Food allergy: Mechanisms, diagnosis, and management

Abstract

Food allergy (FA) is a dynamic field. It is not only evolving but also increasing in the prevalence and incidence all over the world. The term “Food allergy” is often misused, not only by patients, their families but also by health professionals. All adverse food reactions are erroneously labeled as “Food allergy.” This has to be recognized and avoided to make a proper evaluation, diagnosis and management. Surveys have shown that the prevalence of FA based on public perception runs as high as 60%, whereas the true prevalence is around is around 2–8%. FA is more common in early childhood days (6–8%) compared to adults (1–2%). There are several known and unknown reasons for changing picture of FA across the globe. In the developed world, the peanut sensitivity has doubled in prevalence over the past decade. In the developing world (namely, India, and China), the prevalence of Peanut sensitivity/allergy is much less, although the consumption of Peanuts is much higher. Lately, it has also been observed that early introduction of so called “allergenic foods” to infants and children early in life seems to actually reduce the incidence of allergies developing later in childhood.