Researcher Claims Doctors Are To Blame For Recent Rise in Food Allergies

A researcher recently claimed that doctors could be behind the increasing rate of food allergies. Professor Julian Crane, a member of the University of Otago (New Zealand) asthma and allergy research center, told Stuff.co.nz that food allergy rates have skyrocketed over the past 2 decades because of guidelines encouraging parents to delay giving their children potentially allergenic foods.

According to Crane, “Probably that is exactly the wrong thing to do, because it turns out that things go better if you swamp the immune system and give it a chance to get used to allergenic foods. Then you don't get allergies.”

His statements have been met with controversy within the medical community. Another allergy specialist, who declined to be named because of the controversial nature of food allergies, said evidence for Crane's claim was lacking, explaining “There is no evidence that delaying the introduction of allergenic foods has prevented the development of allergies. But there is no strong evidence that early introduction, including allergenic foods, will prevent food allergy either.”

According to the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy, up to 4 percent of kids in Australia and New Zealand are affected by food allergies. The Society's website suggests that in western countries, food allergies have doubled over the past 25 years. Current advise on the Society's website recommends delaying introductions of new food over time so that potential reactions can be identified.

The debate over the best strategy for preventing food allergies in kids lies at the center of current food allergy research.