Nut allergy could be predicted by maternal diet

Children whose mothers eat more peanuts or tree nuts (P/TN) during pregnancy are less likely to develop P/TN allergies themselves, researchers have found.

Analysing data from the Nurses’ Health Study II and the Growing Up Today Study 2, researchers found that the incidence of P/TN allergy in offspring was significantly lower among children of non-allergic mothers who consumed more peanuts and tree nuts during peripregnancy.

The researchers say that their findings support the hypothesis that early allergen exposure increases tolerance and lowers the risk of childhood food allergy.

Guidelines have historically recommended that P/TN be avoided for at least the first three years of life; some experts even recommended that P/TN be avoided during pregnancy to reduce the risk of allergy in offspring. “Our data support the recent decisions to rescind recommendations that all mothers avoid P/TN during pregnancy and breastfeeding,” the authors wrote.

The research was published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics. The full study is available here.