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A historical study that proves food Groundnut Products for young infants may prevent life-threatening development Allergies There has been a big change in a decade.
A new study published Monday in the medical journal Pediatrics shows that nearly 60,000 babies have avoided developing peanut allergies since guidance first issued in 2015 overturned medical practice by recommending babies start testing for allergies as early as four months of age.
“It’s a remarkable thing, isn’t it?” said Dr. David Hill, an allergist and researcher at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and an author of the study.
Hill and colleagues analyzed electronic health records from dozens of pediatric practices to track food allergy diagnoses in young children before, during, and after the guidelines were released.
“I can actually come to you today and say that if we had not implemented this public health effort there would be fewer children with food allergies today than there are now,” he said.
Researchers found that peanut allergies in children ages 0 to 3 declined by more than 27 percent after guidance for high-risk children was first issued in 2015, and by more than 40 percent after recommendations were expanded in 2017.
This effort has not reduced the overall increase in food allergies in the US in recent years. About 8 percent of children are affected, including more than 2 percent who are allergic to peanuts.
Peanut allergies occur when the body’s immune system mistakenly identifies proteins in peanuts as harmful and release chemicals that trigger allergy symptoms, including hives, respiratory symptoms, and sometimes, life-threatening anaphylaxis.
For decades, doctors advised delaying feeding peanuts and other allergy-causing foods to children until age 3. But in 2015, Gideon Lack at King’s College London published a groundbreaking trial of the Early Learning Test about Peanut Allergy, or LEAP.
Lack and colleagues showed that exposure to peanut products in infancy reduced the risk of developing future food allergies by more than 80 percent. Subsequent analysis showed that protection persists into adolescence in about 70 percent of children.
The study immediately led to new guidelines urging peanuts to be introduced as soon as possible – but they have been slow to be put into practice.
The surveys found that only 29 percent of pediatricians and 65 percent of allergists followed the expanded guidance issued in 2017.
According to a note that accompanied the study, this lag was due to confusion and uncertainty about the best way to incorporate peanuts early in life. Initially, medical experts and parents alike questioned whether the practice could be adopted outside strictly controlled clinical settings.
Data for the analysis came from a subset of participating practice sites and may not represent the entire U.S. pediatric population, said the commentary, led by pediatric allergist Dr. Ruchi Gupta. Northwestern University,
However, the new research “offers promising evidence that early allergen introduction is not only being adopted, but may also have a measurable impact,” the authors concluded.
Advocates for the 33 million people in the U.S. who suffer from food allergies welcomed the sign that the early introduction of peanut products is taking off.
“This research reinforces what we already know and highlights the meaningful opportunity to reduce the incidence and prevalence of peanut allergies nationwide,” said Sung Poblete, chief executive of the nonprofit group Food Allergy Research and Education, or FARE.
Hill said the new study emphasizes current guidance, updated in 2021, that calls for treating peanuts and other major food allergens between four to six months without prior screening or testing. Parents should consult their pediatricians with any questions they may have.
“It doesn’t have to be a lot of food, but peanut butter, milk-based yogurt, soy-based yogurt and a little flavor of tree butter should be there,” he said. “These are really good ways to allow the immune system to be exposed to these allergy-causing foods in a safe way.”
Tiffany Lyons, 36, a maryland The registered dietitian and director of FARE, introduced her sons, James, 4, and Cameron, 2, to peanuts and other allergens.
At first, he said, Lyon’s own mother was puzzled by the advice to feed such foods to children before the age of 3. But Lyon pointed out how the science has changed.
“As a dietitian, I practice evidence-based recommendations,” she said. “So when someone said to me, ‘This is the way it’s done now, these are the new guidelines,’ I said, OK, OK, that’s what we’re going to do.”