In a study based in the United Kingdom, researchers found immunoglobuline E-mediated (IgE) food allergy in only half of children with a food hypersensitivity. IgE is often used as a marker for food allergy testing. The researchers also found developmental risk factors for IgE-mediated and non-mediated allergies.
Total incidents of food hypersensitivity in the study were five percent (cumulative) during double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenges. The study involved 1,140 infants from birth to two years.
Different food products showed similar incidence rates between IgE-mediated food allergy and non-IgE.
The incidents of IgE-mediated food allergies (eggs, peanuts) were 2.6 percent whereas the incidents for non-IgE-mediated food allergy (milk) was 2.4 percent.
Several factors which seemed to change chances of food allergies being IgE-mediated included maternal atopy (predisposition for allergy), gestational age, the age the child was first introduced to solid foods, and more. The most telling was the wheeze and mean healthy dietary plan score, a commonly-used dietary gauge for children in the UK.