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Peanut allergy guide?

Peanut Allergies Striking Sooner

Despite Warnings, Kids Being Exposed to Peanuts at Earlier Age
By Jennifer Warner
Allergies guide link
Dec. 3, 2007 -- Children are developing potentially dangerous peanut allergies at a much younger age, according to a new study.
And that's not all: The study researchers found more parents are feeding their children peanuts at an earlier age.

"This should be a wake-up call to all parents of young children," says researcher Wesley Burks, MD, chief of pediatric allergy and immunology at Duke University Medical Center, in a news release. "Kids are being exposed to peanuts and having allergic reactions much earlier than they did five or 10 years ago."
About 1.8 million Americans are allergic to peanuts, and researchers say the number of peanut allergies diagnosed in children has doubled in the last decade. They say these results suggest earlier exposure to peanuts may be a major factor behind that rapid increase.
"There's a valid reason to delay introduction to products containing peanuts," says researcher Todd D. Green, MD, assistant professor of pediatrics at Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, in the release. "When kids are older, it can be easier to manage bad reactions. They can tell you right away if their mouths feel funny. For that reason alone, it's worth delaying exposing your child to a peanut product, especially if a child is at high risk."

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that parents not give peanuts to children until age 3 if there is a strong history of allergies in the family.
Peanut Allergies Showing Up Earlier
Researchers compared statistics on children diagnosed with peanut allergies at a Duke University clinic between July 2000 and April 2006 with similar-age children diagnosed between 1995 and 1997.
The results, published in Pediatrics, showed the average age of first exposure to peanuts was 14 months in 2000-2006 compared with 22 months five to 10 years earlier.
The age of first peanut allergy reaction also decreased from about 24 months in 1995-1997 to 18 months in 2000-2006. Many of the children with peanut allergy also had other food allergies such as allergies to eggs, cow's milk, nuts, fish, soy, wheat, and sesame seeds.
Researchers say as many as one-third of people with peanut allergies have severe reactions that can be fatal.
The Miracle Cure for Peanut Allergy
 
On average seven children die from it each every year. It is the most common serious allergic reaction, affecting around 450,000 people.
The pioneering treatment was developed at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, where it was tested on 23 children between seven and 17. All but two have been 'cured'.

The children were given a daily dose of peanut flour, mixed with yoghurt, to build up their tolerance.

At the start of the trial, they were given the equivalent of one 400th of a peanut each day - far below the level needed to spark an allergic reaction.

Every day the dose was increased until they were able to consume the equivalent of five peanuts. Some children were able to safely eat 12 nuts.

Dr Andrew Clark, leading the research, said the peanut flour was 'retraining' the children's faulty immune systems.

He said: 'The families say that it's changed their lives. That's our real motivation - to try to develop that as a clinical treatment that we could spread to the rest of the country.

And It's not going to stop at peanuts. There's no scientific reason why it won't work with other foods.'

Although the children were effectively cured, many suffered mild side effects, including itches and stomach aches. A few also had rashes and wheezing. The side effects were treated with antihistamine drugs.

The new trial, being funded by the Department of Health, will compare the effects of peanut flour to a harmless placebo in 104 allergic children.

Dr Clark said: 'This is going to be the largest trial of its kind in the world and it should give us a definitive idea of whether it works and whether it's safe.' 
 

The children have already been recruited and treatment starts next month, he told the American Association for the Advancement of Science's conference in San Diego, California.