Peanut allergy treatment ‘lasts up to four years’

An oral treatment for peanut allergy is still effective four years after it was administered, a study has found. Children were given a probiotic, with a peanut protein, daily for 18 months. When tested one month later, 80% could tolerate peanuts without any allergic symptoms and after four years, 70% of them were still able to eat peanuts without suffering any side-effects. Food allergies have risen dramatically in recent decades, with peanut allergy one of the most deadly. Lead researcher Prof Mimi Tang, of Murdoch Childrens Research Institute in Melbourne,…

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How to include goodness of peanut butter in your diet

Go beyond just using peanut butter on a toast, and get innovative with it for healthy options, say experts. With increasing awareness about super foods and their health benefits, peanut butter has now made its way to most of the Indian households. It is rich in proteins, energy, carbohydrates and good fat. Nutritionist and weight management consultant Kavita Devgan said: “Peanut Butter is the most innovative ingredient to complement the benefits peanut in our daily diet. For vegetarians, it can be added to pulses, baby spinach roasted peanut bowl, basil…

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Infants who are peanut-sensitised or have peanut allergy are not necessarily allergic: Study

“This is a very exciting development for those of us who have been treating an increasing number of kids with peanut allergies in the past 25 years,” said Amal Assa’ad, Managing Director, ACAAI Food Allergy Committee, US. “To be able to offer parents a way of reducing the risk of their children developing peanut allergies is remarkable and of real importance.”   The authors recognised early introduction of peanut-containing foods may seem to depart from recommendations for exclusive breastfeeding through six months. Introduction of peanuts did not affect the length…

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Dear parents, here’s what you can do to prevent peanut allergy in kids

A panel of experts says you can prevent development of peanut allergy in your kids by introducing foods containing peanuts until five years of age. Clinical trial results showed that regular peanut consumption begun in infancy and continued until five years of age led to an 81 percent reduction in development of peanut allergy in infants deemed at high risk because they already had severe eczema, egg allergy or both. According to researchers, people living with peanut allergy and their caregivers must be vigilant about the foods they eat and…

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Peanut Butter Redux: More on Food Allergies

This week, we revisit the enthusiastically debated Oct. 2 column about food allergies in the workplace. To recap: After a peanut-allergic letter writer (LW) asked a colleague to stop bringing peanut butter sandwiches to work, someone deliberately smeared peanut butter on the LW’s desk, causing an allergic reaction. The boss dismissed the LW’s complaint and said the LW shouldn’t be able to dictate what co-workers eat. Many commenters argued that employees with severe food allergies are exclusively responsible for protecting themselves at work. The Americans With Disabilities Act, however, says…

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Patch for Peanut Allergy Found Beneficial for Children

Researchers have come up with a new wearable patch for skin that claims to treat children and young adults with peanut allergy, finds a study. The study, published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology, suggested that small amounts of peanut protein through the skin showed promising benefits for younger children. The treatment, called epicutaneous immunotherapy or EPIT, was safe and well-tolerated, and nearly all participants used the skin patch daily as directed. “To avoid potentially life-threatening allergic reactions, people with peanut allergy must be vigilant about the foods…

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