Information on Allergies
Genetics
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While allergies tend to run in families, it is not possible to predict whether a child will inherit a parent’s food allergy or whether siblings will have a similar condition. However, research suggests that the younger sibling of a child with a peanut allergy will also be allergic to peanuts. Allergic diseases are strongly familial. Identical twins are likely to have the same allergic diseases about 70% of the time; the same allergy occurs about 40% of the time in non-identical twins [2]. Allergic parents are more likely to have allergic children than non-allergic parents. Children with allergic parents are likely to have more severe cases than children of non-allergic parents. Some allergies, however, are not consistent along genealogies; parents who are allergic to peanuts may have children who are allergic to different substances aside from peanuts [2]. The risk of allergic sensitization and the development of allergies varies with age, with young children most at risk. Studies have shown that IgE levels are highest in childhood and fall rapidly between ages 10 and 30 [2].
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