Dr Ruchi Gupta, MD, MPH — professor of pediatrics and medicine and director of the Center for Food Allergy & Asthma Research at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago — delivers a wakeup call to caregivers, pediatricians, and allergists alike: peanut allergy is on the rise and early introduction is a key intervention… when it’s done at all and done the right way.
The incidence of peanut allergy has risen to 2.2% nationwide. The LEAP study made it clear that introduction of peanuts in the first 4-6 months is imperative to help prevent the development of peanut allergy, but Dr Gupta asserts the data shows only about 28% of pediatricians and 64% of allergists are fully following all of the allergy prevention guidelines.
Said Dr Gupta to Healio:
Allergists, please encourage your pediatricians to use the guidelines and to encourage early peanut introduction, because what we’re seeing in the U.S. is that caregivers are not getting the message.
These are really, really important messages because we really want to see that 2.2% start going down back to where it belongs and decrease the incidence of peanut allergy in our kids.
See this video by Dr Gupta describing the urgency of the current situation, then encourage your child’s allergist and pediatrician to view it as well. Even if your child is older, educating your doctors and fellow parents will help other children down the road.
