Who gets food allergies?
Food allergies are common in children – roughly 4 % of children have a food allergy. Roughly 5 % of children under the age of 5 years have a food allergy. Children with food allergies may also have other allergies, for example, a recent study in the US showed that 29 % of children with food allergies also had asthma and 27 % of children with food allergies also had allergic eczema (whereas only 12 % of children without food allergies had asthma and 8 % of children without food allergies had allergic eczema). The rates of food allergies in children appear to have risen by almost 20 % between 1997 and 2007 in the US. Food allergies are slightly more common in boys than in girls (4.1 % of boys have a food allergy, whereas 3.8 % of girls have a food allergy)
A lot of children can outgrow food allergies by school age, which explains why only 1 in 70 (less than 1.5 %) adults have a food allergies. Food allergies in adults tend to be a little more severe, can start later on in life, and are unlikely to go away with time.
People with food allergies may have a genetic tendency to develop allergies. This is known as atopy. As a result, other people in the family may have allergies (not necessarily food allergies), and a person with food allergies may suffer from other allergies too, such as asthma, hay fever, or allergic eczema.
Food Allergies Guide Index:
- What are food allergies?
- Who gets food allergies?
- What are some common signs and symptoms of a food allergy?
- What are some common foods that can cause an allergic reaction?
- How can a food allergy be diagnosed?
- How can food allergies be managed?
ALLERGIES GUIDE
- Allergy Treatment
- Anaphylaxis
- Asthma
- Bee Stings
- Cow's Milk Allergy
- Drug Allergies
- Eczema
- Egg Allergies
- Food Allergies
- Hayfever
- Hives And Urticaria
- House dust Mite Allergy
- Latex Allergies
- Mould Allergies
- Poison Plant Allergies
- Peanut Allergy
- Pet Allergies
- Photosensitivity
- Seafood Allergies
- Shellfish Allergy
- Soya Allergy
- Tree Nut Allergy
- Wheat Allergies