How Common Is Food Allergy?

Abstract

In the absence of accurate epidemiological data, it is recognised that significant food allergy will affect a proportion of the atopic group, which itself comprises about 10% of the childhood population. Some food allergic children will also be found among non-atopics and many allergic children will lose their allergy as they grow through infancy. Early feeding choices probably have less effect on the occurrence of allergy than was previously thought. Some children may also react adversely but not immunologically to other natural and added substances in food, although this is not a common problem in weaning diets. In typical food allergy and hypersensitivity, and in more subjective areas concerned with behavioural variations more basic and epidemiological research is needed.