This Summer, Know Your Risk for Insect Sting Allergy

The top nine allergens rightly command most of the focus of allergy management. But insect stings, especially in the summer months, cannot be forgotten as an allergy risk. There are many stories, including our foundational story, of those with undiagnosed insect sting allergies having an anaphylaxis reaction after being stung. Because they are undiagnosed, they are at a higher risk of dying. For HealthDay, Dr. Tod Mahr writes of the risks insect sting allergies and what to do if you do get stung.

Read Dr. Mahr’s recommendations here.

This Summer, Know Your Risk for Insect Sting Allergy

By Todd A. Mahr, MD, HealthDay
June 19, 2023

If you're dreaming of the perfect summer vacation, one element certain to be excluded from that scenario would be an allergic reaction to a stinging insect.

Whether you’re planning to travel within the United States or to a foreign locale, you’ll need to take precautions against stinging insects, especially if you’ve had an allergic reaction to a sting in the past.

According to a recent article in Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, the scientific journal of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, between 56% and 94% of people are stung in their lifetime. Of those, about 3% involve an allergic reaction.

The article examines types of stinging insects, circumstances under which a sting is likely to take place, precautions to take to avoid stings and treatments to consider if you’ve been stung.

The Next Generation Of Food Allergy Therapies May Be Coming Soon

While grateful for the current therapies to treat allergies, OIT & Palforzia, neither completely address the concerns of those managing allergies. OIT can be effective for some people in “treating” allergies. It is also time consuming for families and their doctors. It can also be risky to administer, in the doctor’s office and especially when the treatments move into the real life of family, school, and community. It requires a level of diligence that is tricky to maintain. Palforzia was eagerly anticipated, but ultimately failed and the company is no longer developing the drug.

Jeurgen Eckhardt and his team at Forbes magazine, walks us through the next generation of therapies that we’ll be watching closely, in the hope that those managing allergies can shift their focus from “will this food be the one that triggers a scary reaction?” to “I’ve got this. I trust the medication.”

The Next Generation Of Food Allergy Therapies May Be Coming Soon

By Juergen Eckhardt
June 22, 2023

While grateful for the current therapies to treat allergies, OIT & Palforzia, neither completely address the concerns of those managing allergies. OIT can be effective for some people in “treating” allergies. It is also time consuming for families and their doctors. It can also be risky to administer, in the doctor’s office and especially when the treatments move into the real life of family, school, and community. It requires a level of diligence that is tricky to maintain. Palforzia was eagerly anticipated, but ultimately failed and the company is no longer developing the drug.

A Skin Patch Could Help Allergic Toddlers Tolerate Peanuts

A skin patch is being developed to help toddlers with peanut allergies increase their tolerance to peanuts, based on a recent clinical trial. While the patch is still in the experimental stage and not yet accessible to the public, it offers a potential solution to reduce severe reactions caused by accidental peanut consumption. In the trial, 67% of treated toddlers demonstrated improved tolerance to peanuts compared to 33.5% in the placebo group. Although the patch had some side effects, it brings hope for improved food allergy treatments in the future.

A Skin Patch Could Help Allergic Toddlers Tolerate Peanuts

By Will Sullivan
May 15, 2023

For toddlers allergic to peanuts, a new skin patch might increase their tolerance of the legume, according to the results of a late-stage clinical trial.

As the peanut patch is only experimental, it’s not clear yet when it could be available for consumers. But for parents of young children with allergies who could accidentally ingest peanuts at schools or daycares, it provides a glimpse of a less stressful future.

Study Finds People of Color Have More Food Allergies than White People

Like in other areas of our healthcare system where inequities are found, people of color have more food allergies. Jen Christensen of CNN writes of a study by Dr. Mahboobeh Mahdavinia and Dr. Ruchi Gupta that confirms that this is happening. The call for more research into why this is the case is key to remedying this situation.

Read the details here.

Study Finds People of Color Have More Food Allergies than White People

By Jen Christensen, CNN
June 14, 2023

People of color and those in lower income brackets seem to be disproportionately affected by food allergies, compared with people who are White and at higher incomes, a new study finds.

It’s an issue that often flies under the radar, according to the authors of the study, which was published Wednesday in the journal JAMA Network Open. There have been only a handful of previous population-based studies on food allergies among people of color, and most of those focus on children. The new research looks at food allergies among people of all ages.

An allergic reaction to food happens when exposure triggers the immune system to go into overdrive and attack the proteins in the food that are normally harmless. More than 170 foods have been reported to cause allergic reactions, according to FARE, an advocacy organization for people with food allergies.

Does Maternal Peanut Consumption Protect against Infant Peanut Allergies?

New research suggests that a mother's diet while breastfeeding could potentially help prevent peanut allergies in infants. Peanut allergy affects more than 2.5% of children in the U.S., but its exact cause is still unknown. The study found that when mothers consumed a moderate amount of peanuts during breastfeeding, their babies had a lower risk of developing peanut allergy. Symptoms of peanut allergy include vomiting, difficulty breathing, and hives. The study supports introducing peanut-containing foods to high-risk infants starting at 4-6 months of age, as it may promote oral tolerance to allergens.

Does Maternal Peanut Consumption Protect against Infant Peanut Allergies?

By Dr. Liji Thomas, MD
April 25, 2023

Background

The growing incidence of food allergies within the population is a cause for concern, in which research has focussed on alleviating the issue. The growing incidence of allergies is not only a physical issue but also has social and mental health implications.

A new paper describes the outcome of exposing infants to peanuts via breastmilk, that is, by maternal consumption of peanuts during lactation.

This Summer, Know Your Risk for Insect Sting Allergy