A Question For Medical Experts Regarding Food Allergies

Hello folks, I was just contemplating the food allergy issue, and how people can die from exposure to things as peanuts, dairy or seafood if they are allergic to them. Peanut allergies have doubled over the last decade.*, and I am curious about a different approach to this situation.
Does it make any sense to expose infants to these items so that as they develop, so does there resistance/tolerance for these things? Would exposure to micro amounts stimulate a recognition and processing in a developing baby? Along similar lines, could this be used for grass/hay allergies too?
I am guessing it's not that simple, but it is my understanding that this process is sometimes used to help those with allergies.

Thanks,
spec

A few good reports:
Here
www.cnn.com...
www.wane.com...

I must say when I was growing up in Northern Ireland I only experianced one person with a food alagery (born that way) and that was for egg which she over came when the doctors gave her medication when she was 10. pills that she could take so she would not have a reaction.

When i got older I found more people with food allergies including myself. These did not start up when I was a child but rather when i was 18. (lactose intolerance) Even through I used to drink a pint of milk a day up until then , it was only after that age i developed chrons and thus became allergic to milk.

I have met that with a few people that have my condition also have met a person with wheat intolerance that only came on when he reached 16 (poor blighter couldent even drink a beer, only cider).

Who knows what the reasons are with allergies as it doesent always seem to be open and cut case for them.

none of this should be used as medical evidence or complete fact just my comments

reply to post by michaelmcclen

Interesting ,mm, I had not considered those that developed allergies(food) later in life. It just seems bizarre in a way because the things folks are allergic to are not really new to the scene. It appears to have something to do with microbes and enzymes in our gut. That is what made me think of early exposure so that it is not a shock on the system later on.
I do realize too that this is not a medical site, and our comments should not be considered professional, but I know there are some members that are in the med field and was just curious to their input.
Best wishes for your condition. My Dad had that and was able get his Crohns to go into remission via pharmaceuticals, however as a result he got diabetes, confirmed by the doctor as coming from the medicine for crohn
Thank you for the reply...

spec

I don't know if it would work for food allergies, but I had to get allergy shots several times a week for a big part of my childhood. They're basically just injections of weakened allergens that I would be exposed to in the environment. It works, in theory, the same way flu shots work by introducing the foreign particles into the bloodstream a little at a time so the immune system can automatically produce its own antidote for future use.

I don't know if food allergy shots exist and why they don't exist if not.

reply to post by speculativeoptimist


Thank you, I was merely was saying my comments where anecdotal and in no way coming from any one whit a medical background not that you shouldent trust comments from other users.

I will also be keeping an eye on this thread as it is intresting to me on a personal level.

Many thanks and happy fact hunting.

reply to post by BirdOfillOmen

That's the process I was considering too Bird, the logic seems applicable here. I have a nephew that is 3 and even peanut particles adrift can affect him.
On a side note, I am/will not taking any steps to try and treat anyone myself, just pondering the logic here.
Thanks for your reply.

Peace,
spec

I had the shots 3 times a week as a kid, too. I wonder of today they would even do that. The fact is I no longer am affected by these allergies. There's no explanation; I'm just not. I no longer get hay fever or bronchitis.

My wife is deathly allergic to shrimp. She goes into shock and her breathing passageways close up. It's so bad that you can't cook shrimp on the same platform or in the same oil (like on a grill, for example). Just last night we went to a melting pot restaurant (fondue) where the other couple were served shrimp. I wasn't paying attention until it was served, and we had to send the plates back to remove the shrimp because cooking them in the sauce would affect her.

I kind of roll my eyes at some allergies, but my wife's experience makes me a believer that some of them are dead serious. I'm a bit confused in terms of reasons. If this is caused by chemicals (I know! Chemtrails!) or a deteriorating environment, then why was I cured?

Originally posted by speculativeoptimist
Hello folks, I was just contemplating the food allergy issue, and how people can die from exposure to things as peanuts, dairy or seafood if they are allergic to them. Peanut allergies have doubled over the last decade.*, and I am curious about a different approach to this situation.
Does it make any sense to expose infants to these items so that as they develop, so does there resistance/tolerance for these things? Would exposure to micro amounts stimulate a recognition and processing in a developing baby? Along similar lines, could this be used for grass/hay allergies too?
I am guessing it's not that simple, but it is my understanding that this process is sometimes used to help those with allergies.

Thanks,
spec

Hey Spec, how are you? I've not run across you in a while! I will try to briefly answer your question, i'm not an expert but have studied some of this in nursing school.

Our bodies use our immune system for our protection but sometimes, and for reasons not understood, our antibodies will turn on and attack something (an antigen) that in reality is harmless to us but our antibodies seems to have gone AWOL for that one substance. That something it reacts to can be a brand new introduction to our systems or it can be something that we have ingested or had contact with for years. Reactions can range from mild with minimal symptoms to anaphylactic and immediate life saving measures are needed. Someone can have come in contact with the antigen many times during their lives and then one day our immunity decides it's a serious threat and bamm, we have a very serious reaction and need medical attention. This happens because our immune cells will make memory cells of the antigen it considered "bad" and will be prepared to synthesize more of the antibodies that can fight the "bad" antigen if that antigen come around again. I know allergy shots that desensitize will work over time but I believe it can take a couple of years of weekly shots to get over an allergy. I don't have any idea if this is done with food though. Homeopathic remedies are based on the idea you brough up about using microscopic or even "ghost" amounts in the remedy/solution to ingest so that introducing micro amounts into our system will not cause a systemic reaction. But, I don't know if the food allergies from peanuts or milk can be handled this way, at least I haven't heard of if at this point. I don't think using this method works with newborns though, because their immune systems are still developing and the newborn would be put unnecessarily at risk.

