| ■ Breast-Feeding Cuts Food Allergy Risk | 2007.11.16 |
| WEDNESDAY, Nov. 14 (HealthDay News) -- Breast-feeding in the first three months of life appears to help shield children from developing food allergies. That's just one of a number of findings on food allergies scheduled to be presented this week at the annual meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology in Dallas. Research has determined a possible role for food allergy prevention strategies in high-risk children, including maternal food avoidance in pregnancy, breast-feeding, maternal food avoidance while breast-feeding, use of hypoallergenic formulas, delayed introduction of allergenic foods and probiotics, noted one expert. "A review of 18 studies demonstrates a significant protective effect of exclusive breast-feeding for at least three months for children with high risk for atopy (genetic tendency to develop allergic diseases) against the development of atopic dermatitis and early childhood asthma-like symptoms," Dr. Robert Wood, international health director for pediatric allergy and immunology at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, said in a prepared statement. |