Food Allergy Molecule Discovered

So why do some people have an allergic response to something like peanuts and milk, while others have no such response. Researchers are a step closer to answering that question.

In a recent study led by Yong-Jun Liu, M.D., Ph.D., at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, scientists singled out the molecule that specifically directs immune cells to develop the capability to produce an allergic response. It's called thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP), and these researchers believe it is the key to why food allergies develop in some people.

Information from this study may allow scientists to target this molecule in their efforts to treat and cure food allergy. Here's the abstract for those with a scientific brain.

This research is being conducted with a grant through the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health.

Here's their press release of this encouraging new study.

Allergy Friendly Food Banks

I got a disturbing e-mail last week that a Boy Scout troop had been turned down when they offered to help organize food at our local food bank.

Why?

The food bank was out of food. There wasn't anything to organize.

Our community rallied and many of us shopped in our cupboards and grocery stores and sent food over to the food pantry.

I do think sometimes about families in need who may also deal with food allergies. Our jars of peanut butter and boxes of macaroni and cheese may not help those folks.

That's why I love what Dee Valdez has done. She's on a mission to open gluten free food banks across the country. She started with one in Loveland, Colorado. Dee, also known as "Gluten-Free Dee", has partnered with companies, including Pamela's Products, to provide gluten free products to those in need.

Don't you just love this? Check in with your local food pantry today and see what they need. People in all of our communities go to bed hungry many nights. That should not be...

Information From Food Allergy Assistant Readers

I've gotten some requests from readers to post their items of interest to the food allergy community. I wanted to pass these along:

Teresa posted a quirky, but fascinating article called “20 Weird Allergies That Actually Exist”.

Leeanne is giving away some allergy friendly candy on her blog. The offer is only available until Jan. 26, so hop on over for the chance to win.

I wrote a blog for Peanut Allergy.com recently about new peanut allergic mice which should help researchers with treatment and a cure for peanut allergy.

Don't forget the FAAN and Divvies Cookie Recipe Contest. The deadline is Feb. 15. Grand prize is a trip to Great Wolf Lodge.

Cooking Allergy Free has released an iPhone app to help those who need to prepare allergy friendly food.

Anyone in the market for a new grill? Reader Joseph W. sent me a link to his site where he reviews stainless steel grills.

So keep sending in your helpful info and the Food Allergy Assistant will help get the word out.

Many Diagnosed With Peanut Allergy may Not Be Allergic

A study was recently conducted to determine if those patients who test positive for peanut allergy through a blood or skin test could really tolerate peanut. Of the 933 children who tested positive for peanut allergy, the majority didn't have a peanut allergy when orally challenged. Isn't that something????

Now, this is not something to be tried at home; however, it may be something worth discussing with your allergist. I know that my peanut allergic child has never had peanuts, nor has he been orally challenged to peanuts. We're just going with the allergy on the basis of blood and skin test results.

In the same study in The Journal of Allergy and Immunology also used component-resolved diagnostics (a more sophisticated blood test) to determine if they could find differences between the children with peanut allergy and those who could tolerate peanut. Researchers determined that component-resolved diagnostics may indeed help in determining whether or not a person truly is peanut allergic.

I'm finding this all very interesting. I don't want to put my child through inaccurate tests. I really want to know if a food is dangerous for him or not!

New Injector of Epinephrine

The EpiPen® has long been the standard prescription for patients who may suffer from anaphylaxis due to food insect and other allergies.

Several years ago a new device for delivering epinephrine came out, the Twinject®. The advantage of this device was that each unit contained two doses. Patients have long been cautioned that epinephrine doses only last 15-20 minutes, so Twinject touted its advantage as giving the patient an additional back-up dose and more time to seek treatment.

Sciele Pharmaceuticals is soon releasing a new epinephrine device called Adrenaclik. It, like the Epipen, is a single dose injector. Actually it looks much like the EpiPen and the instructions for use are similar, although with the Adrenaclik, two gray caps need to be pulled off from either end, rather than one on the Epipen.

I wonder if we will see more of these auto-injectors? I wonder if that means the price will come down? It's pretty expensive to have several on-hand, isn't it? I did find documentation that states the EpiPen patent doesn't expire until Sept. 2025. I don't understand all the legalese on patents and generic drugs. Anyone else?

Allergy Shots Decrease Healthcare Costs

Many people with food allergies also deal with environmental allergies. Allergy shots are a necessary evil for many of us with environmental allergies. While not available for food allergies, shots can be immensely helpful for those allergic to dogs, cats, dust, pollen, grasses, etc.

It was no surprise to me to read this study in the Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology showing allergy shots decrease healthcare and prescription costs. I've seen it for myself and I've seen it for other family members.

Due to allergy shots, daily medications (I mean several different kinds a day, both oral and nasal) are a thing of the past in our family. Fewer days of school have been missed and we've had fewer doctor visits for symptoms that may have been allergy related, but may have been something more serious.

Yes, it's a pain (literally) to go to the doctor's office weekly and monthly for injections, but allergy shots work. And fewer sick doctor visits and less medication really work for me.

Have you noticed this in your family as well?

Extreme Food Allergies

Can you imagine being allergic to over 95% of all foods?

Can you imagine getting most of your food through a feeding tube because it's really the only safe way to get nourishment?

I saw this inspiring story over the weekend about a 12 year old figure skater with severe food allergies.

I could really relate to her mother who said she just "wished she could trade places with her" (daughter).

It is so hard to watch your child deal with life threatening issues every day.

Kendall has her own website which may help others who deal with food allergies at this level.

What a story!

