Can You Desensitize Your Kids from Food Allergies?
From the archive. This post was first published on the original Green Eggs and Moms blog and is kept here as it was.
Infants transitioning to solids are often encouraged to stay away from common allergy-causing food such as peanuts and eggs. However, studies suggest that doing so at such a young age may increase your child’s chances of developing allergies later in life.
According to Independent.ie, previous findings from Cambridge University show that early exposure to peanuts can help children build a better tolerance for it. Researchers gave children allergic to peanuts small amounts of the food over a period of 30 days. The results? Children were able to increase their intake of peanuts without suffering any reactions.
However, a limitation of the research is that it followed a small group of kids over a short period of time. Therefore, researchers still do not know whether the desensitizing effect is permanent or temporary.
Another study found that children who lived in a country that consumed more food with peanut products had a lower chance of developing peanut allergy. The study looked at Jewish children from Britain and Israel. The former consumes less peanut products, which is why children from there were 10 times more susceptible to developing peanut allergies, compared to kids from Israel.
What is the takeaway?
I was allergic to pineapples when I was younger. However, I loved the fruit so much that I did not care for the allergy, and just kept eating away. Eventually my allergy disappeared. I would like to think that perhaps I desensitized myself with my stubborn pineapple eating habits. But please do note that food allergies are different for everyone.
While the research is indeed very interesting, researchers have yet to conclude the long term effects or benefits (if any) of desensitizing young children to food they are allergic to. It will take more years of research before they reach a conclusion.
So for now, do not do anything rash such as feeding your infant (or yourself) small doses of food he or she is allergic to. If you are determined to do so, do your homework and more importantly, consult your pediatrician first.
As I always say, safety first.
Source:Indendent.ie – Children allowed to be picky eaters develop allergies
Photo:
Creative Commons from kona99
Get a weekly round-up of our posts by subscribing to our Newsletter. It's FREE.
Related posts: