title: IgE-mediated allergy to peanut, cow's milk, and egg in children with special reference to maternal diet.
abstract: Nineteen children with IgE-mediated allergy associated with strongly positive prick skin tests and RASTs to peanut or cow's milk and/or egg were studied. Seventeen of the children had been breast fed, ten had been exclusively breast fed for a minimum of 5 months. Reactions to these foods occurred on first exposure to the food in all but one instance, suggesting that in 18 instances sensitization had occurred antenatally or via the breast. A retrospective inquiry indicated that most of the mothers had had a generous intake of the food(s) to which their children were sensitized, but mothers of sensitized children did not consume more of these foods than the mothers of non-sensitized children; moreover, avoidance of the foods (peanut in two instances and egg in one) did not ensure freedom from sensitization to peanut and/or egg. Breast feeding by itself cannot be guaranteed to protect against the development of food allergy.
mesh_terms: D000707:Anaphylaxis / Q000209:etiology; D000818:Animals; D010367:Arachis / Q000009:adverse effects*; D001249:Asthma / Q000209:etiology; D001942:Breast Feeding; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004032:Diet; D004485:Eczema / Q000209:etiology; D004531:Eggs / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000209:etiology* / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D007073:Immunoglobulin E / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008892:Milk / Q000009:adverse effects*; D009035:Mothers; D012220:Rhinitis / Q000209:etiology; D014581:Urticaria / Q000209:etiology
chemical_list: D007073:Immunoglobulin E