Food Allergy News and Research

Oral food challenges (OFCs) are the gold standard for allergists when diagnosing a food allergy. The person being tested is given a very small dose of the food by mouth under the supervision of a board-certified allergist to test for a severe reaction. Two medically challenging cases being presented at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) Annual Scientific Meeting in Houston contain new information on the benefits of OFCs when diagnosing food allergies.

The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) recently exhibited at the 2019 American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) conference. We learned the latest news in pediatrics and food allergies. We also spoke with doctors about the food allergy and asthma programs and services we offer. Kids With Food Allergies (KFA) is a division of AAFA.

Investigators at the National Institutes of Health have found that sesame allergy is common among children with other food allergies, occurring in an estimated 17% of this population. In addition, the scientists have found that sesame antibody testing—whose utility has been controversial—accurately predicts whether a child with food allergy is allergic to sesame. The research was published on Oct. 28 in the journal Pediatric Allergy and Immunology.

New research suggests that giving antihistamine medicine to a child experiencing anaphylaxis--a sudden and severe allergic reaction that can quickly be fatal--usually does more harm than good by delaying emergency treatment.

DBV Technologies, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for review the Biologics License Application (BLA) for its investigational Viaskin® Peanut immunotherapy for the treatment of peanut-allergic children ages 4 to 11 years. Viaskin Peanut is the Company’s lead product candidate designed to potentially reduce the risk of life-threatening allergic reactions due to accidental exposure to peanuts.

BlueWillow Biologics®, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, today announced it has been awarded a Fast-Track Small Business Research Innovation (SBIR) contract from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) for the development of an intranasal therapeutic peanut allergy vaccine using the company’s NanoVax® platform.

On Sept. 26, 2019, Kenneth Mendez, CEO and president of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA), co-hosted a Facebook Live session with blogger Deva Dalporto of MyLifeSuckers. If you didn’t have a chance to tune in live, you can watch a replay of session. Kids With Food Allergies (KFA) is a division of AAFA.

Join Deva Dalporto of MyLifeSuckers and Kenneth Mendez, CEO and president of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA), for a Facebook Live discussion about parent insights on the social, emotional and financial impact of food allergies. Also get helpful Halloween safety tips for parents of kids with food allergies! (Kids With Food Allergies is a division of AAFA.)

On Sept. 13, 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Allergenic Products Advisory Committee recommended the approval of Aimmune Therapeutics’ peanut treatment, Palforzia. If approved, Palforzia would be ground-breaking for the future of food allergy treatments. What Is Palforzia? Palforzia, also known as AR101, is a type of oral immunotherapy (OIT) for peanut allergy. If approved, it would be the first FDA-approved treatment for peanut allergy. Currently, some allergists already...

On Sept. 12, 2019, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo signed Elijah's Law (S.218B/A.6971B). Under this law, New York child day care programs have to follow guidelines for preventing and responding to severe food allergy reactions.

In August 2019, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) released their My Life With Food Allergy Parent Survey Report. The report highlights the significant social, emotional and financial impact food allergies can have on parents. Our findings also revealed that many children do not receive epinephrine when they are having a severe allergic reaction for many reasons. We asked Dr. Michael Pistiner, pediatric allergist at MassGeneral, to talk about these findings.

States that have policies in place to protect children with allergies and asthma made our 2019 State Honor Roll™ of Asthma and Allergy Policies for Schools (SHR). In the SHR, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA) identifies states that have comprehensive laws and policies aimed at keeping children with asthma and allergies healthy at school. (KFA is a division of AAFA.)