Preventing Peanut Allergy

The rising prevalence of food allergy and specifically peanut allergy has had significant implications for affected patients, families, and society. The current standard of care remains strict avoidance and the use of emergency medications for accidental ingestions. There is recent evidence-based information to suggest that one approach to preventing peanut allergy lies in early introduction of peanut. This represents a paradigm shift from previous recommendations and has led to updated guidelines in the United States, Europe, and Australasia on the introduction of potentially allergenic foods in the infant diet. This new approach to prevention has some practical obstacles and challenges associated with its implementation. There is also growing interest in the role of maintaining a healthy skin barrier in prevention of sensitization and food allergy. Other approaches, including pro- and prebiotics, prenatal maternal dietary avoidance, breastfeeding, and the use of specific formulas, have not shown reproducibly favorable results. As children with peanut allergy are unlikely to outgrow their food allergy, early oral immunotherapy in those with established peanut allergy is being investigated with the hopes of altering the natural history of an otherwise lifelong disease.