Early introduction of allergenic foods primary way to prevent allergies later

Having a food allergy is like having an illness that cannot be treated with medicine or any remedy. You have to compromise on things that appeal to your taste buds and just live with them.

However, science once again has your back. Experts have recently revealed an easy yet risky method you can use to prevent food allergies.

According to Alkis Togias, MD, branch chief at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and keynote speaker at the Global Food Allergy Prevention Summit, the future of allergy prevention lies in the early introduction of allergenic foods for now.

"We now know that early intervention will last into adolescence," Togias said during the presentation. "I think we have a very clear pathway that we can go after in terms of reducing the prevalence of food allergy and prevention."

The best time for early introduction, the dose, and the duration will need to be improved. Additionally, Togias stated that product development could be used to simplify regimens.

All of this must be addressed in order to implement guidelines and improve health care provider training and parent support, Togias said, according to Healio.com.

"We also have to think about the fact that early introduction may not be the only approach to the prevention of food allergy," he added.

One significant risk factor for allergens, for instance, is the skin barrier.

Togias also recommended that researchers look into the effects of microbiome-targeting interventions and the introduction of allergenic foods during pregnancy with and without lactation.

There is a need for practical studies to increase viability and pinpoint how to achieve immune and clinical tolerance.

"We always want to understand the mechanism of the disease," Togias said. "That is the future."