Food allergies in the U.S. are on the rise. We know this anecdotally; data also bears it out. Per Dr. Kari Nadeau of Stanford University, data “shows that it’s very high in our population, probably about 17 to 18 million people in the U.S.”

Why are food allergies on the rise? And is there a solution? Possibly.

Cat Wise (@CatWiseSF) reports for the PBS NewsHour:

 

“This [food allergy trend] is doubling every ten years,” said Dr. Nadeau. “That’s beyond just a generational effect. So how much are genes involved in this, and how much is the environment involved in this? That’s what we’re studying right now.”

 

Scientists are focusing on diet. According to Stanford, about 90 percent of food allergies are caused by only eight foods. These are cow’s milk, soy, wheat, peanut, tree nuts, shellfish, fish and eggs.  Recent research – including a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine – suggests “certain foods should be introduced to infants to help prevent food allergies.”

An important read. The piece also includes video.

 

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