The following is from the BMJ web page located at
http://www.bmj.com/cgi/content/full/316/7149/1926/a


News

Women warned to avoid peanuts during
pregnancy and lactation

Zosia Kmietowicz, London

Pregnant women and breast feeding mothers with a family history of atopy
have been advised in a government report to avoid
eating peanut products in a bid to reduce the numbers of children who
develop peanut allergy.

The advice, from the government's Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in
Food, Consumer Products and the Environment, is
aimed at up to a third of pregnant women--some 250000--who have close
family members with allergic reactions, asthma, hay
fever, or eczema. Families without a history of atopy can ignore the
warning.

As with other atopic diseases, such as asthma, the prevalence of peanut
allergy is thought to be increasing. It is estimated that
about one person in 200 is allergic to peanuts, and five to seven people
die each year from the severe anaphylactic reaction
provoked by peanuts. Peanut butter (once considered to be a good weaning
food because it is rich in protein) and all other
foods containing traces of peanuts seem to be capable of sensitising
fetuses and newborn infants if there is evidence of atopic
disease in the family.

John Warner, professor of child health at Southampton University and a
member of the government's working group on peanut
allergy, said: "Maternal consumption of peanuts and peanut products
seems to be associated with earlier onset and increasing
prevalence of allergy."

Evidence from aborted fetal samples shows that from the second trimester
onwards fetuses are capable of producing an allergic
reaction. There are several theories on how sensitisation occurs. Some
research shows that antigens from the mother can cross
the placenta, whereas other work suggests fetuses can swallow IgE from
the amniotic fluid, causing sensitisation.

"The increase in allergy generally may be explained by better hygiene.
Fetuses used to respond to parasites present in the
maternal blood. Now that these have been eliminated they are reacting to
other things in the blood, such as antigens," said
Professor Warner.

The report advises that children from families with a history of allergy
should not eat peanut products until they are aged 3 years
and reiterates previous advice not to give children under the age of 5
whole peanuts because of the risk of choking.



"Whether avoiding the allergen makes a difference is an act of faith,"
commented Professor Warner. "On the balance of
evidence and given that peanuts are not an essential part of anyone's
diet it seems reasonable to recommend that during
pregnancy and breast feeding, women with a family history of allergies
do not have these products."

The report is available from the Department of Health, PO Box 410,
Wetherby, North Yorkshire LS23 7LN (fax: 01937
845381).

--
^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^*^
Cindy Curtis , RN, IBCLC  ~ Virginia , USA
ICQ # 412812          mailto:[log in to unmask]
Benefits of Breastfeeding Home Page http://www.erols.com/cindyrn