For a long time, the general advice was that babies should avoid contact with allergenic foods such as peanuts, nuts, fish, eggs and milk. From 2015 onwards, the so-called LEAP study led by the British allergy researcher Gideon Lack prompted a rethink: it showed that children who were also given peanut butter when they started eating solid foods had a significantly lower risk of developing a peanut allergy.
The recommendations were revised at international level following the study. Today, allergy specialists recommend that children be given the most common allergenic foods as early as their first year of life, in a form suitable for their age – for example, nuts ground into a powder or made into a purée, or eggs baked into dishes. To help build up a tolerance, children should be given these allergenic foods on a regular basis.
Further preventative measures
A US study, the results of which were published last autumn in the specialist journal *Pediatrics*, also suggests that the revised recommendations are having a tangible effect in practice: researchers at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia analysed data from several tens of thousands of children. They were able to demonstrate that peanut allergies in the US fell significantly following the introduction of the new guidelines on early peanut exposure.
Further preventative measures begin even earlier: smoking and second-hand smoke should be avoided during pregnancy. Breastfeeding and a vaginal birth, which brings the baby into contact with the mother's vaginal flora, also reduce the risk of allergies. According to Eva Untersmayr-Elsenhuber, a specialist in clinical immunology, harmless infections such as colds experienced in early childhood can also reduce the risk of allergies.
Symptoms, advice and treatment
- The most common signs of a food allergy are skin reactions such as redness or swelling, sometimes accompanied by feeling unwell, stomach ache or vomiting. In rare cases, severe allergic reactions may also occur.
- If a food allergy is suspected, this should be investigated by a doctor – so that the allergens can be identified beyond doubt and avoided in future, and so that a suitable course of treatment can be determined, depending also on the severity of the allergy.
- Mild symptoms such as itching, a tingling sensation in the mouth and throat, or redness and other skin reactions can be relieved with antihistamines.
- In certain cases, the doctor may also prescribe a cortisone preparation. This is used as a supplementary treatment and is intended to curb the immune system's inflammatory response.
- Symptoms such as shortness of breath, dizziness or a racing heart may indicate anaphylaxis. In this case, adrenaline must be injected into the thigh immediately and the emergency number 144 must be dialled.
- The «aha! Swiss Allergy Centre» offers free, personalised advice to sufferers and their families – either by telephone on 031 359 90 50 or in writing via the online form.
A study from Ireland has shown that the restrictions on social contact during the pandemic have increased the risk of allergies in children. Certain medicines, such as antibiotics or acid-suppressing drugs, can also increase the risk of allergies, which is why they should only be used when they are genuinely medically necessary.
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The most common triggers of anaphylaxis
In Switzerland, around 10 in every 100,000 people suffer from anaphylaxis each year – a sudden, potentially life-threatening allergic reaction. The most common triggers change with age: in children, food allergens such as peanuts, nuts, cow's milk and eggs are the main causes, whilst in adults, insect venoms are the primary cause of anaphylaxis, followed by medicines and food.
