"allergies" news and stories

This has actually been out for a few days now. I don't think it's too widespread, but Post has recalled its Live-Active cereal. Luckily, it's not from any disease-causing bacteria.

Nope, the cereal box was mislabeled and it may contain tree nuts. Maybe that's not salmonella, but it's pretty bad if you're allergic to tree nuts.

Return or discard boxes of the cereal with a UPC of 00430000238900 and 'best by' date 17DEC2008. Call 866-771-1511 with questions.

Want to protect your unborn kids from getting asthma and allergies? You might want to add fish and apples to your diet.

Researchers in Scotland and the Netherlands have discovered that apples might have an effect on asthma in kids aged 5 and that fish might have an effect on the risk of eczema in children.

This isn't the first study involving the same group of children. Earlier studies suggested that mothers who had more vitamin E, vitamin D and zinc while pregnant might also lower the risk of asthma, allergies and eczema.

Research seems to point out that children who eat a diet high in fruit, nuts, olive oil, and vegetables; basically a Mediterranean diet, may be less likely to develop allergies and asthma. The diet helped allergic rhinitis, asthma, and skin allergies. Children who ate nuts at least three times a week, as well as grapes, were less likely to have asthmatic symptoms. Interestingly, lots of margarine greatly increased asthma and allergic rhinitis.

Some of the experts and researchers feel that the enormous increase of asthma in developed countries is linked to eating less natural and fresh foods to fast foods the last few decades. Asthma rates have doubled in the last 20 years while there has been a decrease in important vitamins and minerals in children's diets. At the same time the consumption of fats in oils and processed foods has risen dramatically.

High consumption of a 'Mediterranean' diet consisting of fruit, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts and olive oil had a positive effect, says a report by researchers from Crete, Britain and Spain. Eating oranges, apples, grapes, and tomatoes daily protected against wheezing and allergic rhinitis. Nuts were very beneficial, possibly because they contain vitamin E and high levels of magnesium, which may protect against asthma.

Also research at St George's Hospital Medical School in London found that healthy lung function was linked to high intake of vitamins C, E, beta-carotene, and citrus fruits, apples and fruit juice. High levels of antioxidants in the diet like C and E help people handle inflammatory lung disease better. Also it is possible that high intake of salt and fatty acids like those found in margarine could induce asthma.

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Just over six months ago, Cadbury went through a major recall of some of their best selling products in the UK because the bars tested positive for traces of salmonella. In Canada, at about this time last year, the company had to recall some Cadbury Easter eggs because "pieces of hard plastic" were found in them. Now, the company is faced with yet another recall. This time, thousands of Easter eggs and chocolates were shipped out with no nut-allergy warning on the packaging, which puts those with such allergies at serious risk.

Since many of the chocolates have already been distributed, Cadbury is not only recalling them from stores, but chose to run ads in the newspapers to try to draw consumers' attention to the potential risk. A Cadbury spokesman could not give an estimate as to the exact number of products involved in the recall, but he speculated that the number of candies - primarily Easter-themed Cadbury Creme Eggs - would be in the thousands not the millions. The real danger for the company in this third recall comes from decreasing consumer confidence in their brand and whether the love of Creme Eggs (properly labeled ones) is enough to make consumers stay with them.

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At Duke University, researchers have been engaged in an experiment that could change the lives of those with severe food allergies. Those allergies trigger approximately 30,000 emergency-room visits each year and are sometimes the result of an exposure to a very tiny amount of allergen. This new study suggests that gradually increasing exposure to even smaller amounts of the allergen can build up a resistance - especially in children - and prevent one mouthful of the wrong food from becoming deadly.

In the study, children were given amounts of defatted peanut flour or an egg powder - very common, but serious, allergens - as small as 1/3,000th of a peanut or about 1/1,000th of an egg (under supervision at the Duke Hospital). Taken in pill form daily, the dosage was increased bi-weekly until the children were consuming the equivalent of 1/10th of an egg or 1 peanut, which became a maintenance dose that they took daily throughout the study, which lasted about 2 years. At that point, 4 of the 7 egg-allergic children could eat two scrambled eggs without any type of reaction (2 more could eat that much before reacting) and many of the peanut-allergic children could eat up to 15 peanuts before starting to experience a reaction.

At this time, researchers strongly recommend that you do not try this type of treatment at home, because it can be dangerous without careful monitoring. To the parents who joined in, however, the success could prove to be a lifesaver for their children and, as a result, researchers are optimistic that there could be a highly effective treatment available to parents and children within five years.

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