research shows

Research published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine today indicates that a mother's diet can protect nursing newborns against food allergies.

20 Nov 2017

Trial shows apple allergen as effective treatment option for birch pollen-related apple allergy

The food allergy, which is related to birch pollen, is a very common attendant phenomenon associated with birch pollen allergy - indeed around 70% of those with a birch pollen allergy are also allergic to apples. That amounts to around 280,000 people in Austria.