| Health / Health News |
Preschoolers benefit from peanut allergy therapy
NIH | SEPTEMBER 3, 2016
Recent studies have shown that an experimental treatment called oral immunotherapy can reduce allergies to some foods, including peanut. A team of researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill tested the approach as an early intervention in preschool-age children newly diagnosed with peanut allergy.
Peanuts. 
The team enrolled 40 young children (9 to 36 months old) newly diagnosed with peanut allergy. The treatment involved eating small, gradually increasing amounts of peanut protein each day.
Participants were randomly assigned to either a high-dose (target daily dose of 3,000 milligrams peanut protein) or a low-dose regimen (target dose of 300 milligrams). Data from a group of 154 peanut-allergic children who had received standard care and avoided peanut were used as a control.
Nearly all treated participants experienced some side effects, such as abdominal pain. These were generally mild and required little or no treatment. Three people withdrew from the study because of adverse effects. Two others withdrew for other reasons.
After receiving treatment for 29 months on average, participants ate a peanut-free diet for 4 weeks and then were evaluated for their ability to eat 5 grams of peanut protein. Almost 80% of treated participants had no allergic response.
There was no significant difference between the low-dose and high-dose arms. In comparison, only 4% of the control group successfully introduced peanut into their diets. These results are substantially better than those in older children who had a longer duration of peanut allergy.
Researchers continue to monitor the participants to assess how long the treatment effects may last. Scientists note that this experimental therapy is still being tested in clinical trials and should be given only under medical supervision.
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