Allergies: the scourge of modern life?

Our ancestors didn’t suffer from hay fever and food allergies were extremely rare even a few decades ago. What is causing the steep rise in their incidence now?

Traveling With a Food Allergy? Check Out These Four Apps

If you have a food allergy, you know how difficult it can be to navigate daily eating without inadvertently consuming something that will cause a reaction. If you're planning to travel, however, this can create an even bigger challenge, as you won’t have access to the stores and restaurants with which you’re already familiar. Luckily, there are a few apps that want to make traveling and food allergies compatible.

Which allergy medication is the best? It's complicated.

But here's our best advice.

Dealing with the Allergy Crisis

Before Zachary Wolkoff was a year old, he’d already made many trips to the Manhattan emergency room, covered in welts and hives. No one could figure out the cause. At the time, his mother, Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, now 44, was exclusively nursing Zach, so a reaction to food seemed unlikely. But an allergist cleared up the mystery. “We were eating nuts,” says Wolkoff, and when we would touch his skin, the oils from the nuts would cause him to break out.” As Zach got older, the tiniest trace of nuts—even from a knife that was used to cut a peanut butter sandwich and then his food—could cause anaphylaxis.

Forget allergy shots. Try allergy toothpaste

The future of allergy treatment could be as easy as brushing your teeth.

Here's why there aren't better treatments for your allergies

The whole thing has always made me wonder — why are allergies so incredibly hard to treat? And why aren't there better options?

How EpiPens — and epinephrine — stop a serious allergic reaction

When people with severe allergies are exposed to an allergen, their body goes into overdrive — and epinephrine auto-injectors, of which EpiPen is the most popular incarnation, can stop that super-reaction before it kills them.

Making Sense of Allergies

What allergies are (and aren’t) and the evidence for causes and treatments. Allergies are frustrating and sometimes frightening conditions and they seem to be on the rise in developed countries.

These are the most common—and deadliest—allergies

Given how confused we all seem about what the word “allergy” means, it’s not surprising that it seems like suddenly everyone has one. But it’s not just our perception. Allergies are on the rise, though no one is exactly sure by how much.

Why Do Some People Suddenly Develop Food Allergies Later in Life?

It can be confusing and daunting to suddenly not be able to eat a food you've eaten your whole life.

A Cure for the Allergy Epidemic?

WILL the cure for allergies come from the cowshed?

A Possible Treatment for Peanut Allergies

Researchers in Australia have temporarily rid 23 children of their adverse reactions to the nut.

A Striking Rise in Serious Allergy Cases

The rate of reports of severe allergic reactions to foods like peanuts has increased by nearly five times over the past decade, according to a new analysis of private insurance claims.

Allergies Are the Real Midlife Crisis

Is there a way to stop allergies from re-emerging during your 30s?

Allergy myths busted: Guess what you didn't know about gluten?

Two truths about allergies that may blow your mind: Bo Obama isn’t a hypoallergenic dog, and nobody is actually “allergic” to gluten.

Antibiotics linked to huge rise in allergies

The increasing use of antibiotics to treat disease may be responsible for the rising rates of asthma and allergies. By upsetting the body’s normal balance of gut microbes, antibiotics may prevent our immune system from distinguishing between harmless chemicals and real attacks.

Are There Nuts in That Brownie?

New wearable devices aim to detect allergens in food and in the air. But should you trust them?

Asthma and Allergies and their Environmental Triggers

Asthma and allergy attacks have increased in the United States despite the fact that our outdoor air quality has improved. Some researchers think these problems have increased because kids are spending too much time indoors.

Dear Evolution, Thanks for the Allergies

Watery eyes could be a good thing after all.

Fast food and takeaways linked to surge in child asthma and allergies

Teenagers more likely to have severe asthma and eczema if they eat fast food more than three times a week, study shows.

FDA Considers Making Food Labels Disclose Sesame to Help Allergy Sufferers

An estimated 300,000 Americans are allergic to sesame but it’s not one of the eight major allergens food labels currently have to disclose.

