Good Example Of Research Paper On Food Allergies

Introduction:

National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) suggests that food allergies are caused due to adverse immune response by the body on exposure to certain food; this reaction is different from the adverse response to food due to food intolerance, pharmacologic reactions and other toxin-mediated reactions (Shekelle, P., M. Maglione, and M. Riedl., 2010). It results from a Th2-polarized immune response to environmental proteins called allergens. In 90% of the cases of food allergies, 170 food proteins called allergens, are responsible. Some of these are nuts, legumes, fruits, egg, milk, and seafood.Animal protein allergens are more common among children whereas vegetable and fruit allergens affect adults more. IE-mediated, cellular-mediated and mixed IgE cellular-mediated immune mechanisms are involved; with the IgE-mediated mechanism being most common and best-studied. It is difficult to make a diagnosis in the majority of the cases and administration of a suspected food is done, which can be highly risky. The best current management for food allergies is to avoid the culprit food and for this proper counseling of parents and patient is carried out. They are taught to self-administer epinephrine injections in case of accidental ingestion.

Recent researches:

Recently FARE-Funded researches have reported that the introduction of peanuts early in life prevents the development of peanut allergy (Du Toit, George, et al., 2013). A treatment for peanut allergy is considered which is: a combination of probiotics with oral immunotherapy (Nurmatov, Ulugbek, et al., 2012). It is also studied that bacteria in gastrointestinal tract protects against food allergies.

Prevalence:

The prevalence in western countries, as suggested, to food allergies is more, but the exact prevalence is not known. The EuroPrevall consortium carried out a meta-analysis on food allergies in 2007 (EU-funded project on FA). They included milk, egg, peanut, fish and seafood only in their survey among both adults and children. The results were that the prevalence to food allergy is 1% to 5% of European population. In a research in America, it was found that 4.2% children and 1.3% of the adults have a food allergy. These results are just estimation as all the food allergens were not taken in the record.

Symptoms:

The time duration and extent of reaction to food allergen vary from person to person and from food to food. Come may complain of mild discomfort while for others food allergies can be life-threatening. The symptoms may occur after few minutes to two hours after intake of the offending food. The most common complains include: itching or tingling in oral cavity, hives, itching and eczema on skin; swelling of different body parts like face, tongue, lips and throat; wheezing, breathing difficulties and nasal congestion; nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain; fainting and dizziness.The systems affected include skin, gastrointestinal tract, respiratory tract and in severe cases, cardiovascular system. In America, patients with symptoms of food allergy are admitted, in every three minutes, to the emergency room.

Causes:

Food allergy can be caused by a number of allergens in different food. Some of these are discussed in detail below:
Cereal allergy: It includes oat, wheat, corn, rice, rye and barley. It affects both adults and children, and the patient can be allergic to one or more than one type of cereal.

Coconut Allergy: It is uncommon, but those who are allergic suffer from serious reactions called anaphylactic reactions.

Coeliac disease: Individuals are allergic to gluten that is found in barley, rye and wheat oats. It is a chronic disease, which may be hereditary, causing diarrhea and malnutrition. 1 in 30 UK citizens have this disease (Food Standards Agency, UK).
Egg allergy: It is common in children, who mostly survive to the age of three. It is caused by proteins in egg white; which areovomucoid, ovalbumin, and conalbumin. Cooking may or may not destroy these proteins. Those allergic to chicken quail or turkey may also be allergic to their eggs, called bird-egg syndrome. Some of the vaccines like influenza vaccine also contain egg allergens (American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology (AAAAI), 2015).
Fish allergy: It affects adults more, in 40% of the cases (Sicherer, Scott H., Anne Muñoz-Furlong, and Hugh A. Sampson, 2004), and cause severe reactions. Cod, hake, haddock, whiting, mackerel and shellfish are some of the examples.

Fruit and vegetable allergy: They are called oral allergy syndrome as it affects only mouth causing mild itching and rash.

Meat allergy: Beef, mutton, pork or chicken can cause allergy.
Milk allergy: Allergy to cow milk is very common among infants and young children. It affects 2.5% of the children below three years. It occurs in those babies with atopic dermatitis more commonly. The reaction can occur due to direct ingestion of cow milk or through breast milk because of intake of dairy product my mother.
Peanut allergy: This type of allergy is mostly life-long however some children may recover from it. They are the most common cause of food allergy and can be very severe.In U.S., the number of children with a peanut allergy is expected to increase three times in years from 1997 to 2008 (FARE-funded study).

Risk factors:

Family history, history of food allergy, other allergies, age, and asthma are some of the risk factors of food allergies.
Complications:
Complications of food allergies are anaphylaxis reaction (life-threatening), atopic dermatitis (eczema, a skin reaction) and migraine attack in some people.
Tests and diagnosis:
The diagnosis of food allergy is made by a thorough clinical history. Some of the tests include skin prick test, blood test, oral food challenge and trial elimination diet test. These are medically proven diagnostic tests. Self-diagnosis should always be avoided. It may cause unnecessary restriction of food and hence nutrition deficiency in children.

Treatment and drugs:

The only effective treatment is food restriction. In case of exposure to reaction, the doctor gives a Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Emergency Care Plan. Symptoms that are mild to moderate can be treated by anti-histamines and topical (mild cases) or oral (severe cases) steroids. In case of anaphylactic reaction, epinephrine injections are given, but caution must be taken in elderly with cardiac diseases. Certain herbal remedies, acupuncture and acupressure therapies are also considered for food allergy.

Prevention:

The people who have a food allergy should look at the ingredients of whatever food or drink they are consuming. They should wear a medical bracelet or card so that in case of severe reaction, and the patient is unable to communicate, others may help them immediately, they should ask their doctors to prescribe them epinephrine in case of severe allergic reaction. They should eat carefully in restaurants.

Conclusion:

Food allergy is a common problem especially in West. It can be a challenging problem especially when people have allergies to multiple food products. Individuals should have a detailed knowledge about their type of food allergy by consulting doctors or through internet researches or book reviews.

Works cited

Brostoff, Jonathan, and Linda Gamlin. Food Allergies and Food Intolerance: The Complete Guide to Their Identification and Treatment. Rochester, Vt.: Healing Arts, 2000. Print.
Castellazzi, Anna Maria, et al. "Probiotics and food allergy."Ital J Pediatr 39.47 (2013): e57.
Chafen, Jennifer J. Schneider, et al. "Diagnosing and managing common food allergies: a systematic review." Jama 303.18 (2010): 1848-1856.Shekelle, P., M. Maglione, and M. Riedl. "Food allergy: evidence report." (2010).
Castells, Mariana. "Introductions." 2015 AAAAI Annual Meeting (February 20-24, 2015). Aaaai, 2015.
Du Toit, George, et al. "Identifying infants at high risk of peanut allergy: The Learning Early About Peanut Allergy (LEAP) screening study." Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology 131.1 (2013): 135-143.
Nurmatov, Ulugbek, et al. "Allergen‐specific oral immunotherapy for peanut allergy." The Cochrane Library (2012).
Panel, NIAID-Sponsored Expert. "Guidelines for the diagnosis and management of food allergy in the United States: report of the NIAID-sponsored expert panel." Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology 126.6 (2010): S1-S58.
Sicherer, Scott H., et al. "US prevalence of self-reported peanut, tree nut, and sesame allergy: 11-year follow-up." Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology 125.6 (2010): 1322-1326.
Sicherer, Scott H., Anne Muñoz-Furlong, and Hugh A. Sampson."Prevalence of seafood allergy in the United States determined by a random telephone survey." Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology 114.1 (2004): 159-165.