THE number of mothers who believe their babies are allergic to some foods is well out of proportion to the actual number found to have adverse reactions, according to a study.
Researchers found that, contrary to popular belief, the rate of food hypersensitivity is not rising. In a three-year, £600,000 project funded by the Food Standards Agency, researchers studied nearly all the babies born in one year on the Isle of Wigh
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They found parents were too quick to assume their child had an allergy or intolerance to a specific food.
And they discovered that food hypersensitivity rates were unchanged since a previous study 20 years ago.
Dr Carina Venter, who led the research, said: "People have become more aware of food allergies, particularly peanut allergy. Mums tend to put down every rash, tummy ache, diarrhoea and crying to food allergy or intolerance.
"I sympathise with them – it seems reasonable to blame the food when an infant screams or turns red minutes after being fed it for the first time.
"Also, some babies might react strongly to some common foods, but outgrow this allergy or intolerance within a year or two."
Dr Venter said that by the age of three, about 75 per cent of the babies who were allergic to or intolerant of milk had outgrown their reaction and half had outgrown their reaction to eggs. Of the 807 babies in the study, more than one in three (272) were claimed by their parents to have an allergy or intolerance to one or more foods.
But in fact, fewer than 60 babies proved to be allergic to any food by the age of three. That represented almost a fivefold over-estimation of the problem.
The most common allergies were to peanuts, eggs and milk, and the main reason parents gave for reporting a food allergy was their child coming out in a rash, itching or developing hives or eczema. The second-largest reason was a gastrointestinal effect, including the child developing stomach ache, vomiting, diarrhoea, constipation or colic.
The third symptom highlighted by parents was respiratory problems, including shortness of breath, asthma, wheeziness, a runny or itchy nose and coughing.
Four parents reported behavioural problems after their children ate certain foods at the age of two and 14 parents reported the same when their children were aged three.
Dr Venter, based at the University of Portsmouth, said: "Parents tend to be relieved when they discover their child is not allergic or intolerant to anything."
The foods most commonly blamed by mothers for causing a reaction were milk, eggs, fruit (mainly strawberries and citrus fruit), tomatoes (including tomato sauce), additives (colourings and preservatives), wheat, peanuts, fish and soya.
The most likely foods to cause an allergic reaction in the children were, in descending order: peanuts, eggs, milk, wheat, brazil and almond nuts, gluten, hazelnuts, cashew nuts and corn.
No child underwent food "challenges" to test peanut or sesame allergy until they reached the age of three because experts say infants should not be exposed to these foods in the first few years of life.
HIDDEN DANGERSAMONG the most common allergies, an intolerance of nuts is also one of the most dangerous. If ingested, it can cause what is known as anaphylaxis, when the sufferer's throat swells, causing breathing difficulties, which if not treated can lead to death.
Dairy and egg allergies, while generally less dangerous, can cause severe discomfort: they can produce asthma-like symptoms, eczema, glue ear, bloating and constipation. In severe cases, egg and dairy allergies can also produce anaphylaxis.