Feeling Sick? It May Be Fall Allergies

Despite common thought, spring isn't the only allergy-prone season. As the weather begins to change and fall settles in, many may find themselves experiencing allergies as bad as those they experienced during the spring, and possibly worse.

Here's why there aren't better treatments for your allergies

I have terrible, awful, allergies to a whole bunch of things, from dust mites to apples to chlorine. And my list is only dwarfed by the number treatments I've tried over the years. I load up on over-the-counter antihistamines like Zyrtec and Claritin and get shots once a week, but it's still not enough. I'm far from alone — one in five Americans has some type of allergy. And there's still really no definitive way to stop them completely in most people. The whole thing has always made me wonder — why are allergies so incredibly hard to treat? And why aren't there better options?

Hitting a Medical Wall, and Turning to Unproven Treatments

Imagine you were plagued by severe food allergies, rheumatoid arthritis, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or intractable epilepsy. Would you be willing or desperate or brave enough to step outside the realm of established medicine and seek help from an unconventional therapist — even someone with no medical or scientific training?

Is My Neti Pot Going to Kill Me?

Iaquinta stresses that the transmission of brain-eating amoeba by neti pot is exceedingly rare, and can be avoided by using sanitized water and saline packets as directed.

More people are experiencing severe food allergies than ever before

While research continues to explore potential cures and treatments, not enough effort has been spent on exploring root causes. Into the vacuum has emerged a number of controversial explanations, many of which have not been based on much scientific research.

Mylan's Outrageous EpiPen Price Hikes: How Many Children Will Suffer?

It was impossible to look online last week without noticing one story after another about the egregious price increases for the EpiPen and, further, the ensuing demand for investigations by Congress and the Federal Trade Commission from a variety of public figures, including Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar, whose child has severe allergies.

New Advice For Preventing Peanut Allergy In Young Children

Caring for a child with an allergy to peanuts or other foods is like living in a minefield. Every meal, snack time, or holiday celebration is an occasion for parents to worry that their child may accidentally eat the allergenic food and suffer a life-threatening reaction.

Our sterile homes might be giving us seasonal allergies

There isn’t a clear-cut answer to why some people have them while others don’t, but scientists do have one particular guess. The hygiene hypothesis is the idea that our exceedingly sterile environments are contributing to the development of allergies, asthma, and other autoimmune illnesses.

Researchers may have found a cure for the peanut allergy

New research out of Australia appears to have found a way to train the human body to overcome a peanut allergy, one of the most common and deadly allergies in the world.

The Allergens in Natural Beauty Products

Chamomile and lavender, common ingredients in cosmetics and many other household items, sometimes cause people to develop allergies after repeated exposure. The European Union is considering a warning label for just that reason.

The Doctor Trying To Solve The Mystery Of Food Allergies

Dr. Kari Nadeau is one of the scientists at the forefront of food allergy research. She directs the Stanford Alliance for Food Allergy Research, SAFAR, at Stanford University School of Medicine.

The Overuse of Allergy Tests: They Could Do More Harm Than Good

Because false positives and false negatives are common, it's recommended that children only undergo allergy tests when absolutely needed.

This Chef Is Taking a Stand Against Your Fake Food Allergies

Head chef Patrick Friesen has had it with your faked gluten allergy, your nonexistent shellfish sensitivity, and any other questionable dinnertime affectation that alters the way he prepares your food.

What are allergies and why are we getting more of them?

The reasons for the rising number of allergies are not fully understood, but here are six theories...

Women Have More Allergies to Common Medications

It isn’t clear why women develop more drug allergies than men, including a condition called multiple-drug-intolerance syndrome...

Allergy explosion: What causes allergies and how to avoid them

We've all heard that being too clean can cause allergies, or exposure can help you beat them. Most advice doesn't stand up, but there are things that do seem to work.

A controversial theory may explain the real reason humans have allergies

Allergies are not simply a biological blunder. Instead, they’re an essential defense against noxious chemicals–a defence that has served our ancestors for tens of millions of years and continues to do so today. It’s a controversial theory, Medzhitov acknowledges. But he’s also confident that history will prove him right

Allergies, Colds, Flu And COVID-19: How To Best Prep For Fall's 'Sick Season'

It's important to remember that although allergies can cause upper respiratory symptoms and possibly a change in your sense of smell, they don't cause fever, which is common with COVID-19 and the flu.

