Once it was a half a hazelnut-filled chewy candy, other Times the bite of a gingerbread. Then it was Benjamin suddenly really bad.
“He is chalk became pale, felt weak and had red spots on the body,” says his mother.
it is the third Time that happened, she went with the child to the child’s doctor. A blood test brought certainty: Benjamin has a hazelnut Allergy.
As the three-year-old from Nuremberg, it’s a lot of people. Because allergies to food are more common.
“This is now documented quite well,” says Katja Nemat allergist from the medical Association of German. “Food allergies have increased since the beginning of the 2000s.”
About three percent of adults and four to six percent of the children are affected, according to estimates by experts in Germany. Not always, the complaints are as clear as in the case of Benjamin.
Allergy tests are not always reliable
The physician Nutrition specialist Yurdagül Zopf treated at the University hospital Erlangen regularly patients from all over Germany and abroad, in which the conventional Allergy tests are unremarkable.
This is due to the fact that the Tests are 100 percent reliable.
on The other, there is food allergies, which are not always by serological Tests, the detection of antibodies in the blood or on the skin noticeable.
“are The diagnostic possibilities are often not sufficient to hold all the food allergies to prove.”
An example of the intestine. “The gut is a huge immune organ,” says plait. “Because we still have to understand the importance it has in the development of allergies and allergic reactions.”
he plays an important role, is only in recent years moved into the focus.
The University hospital is the use of a little common process, in order to investigate this in more detail.
all In all, the colonoscopy, the physician may spray the essence of nuts, soy, or other allergens on the intestinal mucosa, and to observe how this reacts to it.
nutrition could food allergies
have an influence on how allergies develop to foods such as nuts, cereals, cow’s milk, hen’s egg or fish at all? Complete the has not yet been explored.
“What certainly plays a role, is the way we feed ourselves,” says Dresdner’s allergic login Nemat.
So processed foods were strongly industrially suspected to trigger allergies. “That is certainly not the only factor. It is a Combination of causes.”
drugs can promote, according to braid, the emergence of allergic reactions.
acid-inhibiting stomach medications can result in, for instance, that proteins are not digested completely and larger protein fragments pass into the intestine.
“This can result in hypersensitivities or genetic Disposition to intolerance reactions,” she says.
Fixed: “no-one comes with a Allergy to the world,” says Nemat. In the case of an Allergy, the immune system identifies the proteins of, for example, food as the enemy and reacts violently to this.
the smallest amounts will do. Some parents give their babies very aware of any foods such as nuts, Egg or milk, which contain all the genes, holds Nemat is not a good idea.
“has The unfortunately, have the opposite effect. The immune system must learn as a baby tolerance.”
allergies to disappear,
can disappear In many children, the food Allergy with time. “He’ll grow out of, because the immune system is Mature and has learned to deal with it,” says braid.
A cow’s milk Allergy according to the specifications of Nemat in all children.
In the case of egg protein, the vast majority no longer have an allergic reaction, in the case of peanuts it should be at least every fifth child.
adults have bad cards: For you, it is rather unlikely that a food-to go away Allergy.
the parents of Benjamin’s hope he can tolerate hazelnuts again in the future. “He’s actually quite great,” says his mother.
“He is insanely careful. If someone were to offer him something to eat, he asks me first if he can.”
a few months Ago, it happened in Kindergarten then, but Benjamin had been fishing at the advent celebration a cinnamon star from the cookie plate.
Then he vomited and got a rash. He was better after he had to get cortisone.
Currently, there is no long-term treatment options
avoid The foods to which you are allergic and in emergency the symptoms with drugs to treat – and more people are not able to do currently.
An immunotherapy, a desensitization as in the case of hay fever, there are food allergies in Germany.
In the United States is approved, according to Nemat, since last autumn, an oral immunotherapy, the Allergy-free peanut protein powder to swallow.
In the next few months, will there tested probably a patch, the smallest amounts of peanut protein to the skin emits.
Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa)
*The contribution of “Unresolved research: the Triggers, an improper diet, food allergies?” is published by FitForFun. Contact with the executives here.
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