Fewer children are being found with peanut allergies in the last few years, a study shows, which is believed to be due to a change in policy regarding early exposure.
This began when experts recommended that parents should avoid having their infants exposed to common allergens as a means to curb rising food allergy rates. However, a 2015 landmark trial found that feeding peanuts to babies could actually decrease their chances of developing an allergy by more than 80 percent.
Peanut Allergies in Children
In 2017, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases formally recommended that parents use the early-introduction approach and issued national guidelines. A new study that was published on Monday found that food allergy rates in kids under three have fallen following those changes.
The data showed that the numbers dropped to 0.93 percent between 2017 and 2020, from 1.46 percent between 2012 and 2015. Comparing these statistics shows a 36 percent reduction in all food allergies, which is largely driven by a 43 percent drop in peanut allergies, according to the New York Times.
Additionally, the study found that eggs overtook peanuts as the No. 1 food allergen in young children. However, the researchers did not examine what infants ate, which means the study does not show that the guidelines directly caused the decline.
Read more: Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Under Fire Over Oval Office Rant, Claiming Parents 'Aren't Having' Children
A pediatrician at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York, Dr. Edith Bracho-Sanchez, said that the data is still promising as it relates to the prevention of a potentially deadly and life-changing diagnosis.
One of the researchers of the latest study, co-author Sanislaw Gabryszewski, MD, PhD, said that their observations provide real-world evidence that public health efforts that promote early allergen introduction in infancy are making an impact, AJMC reported.
A Change in National Guidelines
The finding comes as roughly four percent of kids are affected by a food allergy that is mediated by IgE, which includes food like eggs, nuts, milk, wheat, and peanuts. These can then cause immediate reactions that can threaten the children's lives, including difficulty breathing and swelling.
Another researcher involved in the new study, Dr. David Hill, said that their findings were "remarkable." He and his colleagues analyzed electronic health records from dozens of pediatric practices so they could track diagnoses of food allergies in young kids before, during, and after the guidelines were issued.
Despite this, the effort has not yet resulted in a reduction in the overall increase in food allergies in the United States in the past few years, as per LMT Online.
