Best medicine ever...
Posted on 10/12/2016 9:03:01 PM PDT by nickcarraway
New research shows children, some as young as nine-months-old, with peanut allergies can successfully become desensitized to nuts by eating small doses of peanut protein. To reduce the risk of life-threatening allergic reactions, researchers at the University of North Carolina School of Medicine have been studying the use of oral immunotherapy to reduce sensitivity to peanut proteins.
The published a new report that found the therapy to be 81 percent effective in preschool-aged children.
Only a handful of oral immunotherapy programs exist in Texas.
Medical City Dallas has been running its current program for eight years with high success, according to doctors.
The Larson Family of Houston has made 51 visits for their 12-year-old son Brendan's immunotherapy for food allergies, including peanuts.
"You always hear the stories of kids having terrible reactions and it's usually kids who are teenagers or early adults, so I really wanted him protected before he got to that age," said mom Katie Larson.
Dr. Stacy Silvers, of Allergy Partners of North Texas, started Brendan on small doses of peanut protein, in the form of peanut flour mixed with juice.
Over time, the dose of peanut increases.
"Over the course of weeks or months, we build them up to where they're eating 12 peanuts daily," said Silvers.
Silvers said 80 percent of the children who go through the months-long program build enough tolerance for peanuts that they no longer have allergic reactions to them.
The success echoes the results of the new published research.
"We have been starting kids age five and older in the program, but with this recent study that came out, in the very near future, we plan to start treating the younger kids," Silvers said. Brendan has graduated from the program and is now in the maintenance phase, which includes daily consumption of Peanut M&M's, which helps him keep his tolerance to peanuts.
In a few weeks, Brendan will attend a birthday party, where he will eat birthday cake for the first time in his life.
"He's never eaten the cake at a birthday party. He's actually invited to a birthday party in a few weeks and it'll be the first time that he'll get to eat the cake at the party. Obviously, I'm tearing up thinking about that," said Katie.
"I'll be able to eat all these new foods," said Brendan. "It's going to be a whole new world."
What do you bet he won’t like it?
My friend’s granddaughter has had this therapy. It really works. And she was 9 or 10 when they started it.
This is great news for people who suffer from this problem. They have to worry everywhere around food.
Kinda shows once again that exposure to bad things early helps the body build up it’s immunity and become stronger. Seems like a lot of things got worse as parents tried to overprotect their kids and now we might be heading back the other way, but driven by studies.
Best medicine ever...
bfl
There was a medical study that came out a couple years ago stating the same. Of course, every grandma used to know this. Over protective parents these days are doing more harm than good. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule. People are allergic to some degree to one thing or another including sunlight.
Hubby was telling a story yesterday about harvesting peanuts when he was a teen. He said the peanut dust (from shells and the plants) would get in his eyes and make them water so at the end of the day between the watering eyes and sweat everyone would have streaks down their faces. Nearly everyone in the county worked the fields so there was no escaping it. No one died. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule.
I posted today how the government would give out pb to anyone who’d take it. Our lunchroom ladies would put pb in some form on our lunch trays every day. No one died. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule.
Back in the mid 90’s, our kids’ church preschool had the kids grow peanuts as a little garden project. Their teacher had a peanut farm so she constantly had peanut pollen and peanut dust all over her. I still plant the “descendants” from their little plants that were brought home so proudly in Styrofoam cups. No preschool parent freaked out and no one died. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule. I have some in the freezer right now and a few sitting on the kitchen counter waiting to be shelled.
There was a medical study that came out a couple years ago stating the same. Of course, every grandma used to know this. Over protective parents these days are doing more harm than good. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule. People are allergic to some degree to one thing or another including sunlight.
Hubby was telling a story yesterday about harvesting peanuts when he was a teen. He said the peanut dust (from shells and the plants) would get in his eyes and make them water so at the end of the day between the watering eyes and sweat everyone would have streaks down their faces. Nearly everyone in the county worked the fields so there was no escaping it. No one died. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule.
I posted today how the government would give out pb to anyone who’d take it. Our lunchroom ladies would put pb in some form on our lunch trays every day. No one died. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule.
Back in the mid 90’s, our kids’ church preschool had the kids grow peanuts as a little garden project. Their teacher had a peanut farm so she constantly had peanut pollen and peanut dust all over her. I still plant the “descendants” from their little plants that were brought home so proudly in Styrofoam cups. No preschool parent freaked out and no one died. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule. I have some in the freezer right now and a few sitting on the kitchen counter waiting to be shelled.
There was a medical study that came out a couple years ago stating the same. Of course, every grandma used to know this. Over protective parents these days are doing more harm than good. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule. People are allergic to some degree to one thing or another including sunlight.
Hubby was telling a story yesterday about harvesting peanuts when he was a teen. He said the peanut dust (from shells and the plants) would get in his eyes and make them water so at the end of the day between the watering eyes and sweat everyone would have streaks down their faces. Nearly everyone in the county worked the fields so there was no escaping it. No one died. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule.
I posted today how the government would give out pb to anyone who’d take it. Our lunchroom ladies would put pb in some form on our lunch trays every day. No one died. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule.
Back in the mid 90’s, our kids’ church preschool had the kids grow peanuts as a little garden project. Their teacher had a peanut farm so she constantly had peanut pollen and peanut dust all over her. I still plant the “descendants” from their little plants that were brought home so proudly in Styrofoam cups. No preschool parent freaked out and no one died. Not saying there isn’t the exception to the rule. I have some in the freezer right now and a few sitting on the kitchen counter waiting to be shelled.
I was born in the early ‘60s and for the life of me I do not remember kids having these kinds of allergies when I was a kid.
Ok I’ll ask a dumb question, what does cake have to do with peanut allergies? I’m afraid I don’t see the connection.
Same here. PB & J was a staple.
Just speculating, but I know the list of foods that can be dangerous to those with extreme peanut allergies is long. Products that don't contain peanuts but are produced in a plant that uses peanuts are labeled with that info (either by law or as lawsuit prevention.) I'd guess that it's difficult to have all of the ingredients for a cake without accidentally using some miniscule amount of peanut, either the nut itself or the oil.
Basically if your kid has a severe allergy you don’t let the kid eat anything that you do not know exactly what is in it and how it was prepared.
If the kid goes to a party you are probably going to pack him a lunch. You take all of his treats with you.
The cake or the frosting may have been made with peanut oil. The mom throwing the party probably wouldn’t know if it was in the cake or not. Regardless you are not going to take the chance.
Pontiac hit the nail on the head. We have one grandson with life-threatening allergies. (Already forwarded this article) Our kiddo has gone into anaphylactic shock several times from eating a bite of something at school shared by another kiddo, or cake at a birthday party as the article mentioned. You just don’t know what is in things.
I am curious about these findings as our grandson is also allergic to several other foods including seafood. They live in Maine and seafood is a staple. My huband is a former commercial fisherman there. I’d like to see if they apply the peanut therapy to other foods.
Thanks for enlightening the unenlightened. :) I don’t remember this type of issue when I was a kid.
I didn’t either. I knew kids with bee sting and penicillin allergies but not food allergies.
ION - We heard back from our son in Maine that they’ve taken my grandson in and had blood tests to see if he qualifies for this procedure. They are “cautiously optimistic” that this can help him. Poor kid can’t even have chocolate! As for me, I am believing that this is part of God’s answered prayer for praying grandparents!
Neither do I
I imagine when we were kids if you had this problem you just died.
Amen to prayer. Hope everything works out.
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