Cured by eggheads

Published: November 29, 2006 | 5098th good news item since 2003

CHILDREN’S food allergies could be cured using a surprising new approach — eating the very foods that cause the allergic reaction.

Don’t try this at home: the work is in its earliest stages but a research study in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology claims to have enabled children who were allergic to eggs to essentially overcome their sensitivity by gradually consuming increased quantities of eggs.

The study, funded by the US National Institutes of Health, is the first of a series examining food allergy desensitisation techniques. These aim both to protect sufferers from potentially lethal reactions if they eat allergenic foods by accident, and eventually to induce full tolerance of allergens.

The first study, by Duke University, took seven children aged from 1 to 7 with a history of egg allergy and gave them tiny doses of powdered egg mixed in their food. The first doses were one thousandth of an egg, and were administered in a clinic with the anti-allergy drug epinephrine to hand.

The doses increased every fortnight until they were one-tenth of an egg, which the children ate every day. After two years, most of the children could eat two scrambled eggs without allergic reactions. The team is now trying to desensitise children with peanut allergy.

Published in Science & Technology
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