Drops for Allergies to Peanuts: Start Early



Peanut allergies can lead to something called anaphalactic shock. Not pleasant when it is your child’s airway that closes up.

Many of these families have to carry around a shot of epinephrine (“epi-pen”) to open up the airway if they are exposed to even the smallest amount of a peanut.  In some cases merely being next to someone eating peanut butter can be enough to trigger a reaction.  Hence the disappearance of peanuts on airline flights.

What if something could be done to derail an allergy this severe?

I’ve written before about using drops for allergies (referred to as subligual immunotherapy, or SLIT).  The process is pretty simple: after some simple in office allergy testing, a solution is prepared that the child would put under his or her tongue daily.  That’s it.

This has been shown to be effective for several problems, including dust mite allergies.

This particular study tackles the use of drops for allergies for those with peanut allergies.  More importantly, this is one of the first studies to evaluate the effectiveness of allergy drops in toddlers.  Here’s the details:

  • The study was done on 41 children aged 16- to 37-months-old, with treatment lasting up to 3 years
  • In the first 12 children who were able to tolerate 5 grams of peanut protein, subsequent blinded oral challenges 1 month apart were successful in all 12
  • Allergic reactions using the sub-lingual drops for allergies were cut 44%.

A couple things to consider.

First, this was not published in a peer reviewed journal because it is the early stages of the study.  Rather, this was a presentation at an annual conference (American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology, 2013) by one of the study authors.

Despite this, these results are consistent with other studies done in non-toddler populations on the use of drops for allergies.  Given the major impact of potential anaphalactic reactions and the safety of sublingual immunotherapy, the future for natural allergy relief like this is bright.

James Bogash

For more than a decade, Dr. Bogash has stayed current with the medical literature as it relates to physiology, disease prevention and disease management. He uses his knowledge to educate patients, the community and cyberspace on the best way to avoid and / or manage chronic diseases using lifestyle and targeted supplementation.







Email:



Posted on
Categories: Allergies, Healthy Kids
Disclosure of Material Connection: Some of the links in the post above are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”