I have a friend, Christina, who is allergic to dogs–when she’s around them, her airways start to close, and she has a difficult time breathing. I am the owner of two shaggy dogs and a house full of hardwood floors. What this means is that no matter how often I sweep or vacuum, I can never get rid of all the hair. So when Christina and I first became friends, she wouldn’t be able to last five minutes in my house. But we noticed that the more she came over, the longer she could stay, until we got the point where she could be here for a dinner party–and stay from appetizers to dessert time. We always joked that she was “building a tolerance,” but after reading the LA Times article, In the Works: Immunotherapy for food allergies, I realized she really was.
Immunotherapy is when an allergy sufferer gets a little bit of what he is allergic to. Wikipedia defines it as, “treatment of disease by inducing, enhancing, or suppressing an immune response.” Traditionally, immunotherpay is practiced with those, who like Christina, are allergic to animal dander, pollen, or bee stings. But the LA Times article discusses how immunotherapy is now being used for food allergies. For a mother who is scared to death of having their child go out into the world without them for fear of being exposed to, for example, deadly peanuts, this could, literally, be a lifesaver. The drawback, is that it could be extremely dangerous.
The LA Times reports that, “Using immunotherapy to treat food allergies is rare and well outside mainstream practice. Dr. Richard L. Wasserman in Dallas, has treated fewer than 100 food allergy patients — and he knows of only two other physicians doing it in their practices.” The reason why so few allergists are practicing it is that a food sensitive patient may die if correct care in administering the allergen is not given. Essentially, one has to ask, “How much is too much?” If a child is severely allergic to eggs, and can stop breathing when someone who had handled eggs touches them, what is the limit to how much that child can be injected with?
Though it’s a scary thought, parents are willing to take the chance so they are not constantly living with the nightmare that their child may die from food. Clinical trials are underway to learn more. In a world where more and more people are suffering from food allergies, this could mean a bright future.
To read the LA Times article, click here.
Food Allergies: Is Immunotherapy the Answer?
I have a friend, Christina, who is allergic to dogs–when she’s around them, her airways start to close, and she has a difficult time breathing. I am the owner of two shaggy dogs and a house full of hardwood floors. What this means is that no matter how often I sweep or vacuum, I can never get rid of all the hair. So when Christina and I first became friends, she wouldn’t be able to last five minutes in my house. But we noticed that the more she came over, the longer she could stay, until we got the point where she could be here for a dinner party–and stay from appetizers to dessert time. We always joked that she was “building a tolerance,” but after reading the LA Times article, In the Works: Immunotherapy for food allergies, I realized she really was.
Immunotherapy is when an allergy sufferer gets a little bit of what he is allergic to. Wikipedia defines it as, “treatment of disease by inducing, enhancing, or suppressing an immune response.” Traditionally, immunotherpay is practiced with those, who like Christina, are allergic to animal dander, pollen, or bee stings. But the LA Times article discusses how immunotherapy is now being used for food allergies. For a mother who is scared to death of having their child go out into the world without them for fear of being exposed to, for example, deadly peanuts, this could, literally, be a lifesaver. The drawback, is that it could be extremely dangerous.
The LA Times reports that, “Using immunotherapy to treat food allergies is rare and well outside mainstream practice. Dr. Richard L. Wasserman in Dallas, has treated fewer than 100 food allergy patients — and he knows of only two other physicians doing it in their practices.” The reason why so few allergists are practicing it is that a food sensitive patient may die if correct care in administering the allergen is not given. Essentially, one has to ask, “How much is too much?” If a child is severely allergic to eggs, and can stop breathing when someone who had handled eggs touches them, what is the limit to how much that child can be injected with?
Though it’s a scary thought, parents are willing to take the chance so they are not constantly living with the nightmare that their child may die from food. Clinical trials are underway to learn more. In a world where more and more people are suffering from food allergies, this could mean a bright future.
To read the LA Times article, click here.