Twitter Party: Celiac Disease

As discussed in a previous post, there is overlap between food allergies and Celiac disease. Two members of the food allergy community, Food Allergy Buzz and Best Allergy Sites, have teamed up with General Mills to throw a "Gluten Free in the New Year Twitter Party".

The party is Thursday, January 14, 2010 at 7 pm EST. RSVP and then pass along the invite.

Don't know how to join a Twitter Party? It's fun and fast and here's some technical info to make things easier.

Join in the fun tomorrow and learn about some great General Mills gluten-free products. You may even win a fabulous prize.

Unfortunately I can't make the party. I'll be at my annual book club dinner...at Maggianos...okay, yes, stuffing my face with pasta...she says sheepishly...

What is Eosinophilic Esophagitis?

While it's hard to pronounce, this newly recognized allergic disease is increasingly being diagnosed in both children and adults. I've been hearing about this disorder from parents recently. I wondered about it and did some research.

I learned that we all have, and need, eosinophils in our bodies. They are located throughout our immune system to help fight off infections and parasites. Eosinophils are not typically found in our espophagus, though. For some people, the eosinophils travel to the esophagus and cause inflammation. The result is a painful disease called Eosinophilic esophagitis, or EE.

The disease of EE can cause symptoms of nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, difficulty swallowing, reflux, failure to thrive and difficulty sleeping. Those with EE commonly have other allergic disease such as asthma and eczema.

A diagnosis can be made through an endoscopy. If EE is confirmed, food allergy testing is conducted to determine which foods the person should avoid so the eosinophils are not triggered. The difference here from traditional food allergy testing, is that there may not be an apparent immediate reaction. It can take days and weeks for the offending food to trigger a response from the eosinophils. Hence, the difficulty with diagnosis.

The American Partnership for Eosinophil Disorders offers a lot of information about the disease. They also offer advice that is relevant to many in the wider food allergy community such as celebrating without food and information on IEP's (Individualized Healthcare Plans) and 504 plans. They even show some really creative "no cake birthday cakes".

This is yet another allergic disorder on the rise. I always seem to come back to the questions, "What's at the root of all these allergies?"

Egg Allergy and Swine Flu Vaccine

There is growing concern that the current method of manufacturing H1N1 vaccine would take too long if indeed there was a pandemic. Thus, the race has been on to find alternative methods. That's good news for those of us who care about someone with an egg allergy.

Researchers in Vienna recently experienced success creating H1N1 vaccine using insect cells. It worked in mice, but has not been tested in humans. The vaccine was available within 10 weeks, considerably faster than egg-based vaccine, making it appealing for rapid use during times of high demand.

Hmmm...I wonder if allergy to bees would prevent someone from using this vaccine?!!?

There is talk that the cold weather this winter will cause a resurgence of swine flu. Worrisome for those of us who have not vaccinated our egg-allergic children.

Check out some previous posts talking about alternatives to egg cultured flu vaccine.

Wheat Allergies

I find that many people are confused about wheat allergies. A true wheat allergy means being allergic to at least one of the proteins found in wheat:

* Albumin
* Globulin
* Gliadin
* Glutenin (gluten)

Allergic reactions are most commonly caused by one of the first two listed. Wheat allergies usually develop when the person is a baby or toddler and are commonly outgrown by age five. That said, adults can have wheat allergy.

The symptoms of a wheat allergy are the common symptoms associated with other food allergies. These symptoms may include nausea, vomiting, hives, eczema, itchy skin, throat irritation and anaphylaxis. I remember speaking to a mother whose 7 year old would have an anaphylactic reaction when she boiled pasta! Those wheat proteins became airborne and triggered a reaction when her child took a breath. Some people do experience a reaction when inhaling wheat or wheat flour. Others need to actually eat it.

Barley, oats and rye also contain some of the proteins found in wheat. Depending upon which proteins are causing the wheat allergy, these other grains may need to be avoided as well.

People often confuse wheat allergy with celiac disease. Celiac disease is a serious digestive disorder. People with celiac must avoid all gluten as it causes damage to the intestines. Those with a wheat allergy must avoid all foods containing wheat (which may include all purpose flour, beer, gravy, malted milk, MSG, and worcestershire sauce). Wheat allergic people should always carry an EpiPen® as well.

Food Resolutions

I caught up on some Dr. Oz episodes over the holidays...while walking on the treadmill, I might brag. Anyway, I've made some resolutions about food that I think fit very well with food allergy issues:

1. I resolve to work toward elimination of foods containing high fructose corn syrup. Dr. Oz says this cheap sweetener is quickly absorbed by the liver and converted to fat. Who needs that?

2. I resolve to not buy any food containing trans fat. It raises bad cholesterol and lowers good cholesterol. And it contributes to heart disease. Who needs that?

3. I resolve to eat 9 fistfuls of fruits and vegetables...every day.

4. I resolve to visit more produce stands and farmers markets in an effort to buy fods locally and in-season. Read Barbara Kingsolver's "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" for inspiration.

5. I resolve to avoid buying packaged foods with ingredient lists that require a magnifying glass, a dictionary of chemistry terms and more than 20 seconds of my time to read. If I can't pronounce it, my family doesn't need to ingest it.


I'll stick with five resolutions for now. I do believe we need to get back to bread that contains flour, sugar, salt, yeast and water and cake that calls for flour, sugar, eggs, vanilla extract, baking powder and salt. That's it- the basic ingredients. Food allergy families often follow these resolutions as they look for foods that are minimally processed. I know I've gotten a bit lazy though and I know I can do better. I must do it for the health of my family.

What are your food resolutions for 2010?