It’s clear that the number of children with serious allergies is growing.
But it’s not entirely clear why.
Some scientists think this trend might actually have to do with people living in healthier environments.
New Hampshire Public Radio’s Kerry Grens has more.
Angela Quinlan knew her son had food allergies early on.
Since he was a toddler he was allergic to cow’s milk and eggs.
At Thanksgiving two years ago, she found out her son was also extremely sensitive to nuts.
Quinlan: My husband had been eating some…as we understand it..we’re not sure what nuts, but a display of nuts. And my son happened to just like jump up on his lap and they were just kind of touching each other and I think he kissed his father. And then all of a sudden his eyes just started swelling up, his eyes got all puffy.
Because Ryan only came in physical contact with some nut particles, his reaction was mild.
He was diagnosed with a serious form of peanut allergy that affects about one percent of children.
Quinlan: I was so afraid to feed him until you just start to learning to read all the labels on every single thing that you have. I cleaned out my house like overnight, all the cabinets were just emptied out with any kind of peanut product in it. And we just started from scratch, a whole new way of eating.
Quinlan’s experience with her son is becoming more and more common in the United States—and in New Hampshire.
Goodman: The increase in prevalence in my clinic has been very noticeable.
That’s Doctor David Goodman.
He’s a pediatric allergist at Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center.
Goodman: I’ve been seeing pediatric allergy patients for 17 years. And we typically saw a couple of patients a month, where now we will generally see several new patients a week. That’s a very dramatic increase.
Goodman’s practice is indicative of a trend happening around the country.
Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine conducted random telephone surveys in 1997 and 2002.
And they found that over those five years the number of children with peanut allergies doubled.
Doctor Goodman says the best explanation for this jump is called the hygiene hypothesis: when an infant’s immune system is not exposed to infections, it doesn’t develop properly.
Think of the immune system as having two sets of white blood cells that protect the body: one set that defends against organisms like bacteria and viruses, and another that responds to allergens.
Goodman: Exposure to infection causes a strengthening of those cells that are involved with infection. In the absence of infection the cells that are involved in allergy become more dominant and that leads to more allergic responses.
In other words, when the body isn’t busy fighting off infection, it will heighten its reaction to other invaders—like allergens.
And vice versa.
Goodman says that in developing countries where infections and parasites are more common, people have less allergies.
In terms of public health, industrialized countries have the better deal.
Infections and parasites kill millions in developing countries.
Whereas according the national institutes of health, only about one hundred fifty Americans die each year from food allergies.
http://www.who.int/healthinfo/statistics/mortestimatesofdeathbycause/en/...
Goodman: In the total range or problems of children, this is a very small proportion. But for the families whose children are affected, it’s very important.
For Angela Quinlan, her son’s peanut allergy has totally changed her family’s life—not only does eating at home need to be nut free, but also playing with friends, visiting family, and going to school.
Quinlan’s son Ryan starts first grade this month.
She says the school has cooperated with Ryan’s needs.
Quinlan: The kids or anybody that enters his classroom, there will be handi-wipes outside the classroom, they’ll wash their hands down before they go in. No peanut snacks are allowed in the classroom. He will have a peanut free lunch table. And the teachers will have two epi-pens in his room.
The epi-pen is a shot of epinephrine in case Ryan stops breathing from exposure to peanuts.
As of now, the epi-pen is the best treatment for an allergic reaction, and avoiding peanuts is the best prevention.
But Doctor Goodman says there is promising research into eliminating allergies.
Eventually, he thinks doctors will be able to help infants’ immune systems develop normally without exposing them to infection.
Then, he says allergists will have to find something else to keep them busy.
For NHPR News this is Kerry Grens.
