New research has just been released showing that the prevalence of peanut allergy in children has doubled in children born in the last 4 years compared to those born 10 years ago. The increasing burden on society of this allergic condition along with asthma, hayfever, and eczema has sparked interest into the causal associations of peanut allergies.
An expert in the field, Dr Raymond Mullins is a clinical based immunology and allergy physician who led the research which studied the characteristics of 778 patients in the ACT with a confirmed peanut allergy from 1995 to 2007 1.
These research findings confirm other expert opinions from allergy clinics throughout Australia and have demonstrated that not only has the incidence of peanut allergy increased over time but also awareness and severity of the condition. Previous research has found the increase in peanut allergies is not due to specific nutrition during pregnancy, preservatives, additives or genetic modification; however there is no current research which has found a direct cause to explain the increase.
Dr Mullins believes research into the causative actions leading to these allergies is an investment into our health system, and that ongoing research into this is vital 1. He also proposes that the cause of peanut allergies is due to the slow introduction of food allergens such as peanuts which has resulted in an increased susceptibility to allergens and anaphylaxis. This contradicts other expert opinions in the field who doubt that late onset peanut allergy is due to delayed introduction. These experts believe it may be the co-existance of asthma which increases the severity of reaction in addition to high risk children being introduced to peanuts in late childhood 2.
These nutty theories have not been validated with research and the great debate to confirm the cause of the increased severity of childhood allergies is yet to be conducted.
1. Mullins RJ, Dear K, Tang ML. Characteristics of childhood peanut allergy in the Australian Capital Territory 1995-2007. Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology; 2009 March; 123 (3).
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