Everything you ever wanted to know about allergies (but were too busy avoiding peanuts to ask)

One in five UK adults believes they have a significant food allergy. Most don’t – the best estimates suggest that 1.5-3.8% of adults and 6-8% of children have food hypersensitivity (FHS) which is a food allergy or intolerance. But real food allergies can be severe and life-threatening, so expert diagnosis and advice are essential.

Peanuts, eggs and your baby: How to introduce food allergens during the coronavirus pandemic

The best way to prevent food allergies is to introduce the most common allergenic foods to babies early in life, as research evidence for peanut and egg has shown. Even during the current COVID-19 pandemic, the benefits of allergy prevention outweigh the very small risk of a severe reaction.

The Magic Molekule

There has never been a better business (or planetary) climate in which to calm and stoke your anxieties about dirty air.

Why do my allergies change as I age?

Kids and the elderly don’t have much in common when it comes to allergies.

Everything you ever wanted to know about allergies (but were too busy avoiding peanuts to ask)

One in five Brits believe they have a serious allergy – but most of them are wrong. So how do you find out if you are really in danger?

Half of the people who think they have food allergies actually don't

But that doesn’t mean you’re imagining things.

How long do allergies last—a few years or your whole life?

If we were to sum up allergies with an emoji, it’d be a shrug. We know so little about them, and yet tens of millions of Americans experience allergies of some kind or another throughout their lives. They come. They go. They evolve slowly or shift rapidly. Perhaps the only constant is that they’re becoming more common.

It’s not your imagination. Allergy season gets worse every year.

Pollen allergy seasons continue to get longer and more intense as temperatures rise.

New Treatment For Peanut Allergy Would Expose Children To Peanut Dust

Experts at the Food and Drug Administration are reviewing a possible new treatment for children who are allergic to peanuts. If approved, it would be the first protective therapy against peanut allergies to gain FDA approval.

The Miserable History of Seasonal Allergies, From Ancient China and Greece to Today

Blooming spring flowers signal the beginning of spring, but for millions of people, they also signal the onset of the misery: allergy and asthma season. Itchy, watery eyes; sneezing, runny nose; cough and wheezing are triggered by an overreaction of the body to pollen. Every spring, trees and grasses release billions of buoyant pollen granules into the air, using the wind to disburse across the countryside in an effort to reproduce. It’s all about survival; plants that release more pollen have the survival advantage.

The Rising Intolerance: Why Allergies Are Being Trivialized and Intolerances Glamorized

With public awareness of allergies and intolerances rising and everyone's friend being allergic to gluten, you'd think that the rate of death from anaphylaxis would fall. Unfortunately people are still dying from food allergies at an alarming rate.

The Truth About Fake Allergy Tests

Diagnosing allergies can be difficult. A doctor will often go through several steps before making a diagnosis, including specialized tests, a comprehensive interview about your ailments, and a physical exam. But it can sometimes take several months to get a correct diagnosis. Much like a detective working on a case, your provider will need to work by collecting information from you and from the different tests they organize. Together, you may need to test a few different strategies, such as avoiding possible triggers and then reintroducing them. This process can be slow, frustrating, and anxiety provoking. It’s no surprise, then, that many people are drawn to alternative allergy testing. Such tests can be a tempting way to get a quick answer about your allergies. But most alternative allergy tests do not have any science behind them. In other words: If a test sounds too good to be true, it probably is. And in general, these tests are more likely to do harm than good. With this in mind, here’s a guide to help you educate yourself about deceptive allergy tests.

What Life Is Like When Corn Is off the Table

Corn lurks in so many surprising places, from table salt to apples to IV bags.

Which Allergens Are in Your Food? You Can’t Always Tell From the Labels

Despite federal legislation passed 15 years ago, food labels don’t always alert consumers to allergens that may be present in packaged goods.