Aibu To not really understand why so many children have food allergies?

[daftpunk]

Babies are weaned later ......? I didn't know anyone allergic to nuts or milk when I was at school, can someone explain it?

I wouldn't think your DS's friend has been individually overprotected
It seems there are many reasons why the allergies are increasing; environmental, genetic, awareness, changes in the way food is processed

"There is a few studies now showing that later weaning actually causes allergies." links please.

and afaia that advice hasn't changed, nor has the LEAP study published, despite what people say...

I am sure I've read something about links to pollution?

I knew people at school with allergies - I'm 37 so it's not that recent! My neighbour was allergic to milk and had a child in my class allergic to nuts.

I don't know many children with food allergies. My ds2 is wheat intolerant (it is not an allergy) and has hayfever. The other 3 are fine.

I love peanut butter so ate whilst pregnant, breastfeeding etc..

I just want to give a round of applause to DaftPunk for raising such allergy-free children - now if we only shared her common, good sense, the completely unexplained, near-meteoric rise in allergies would be halted in its tracks

Thank you..... Most of what I say is completely right.....intact I might link aitch an article from todays mail......

my neighbour is a paediatrician who is just finishing a PhD on allergies in children

When asked if the rise in allergies is down to a) environmental b) because we're too fussy and 'clean' c) linked to early weaning or d) just diagnosed more these days his response is e) to be honest we still don't have a **ing clue.

Maybe our generation were protected from developing allergies thanks to a diet rich in Angel Delight, Smash and tartrazine

My ex has had a nut allergy from childhood (proper, anaphylactic one) and he's 40+. There were also a couple of children I remember with excema that seemed linked to dairy and/or eggs. I'm late 30s.

Jujumaman

A plethora of physiological reasons are behind allergies.

When I was constantly in hospital with hyperemesis they asked (every bloody admission) if I was allergic to any medicines. 'Yes' replied I 'Paracetemol and penicillin'. Drs asked if it was a 'true' allergy or a 'sensitivity'. Proper body shutting down allergies are quite rare apparently.

Sensitivity to food/medicine is very common and always has been according to a consultant because the human body is a chaotic system that requires a fine balancing of hormones and input/output of chemicals and each body has different variables. I don't think it's got that much to do with mollycoddling or maternal diet tbh.

Also major factor IMHO is the availability and ease of access to information, increase in self diagnosis/diagnosis through google, and an increase in media coverage. You identify with symptoms you read about and seek a diagnosis yourself.

gluten intolerance is very fashionable in our local school. Bloody nuisance for paydates...

I mean playdates

there was a programme on ages ago about the incidence of allergies rising as things like gutworms have been elliminated and that it was believed that the gutworms trigger protective enzymes. It went on to describe how they are seeing a rise in the incidence of asthma and hay fever in african countries where they are eradicating the gutworms that cause other more serious diseases. iirc the researcher was so badly affected with hayfever he could barely leave the house during pollen season. He swallowed a gut full of worms and was filmed in a greenhouse full of highly pollenated flowers.

I'm not sure if he was an academic doing a proper study or just demonstrating a crackpot theory, but there seemed to be some truth in what he was saying.

and can I just stick up for the allergy vs intolerance thing....I have coeliac disease, which, is NOT an allergy, but to say it's only an intolerance (and therefore less serious) is insulting to all coeliacs as if uncontrolled it can be a life limiting condition which children were dying from as little as 60 years ago.

MrsGuyofGisbourne, I rest my case!

My house is squalid and we have pets but ds1 still has a peanut allergy. I don't know if he has eaten worms but he has sucked all the soil of a slug on more than one occasion and eaten at least one spider. There might be a link with not eating blue cheese and unpasturised milk so you don't get enough of the right gut bacteria.

"Also major factor IMHO is the availability and ease of access to information, increase in self diagnosis/diagnosis through google, and an increase in media coverage. You identify with symptoms you read about and seek a diagnosis yourself"

Another major factor is plethora of "allergy tests" on the high street, which have no scientific basis whatsoever.

yanbu to not understand it, but yabvu to repeatedly imply that it is always because the parents have done something wrong.

Third world countries and others like Greece introduce peanuts and other foods from 3 months and they dont really have allergies?

I am so paranoid about allergies that I have not yet given my 6 and 3 year old peanuts. now i feel scared to just in case she will be allergic - stupid i know!

i had an severe reaction couple of years ago to a nut bar - had to have adrenalin jab. not eaten nuts since, had tests and they all came back neg but still scared. guess i have a phobia now. pregnant again and not had any nuts at all - did with other pregnancies so now even more worried i am making this baby at more risk by not exposing their system to any nuts.

dont know what to do as gp's do not understand the phoba i have.

it does make more sense to introduce foods slowly to get their system use to it but when is the right time is the question.

Third world countries and others like Greece introduce peanuts and other foods from 3 months and they dont really have allergies?

I am so paranoid about allergies that I have not yet given my 6 and 3 year old peanuts. now i feel scared to just in case she will be allergic - stupid i know!

i had an severe reaction couple of years ago to a nut bar - had to have adrenalin jab. not eaten nuts since, had tests and they all came back neg but still scared. guess i have a phobia now. pregnant again and not had any nuts at all - did with other pregnancies so now even more worried i am making this baby at more risk by not exposing their system to any nuts.

dont know what to do as gp's do not understand the phoba i have.

it does make more sense to introduce foods slowly to get their system use to it but when is the right time is the question.

Cantsleepwontsleep; I'm not saying other parents are wrong, they're just paranoid about nuts....

like me!