Do you have a food allergy? Really? A new study by researchers at the Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago and Northwestern University recently carried out a stealthy survey in which they looked at what people said about their allergies and came up with some surprising results…
A traditional Asian New Year’s Eve Seafood platter:
A feast for some, fatal for others…
Some 26 million Americans – one in ten – suffer from a food allergy of some kind. However, twice as many think they have allergies but really don’t. How can this be, you say?
What they did…
The researchers mined data from a U.S. national survey of 40,000 adult subjects in which they were queried about their ‘allergies’.
What they found…
Many more survey respondents thought they had food allergies than actually did. Yes, they had sensitivities to some foods, which can produce convincing superficial symptoms but don’t lead to potentially life-threatening situations.
“While we found that one in 10 adults have food allergy, nearly twice as many adults think that they are allergic to foods, while their symptoms may suggest food intolerance or other food related conditions,” says report Lead Author Dr. Ruchi Gupta, “It is important to see a physician for appropriate testing and diagnosis before completely eliminating foods from the diet. If food allergy is confirmed, understanding the management is also critical, including recognizing symptoms of anaphylaxis and how and when to use epinephrine.”
Furthermore, Gupta notes, only half of adults with convincing food allergies had a physician-confirmed diagnosis, and less than 25 percent reported a current epinephrine prescription.
Researchers also found that nearly half of food-allergic adults developed at least one of their food allergies as an adult. This brings into question the previously held belief that most food allergies are developed in childhood and carried forward into adulthood.
“We were surprised to find that adult-onset food allergies were so common,” says Gupta. “More research is needed to understand why this is occurring and how we might prevent it.”
The takeaway…
If you think you have a food allergy but have never had a life-threatening reaction, and you haven’t been tested by a doctor, you ought to see an MD and request a firm diagnosis. If it turns out you simply have a sensitivity, you might want to consider desensitization therapy, rather than banishing the suspect foods from your diet.
My take…
I’ve often thought that many more people claim they have allergies than actually do. But I’ve also seen what happens when someone with a genuine, diagnosed food allergy is compromised. A dear friend who suffered with the all-too-common shellfish allergy once had an attack requiring use of his Eppi Pen and a follow-up visit to the ER after simply inhaling the cooking exhaust from a Fish and Chips shop. Yes, it happens. There are people who truly do have potentially life-threatening allergies, and they deserve your utmost respect and consideration when you are dining together.
~ Maggie J.