New Insights on Tree Nut Allergies

Allergic sensitivity to tree nuts was found to be common among Swedish adults, but most people never experienced symptoms, reveals a new study published in Clinical and Experimental Allergy.

In the study of 2,215 individuals, eczema, asthma, and egg allergies at an early age were associated with developing a tree nut allergy by adulthood.

‘Having allergy towards one tree nut doesn't mean you are allergic to the others as well. To confirm, if you're allergic to the other nuts, go for the oral food challenge.’

Also, allergen molecules were better diagnostic tools for predicting allergic symptoms to tree nuts compared with analyzing allergen extracts.

Tree nuts include hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans, cashews, pistachios, almonds, and brazil nuts.

Consuming tree nuts can help in reducing two of the five markers for metabolic syndrome.

Allergic to one tree nut, for example, walnuts, does not mean that all nuts can cause allergy.

Many patients with a history of a single tree nut allergy are told to avoid all other tree nuts.

One of the previous researches strongly suggests that you should consider having an oral food challenge to properly diagnose additional nut allergies, especially if you've never had a reaction to eating those tree nuts before.

"This study increases the understanding of tree nut allergy in a general population, followed from infancy up to adulthood.

For example, our study reveals that most extract‐based tree nut‐sensitized individuals do not have tree nut allergy and hence extract-based testing for tree nuts without a specific clinical suspicion should not be performed," said co-lead author Jessica Bager, of the Karolinska Institutet, in Sweden.



Source: Eurekalert