CHAPEL HILL, NC (Ivanhoe Newswire) – One in 50 children and one in 200 adults in the United States have a peanut allergy. Peanut allergies have more than tripled in the past 20 years, and no one really knows why. But there are some innovative ways to help keep people with these allergies safe, and they may one day be able to eat what they love without fear of an allergic reaction.
Five-year-old Caleb Billeter is something of a Lego whiz. He’s not too worried, but his mother is.
“When Caleb was 6 months old, he broke out in hives all over his chest, torso and face,” said Caleb’s mother, Elizabeth Billiter.
The hives were the first sign of a dangerous peanut allergy.
“I had bumps all over my face,” Caleb said.
Caleb was treated with a peanut patch, which he wore daily for several months, and it is hoped that he will eventually be able to tolerate small amounts of peanut without a reaction. Another treatment, oral immunotherapy, can be thought of as microdosing of peanuts.
“Kids are eating peanut flour in small, increasing amounts in an attempt to retrain their immune system and dampen the reaction,” explained Dr. Edwin Kim, a pediatric allergist at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine.
Researchers are now working on developing a toothpaste that could help prevent severe allergic reactions in the future by stimulating immune cells in the mouth.
“If peanuts were used in toothpaste and applied all over the inside of the mouth, it may be possible to harness immune cells to produce the desired effect,” Dr Kim added.
When you brush your teeth, the peanut proteins are absorbed into your mouth. None of the subjects experienced any reactions, such as difficulty breathing, swollen throat, pale skin, blue lips, fainting, or dizziness. It won’t cure your allergies, but it will make your body’s reactions less life-threatening.
“It’s really tasty,” Caleb said.
Dr. Kim also found that placing a small amount of liquid peanut extract under the tongue desensitized young children to peanut allergies: by the end of the study, 80 percent of the children could ingest 15 peanuts without any symptoms.
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