Nuts and Eggs Can Reduce Food Allergy Risk in Children

Medical Video: Peanut Allergies in Children

Food allergies may be one of the most common problems we encounter in children. This condition can cause uncomfortable symptoms for children such as redness, swelling, itching, vomiting, and tightness.

Why can a food allergy occur?

Under normal circumstances, the human immune response will protect the body by fighting infections and other foreign objects that are considered harmful to the body. Food allergies occur when the immune system overreacts to certain foods or substances in food because they consider it a foreign object that is harmful to the body. Symptoms of food allergies can vary from mild to severe.

If someone experiences a mild allergic reaction during the first attack, this does not guarantee that the person will experience an attack of the same degree in the future. The person may experience an attack that is more severe or even fatal. That is, an allergic reaction cannot be underestimated.

What foods often cause allergies?

Eggs, milk, beans, and wheat are foods that most often cause allergies in children and infants. Whereas in adults, the foods that most often cause allergies are fish, nuts, and shellfish. Child's allergies to eggs and milk may disappear with age, while allergies to peanuts tend to settle into adulthood.

People who are allergic to a food ingredient may experience allergies to other similar foods or have close kinship. For example, if someone is allergic to almonds, maybe he will also have allergies to other types of beans; or people who have allergies to shrimp, maybe he will also experience allergies to other seafood such as crabs or lobsters.

When to start introducing foods that are at risk of causing allergic reactions in children?

During this time, giving food that can trigger allergies tends to be avoided or postponed as long as possible in children who are at high risk, but recent research says otherwise. Some recent studies have shown that introducing children to eggs and nuts early can actually reduce the risk of developing allergies in these foods later on.

The scientists collected data from as many as 146 studies involving more than 200,000 children. The results showed that children who began to be fed eggs from the age of 4-6 months had a 40% less chance of having egg allergies than children who began to be fed eggs at the age afterwards. In addition, children who began to be given foods containing peanuts at the age of 4-11 months experienced a 70% less chance of having a peanut allergy. The researchers also estimated that introducing children to eggs from an early age could prevent 24 cases from 1,000 residents, and introducing beans from an early age in children could prevent 18 cases from 1,000 residents.

However, parents with children who have been known to have food allergies or have other allergic conditions such as eczema should consult a doctor before giving food that is at risk of causing allergies in their child. It should also be noted, giving whole beans to children younger than three years is not recommended because it is feared that they can cause children to choke. Instead, children at this age can be given peanut butter.

Unfortunately, this study has limitations, of the 146 studies collected, there were only five studies (involving 2000 children overall) that were used to estimate the risk of egg allergy, and there were only two studies (involving approximately 1500 children) used to estimate risk peanut allergy. Other studies that have investigated milk, fish, and wheat still cannot prove that introducing these three foods early can reduce the risk of developing allergies later on.

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