Although the exact causes of food allergy is not clear, the most important reason is genetics. In addition to genetics, many risk factors can also affect the development of food allergy. In this article, we have explained the causes of food allergies for you.
How Does a Food Allergy Occur?
A food allergy occurs when the body reacts abnormally to certain foods. The body’s immune system causes food allergy by causing the release of chemicals that cause symptoms such as itching, redness, constipation and vomiting in the body when certain foods enter the body.
Food Allergy Causes May Be Genetic
Food allergy is more common especially in children whose mother or father or close relatives have allergic diseases. This is because allergic diseases are genetically inherited.
What are the Causes of Food Allergy?
The most common foods that cause food allergies are:
- Cow’s milk and milk of other animals
- Egg
- Soy
- Wheat
- Peanut
- Tree nuts (such as almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts)
- Fish
- Shellfish
These foods constitute 80% of the causes of food allergies in children.
What are the Food Allergy Risk Factors?
Having allergies in the family: Having parents or relatives in the family with eczema, urticaria (hives), allergic asthma or other allergic diseases increases the risk of your child having a food allergy.
Past food allergy: If your child had a food allergy at a young age and was later overcome, this may recur. Food allergy can reappear.
Other allergic diseases: If your child has an existing allergy to a food, or has other allergic diseases, your child may develop an allergy to another food, or even if there is no food allergy, having other allergic diseases increases the risk of developing food allergy.
Age: Food allergy is most common in children between the ages of 3 and 5 years. Attention should be paid to food allergies at this age. Because as children grow, the digestive system and immune system develop and the body becomes sufficient to suppress allergies. Therefore, more attention should be paid at a young age.
Allergic asthma: Allergic asthma and food allergy are diseases that usually occur together. If your child has both allergic asthma and food allergies, the symptoms are much more severe.
As a result;
- Although genetics is the most important cause of food allergy in children, many factors may contribute to the development of food allergy.
- The 8 types of food given above are the cause of 80% of food allergies in children.
