Black Children Are Twice As Likely To Have Food Sensitivities, Study Says

Pediatricians at Northwestern University have shed new light on why some children develop sensitivities to foods such as eggs, peanuts and milk. Their reason? Race and ancestry.

The study, published in the journal Pediatrics, used a multi-ethnic database of 1,104 children to measure antibodies to egg white, cow's milk, peanut, soy, shrimp, walnut, wheat and cod.

The overall findings reveal that black children are twice as likely to have an immune response to certain foods, especially peanuts, eggs and milk. About 38 percent of black children in the study had food sensitives compared to 22 percent for the white children who participated.

To determine race, the researchers used the children's mothers' self-report of race as well as the distribution of 150 genetic markers in the children's blood, which track ancestry.

"When the researchers looked at the genetic markers for ancestry, they found that for every 10% increment in African ancestry, children were 7% more likely to have antibodies to the allergy-causing foods than white children, Time magazine reports. "And the association was strongest for peanuts; more children with African ancestry showed antibody levels that would correlate to a possible allergic reaction if they were to eat peanuts," they say.

While these findings support previous evidence that Asian and black children are more likely to have food allergies than white children and that black male children in particular face the highest risk for food allergies, it's important to note that this study looked at food sensitization, which, experts say, doesn't necessarily pose any danger on its own. Kids who are sensitized to certain foods, however, are more likely to develop full-blown allergies to them in the future.

Comments

[NoraHuffposter]

06:36 PM on 09/07/2011

There is growing evidence that Vitamin D deficiency in infants and children leads to more food allergies, asthma exacerbati­on, etc.

Since African American and Latino women are more likely to be VIt. D deficient than Caucasian women, their infants, upon birth, tend to also need more Vit. D. In a Bodnar et. al. study (2007), Vit. D deficiency was found in 45.6% of black neonates compared with 9.7%.

- Vitamin D levels and food and environmen­tal allergies in the United States: Results from the National Health and Nutrition Examinatio­n Survey 2005-2006.
Shimi Sharief, Sunit Jariwala, Juhi Kumar, Paul Muntner, Michal L. Melamed et al. May 2011 Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology Vol. 127, Issue 5, Pages 1195-1202.

- Anaphylaxi­s and vitamin D: A role for the sunshine hormone? Shayne P. Taback, F. Estelle R. Simons. July 2007. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology Vol. 120, Issue 1, Pages 128-130.

- Potential mechanisms for the hypothesiz­ed link between sunshine, vitamin D, and food allergy in children. Milo F. Vassallo, Carlos A. Camargo. August 2010. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology Vol. 126, Issue 2, Pages 217-222.

[NoraHuffposter]

06:43 PM on 09/07/2011

Above: "......compared with 9.7% of white neonates".

[tribecca]

03:27 PM on 09/10/2011

This is really valuable information, Nora. Thanks for spreading the word! I'm pregnant at the moment and making sure to supplement with vitamin D as well as getting out in the sun as much as possible. I think most people are truly unaware of the links between vitamin D deficiency and good health - for me, adequate vitamin D played a huge part in recovering from depression.

[Da-king]

01:55 PM on 09/07/2011

and Survey says its' the government vaccines fault, all the foods and other chemicals created to go against the immune system of Black children, its no coincidence.

[ThomasTrom]

01:20 PM on 09/07/2011

My family don't have any food sensitivities that I know of. I eat everything "Kosher" (approved of in the Bible). Certain foods like Shrimp (being non-kosher) I have never tried. Candidly, food sensitivities are probably down to black people less accustomed to eating certain foods which are predominantly found in European, Middle Eastern and Indian cuisine, such as dairy products.

I feel the study is one-sided, but hey, whatever.
It's still interesting.

[NoraHuffposter]

06:38 PM on 09/07/2011

Actually, it is likely that many African Americans are Vitamin D deficient or insufficient. Evidence suggests that nearly 4 in 5 are not getting enough from sun exposure. Vit. D is an immunomodulator that is implicated in certain food allergies. It may also explain why more African American women develop autoimmune diseases such as Lupus than White women.

[ThomasTrom]

08:09 AM on 09/08/2011

That's interesting. Thanks for that Nora

[22Keys]

12:29 PM on 09/07/2011

How is this possible? I thought race was just a socially constructed illusion.

[El Chingaso]

01:09 PM on 09/07/2011

Probably some sort of...conspiracy.

[lotus321]

05:16 PM on 09/12/2011

We are not all the same. I know it hurts, but we are not.

[Ohin Gaston]

12:16 PM on 09/07/2011

"black male children in particular face the highest risk for food allergies"

Hmmmmmmm very interesting eh?

[The JillyBean]

12:13 AM on 09/07/2011

Maybe they should look at the diet, and whether Africans in Africa and Asians in Asia had the same tendencies. It seems that from what I've observed the diet which is passed down from generation to generation is more likely the culprit. Living in Africa and not having access to the prepackaged, high salt, high sugar, over processed and high fat diet we have in the US did wonders for me. In fact I ended up losing weight from the lifestyle alone.

If the type of diet that the Neely's on Food Network demonstrate is the norm, rather than the super unhealthy exception, then that's a starting point. Those foods are so low on quality nutrients and vegetables that it couldn't possibly boost your immune system.

This is as silly as the study that called wine drinking healthy for you, when in fact it turned out that the general lifestyle of wine drinkers was healthier.

[Angie Daniels]

11:48 PM on 09/06/2011

surprised by this but that sure is a cute little baby.

[Wale Akande Aduke]

11:35 PM on 09/06/2011

This is a valid point. I am a 46 yr old Black American and I have had the "peanut" allergy all my life. I am glad they are bringing this serious allergy up in full force.

[thecmb66]

10:34 PM on 09/06/2011

That's why white male babies are more inclined to develop autism than any other gender or race. Inferiority?!

[Renicka Reed]

11:32 PM on 09/06/2011

without respect to your hatefulness...blacks seem to strengthen your DNA hence all the chaos to the truth of you believeing a lie!...genetically you wouldn't stand a chance up against a person of color...that's why people(racists) like yourself try so hard to suppress others...You already know the truth and you can't handle it. Thank GOD all white people are NOT like you!

[PoliSci2008]

06:54 PM on 09/06/2011

I've seen this baby's picture on many ads over a few years, and I think she (or he) is just adorable with her clear big dark eyes and 2 snaggle teeth. I wonder how she looks now?

[amtheone]

11:04 PM on 09/06/2011

I know, this baby is precious.

[Angie Daniels]

11:49 PM on 09/06/2011

those aren't snaggle teeth, those are typical baby teeth.

[Tracy A Brocker]

05:56 PM on 09/06/2011

I heard a Dr. recently say that the children in Somalia never seem to have any food allergies. They are given that Peanut based highly enriched paste to nurse them to health. The Doctor was asked by a smart aleck reporter about food allergies because it was peanut based and he said it never happens.

[Megan Engels]

12:11 PM on 09/07/2011

if I recall correctly when the discovery channel did a program on mitochondrial eve they said that the dna of africans from other than the east (Somalia,ethiopia,etc.) had more in common with europeans,asian, etc, than they had in common dna wise with east africans most african americans are descended from West Africans, so that might explain why white and african american babies both develop allergies to many things and the somali babie are not, then again the environments are just so different that that probably has something to do with it.

[2083]

09:05 PM on 09/08/2011

That's because in places like Somalia, babies with compromised immune systems don't last.