And like many others have posted that they developed allergies later in their teens or years, same here with me as well. I developed an allergy to dogs and cats, and I've always had many pets my entire life, in fact I can't remember any time in my life when I didn't have at least one animals in my life.... so go figure! I believe in my case that it has more to do with stress than anything, because stress can weaken immunity very quickly.

Anyway, hope this generally answers some of the questions and if anyone has anything specific to ask, I will volunteer to go look it up.

reply to post by schuyler

Strange stuff schulyer, especially how people develop the allergies later in life as opposed to being born with them. I'm not sure if it is something external that triggers it or what. It also seems to be treatable and other times not.
But yea, I know sometimes tiny amounts are introduced as a method for treatment and that is why I was wondering why all babies aren't introduced to these ingredients so that their system can recognize and process them.
Best wishes for your wife. It has to be tough being so cautious I would imagine, with that level of sensitivity. Hopefully we will get some enlightening feedback on the issue.

Thanks for the reply,
spec

reply to post by justsaying

Hey there justsaying, how's your summer going? I hope warm and well!
Crazy how this stuff can just 'turn on' one day. Memory cells huh? Sounds like the right ammo for the wrong things sometimes. The desensitizing mentioned for certain allergies is not always used for food items it sounds like and I wonder what makes them different than others such as hay fever or grass. Is this process only used in homeopathy and not regular medicine techniques?
Using this method on newborns with developing immune systems just seems to make sense as an approach to this situation because they are in a controlled environment and their immunity would continue to develop accepting these ingredients eventually. It just sounds simple but of course it is probably not, but I am curious as to why.
I envision a shot with micro amounts of the allergens so that the developing system will recognize them as harmless. It just seems bizarre to me, and so dangerous.

Thank you for your input,
spec

In my opinion (as an internist, not an allergist) is that the sudden rise in allergy sufferers has a two-fold cause:

1) Many people call things "allergies" that truly aren't allergies, and have never been diagnosed as such. If you've ever been in the hospital, I'm sure you've been asked if you have any food or drug allergies. If you answer that you're allergic to penicillin, for example, the next question is always "what sort of reaction do you have when you take penicillin?". This helps us decide if you're having a true allergic reaction, or if you just had a bad reaction or an unrelated reaction, which has caused you to believe you (or your child) are actually allergic.

2) Feeding guidelines for infants are always changing. It seems like every 5-10 years, new data comes out saying you should wait until X month to feed your child rice cereal, and then later another set of data comes out that says to do it at Y months. What we know for certain is that if you give an infant certain foods (namely, gluten containing foods) before the mucosa of their intestines is fully matured, you make them more prone to developing allergies to that food. The trouble, however, is figuring out when and why these allergies are at their highest risk of developing. Unfortunately, we can't use standard experiment models to study this, since we can't just recruit hundreds of babies and feed them experimental diets at different age points...that would be just a tad unethical, haha.

reply to post by VneZonyDostupa

What we know for certain is that if you give an infant certain foods (namely, gluten containing foods) before the mucosa of their intestines is fully matured, you make them more prone to developing allergies to that food.

Well there goes my theory of introducing these items to infants.

The trouble, however, is figuring out when and why these allergies are at their highest risk of developing. Unfortunately, we can't use standard experiment models to study this, since we can't just recruit hundreds of babies and feed them experimental diets at different age points...that would be just a tad unethical, haha.

Touche on that! As usual, there are no simple answers, and an individual's chemistry is probably an inconsistent variable too in any generalizations. I just thought giving an infant tiny amounts of shrimp, peanuts and shellfish may help, but it appears not.
Any idea what factors are involved with people developing the food allergies as an adult? What can make a system switch over like that?
Thanks VneZonyDostupa, I always appreciate and value your perspective on medical issues.

spec

Candida can cause food allergies,.
AS so can amalgam fillings
personal experience there on both counts,.
I have quit glutens, breads and unnatural sugars
I also had all my amalgam fillings removed,.
And I feel greatly better

Originally posted by speculativeoptimist
As usual, there are no simple answers, and an individual's chemistry is probably an inconsistent variable too in any generalizations.

Absolutely true. Some people just have a metabolic or immunologic tic that makes them more prone to allergic reactions.

I just thought giving an infant tiny amounts of shrimp, peanuts and shellfish may help, but it appears not.

Unfortunately, I don't think it will help, no. Typically, what I've seen pediatricians and OBs suggest is that infants receive strictly breast milk or formula (though breast milk is of course preferable) for the first 9 months, and then you can introduce plain rice cereal mixed in milk for the next few months, and then some easy soft foods at 12 months. The premise is that you've giving hypoallergenic foods (foods that can't be reacted to in an allergic pattern) until the gut lining is mature.

Any idea what factors are involved with people developing the food allergies as an adult? What can make a system switch over like that?

That's the million dollar question. In my opinion, it's multifactorial; probably a mixture of unique genetics, environmental exposure, and so on. There's never a simple answer

Thanks VneZonyDostupa, I always appreciate and value your perspective on medical issues.

No problem, glad I could be of some help! =)