Season of birth and childhood food allergy in Australia.
Pediatr Allergy Immunol. 2011 Feb 22. doi: 10.1111/j.1399-3038.2011.01151.x.
Mullins RJ, Clark S, Katelaris C, Smith V, Solley G, Camargo Jr CA.
John James Medical Centre, Deakin, ACT, Australia Medical School, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia Clinical Immunology,
Faculty of Health, University of Canberra, Canberra, ACT, Australia Division of General Internal Medicine,
University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
Professor, Department of Medicine, University of Western Sydney, Sydney, Australia Rose Cottage Medical Centre, Launceston,
Tasmania, Australia Watkins Medical Centre, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia Department of Emergency Medicine, and Division of Rheumatology, Allergy, and Immunology,
Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Background:? Recent studies suggest a possible role for low ultraviolet radiation exposure and low vitamin D status as a risk factor for food allergy. We hypothesized that children born in autumn/winter months (less sun exposure) might have higher food allergy rates than those born in spring/summer.
Methods:? We compared IgE-mediated food allergy rates by season of birth in 835 children aged 0-4?yr assessed 1995-2009 in a specialist referral clinic, using population births as controls. To address potential concerns about generalizability, we also examined national prescriptions for adrenaline autoinjectors (2007) and infant hypoallergenic formula (2006-2007).
Results:? Although live births in the general ACT population showed no seasonal pattern (50% autumn/winter vs. 50% spring/summer), autumn/winter births were more common than spring/summer births among food allergy patients (57% vs. 43%; p?<?0.001). The same seasonal pattern was observed with peanut (60% vs. 40%; p?<?0.001) and egg (58% vs. 42%; p?=?0.003). Regional UVR intensity was correlated with relative rate of overall food allergy (?, -1.83; p?=?0.05) and peanut allergy (?, -3.27; p?=?0.01). National data showed that autumn/winter births also were more common among children prescribed EpiPens (54% vs. 46%; p?<?0.001) and infant hypoallergenic formula (54% vs. 46%; p?<?0.001).
Conclusions:? The significantly higher rates of food allergy in children born autumn/winter (compared to spring/summer), the relationship between relative food allergy rates and monthly UVR, combined with national adrenaline autoinjector and infant hypoallergenic formula prescription data, suggest that ultraviolet light exposure/vitamin D status may be one of many potential factors contributing to childhood food allergy pathogenesis.
Article by the Australian Allergy Center
See also Vitamin D Life
The items in Autoimmune and Infant-Child are listed here:
- Breastfeeding a child without adding vitamin D increases risk of many food allergies (egg whites in this case) – Jan 2020
- Antibiotics increased the risk of asthma by 47%, and allergies by 25% - Dec 2019
- Low vitamin D newborns getting cows milk formula more likely to get allergies – RCT Oct 2019
- Childhood allergies (Atopy) 4.8 X more likely if low vitamin D in early pregnancy – Aug 2019
- Kawasaki disease (strawberry tongue) not treated by occasional 400 IU of Vitamin D – Feb 2019
- Food allergy is linked to season of birth, sun exposure, and vitamin D deficiency – Jan 2019
- Childhood Food Allergies (UK 1 in 14) – huge recent increase (low vitamin D) - Dec 2018
- Food allergies are associated with Vitamin D thru genes, etc. – March 2018
- Food allergies in children may be due to earlier low Vitamin D, Omega-3 and Zinc – Aug 2017
- T1 Diabetes associated with many other autoimmune diseases (all related to low vitamin D) – May 2017
- Infant allergy to cow’s milk will go away if have high levels of vitamin D – Jan 2017
- Food allergies and low vitamin D – thymus may be the connection – June 2016
- Food allergies 6 times higher in South Australia - 2009
- Hypothesis – Australia has highest rate of food allergy due to avoiding the sun – Sept 2015
- Food allergy 12X more likely if low vitamin D and vitamin D binding gene problem – Aug 2015
- Too much vitamin D: 1 pcnt increase in infants with food allergy, too little: 500 pcnt increase in children with food allergy - Aug 2015
- Kawasaki disease (strawberry tongue) associated with very low vitamin D – May 2015
- Less sun (less vitamin D) more anaphylaxis (severe allergic reaction) – June 2014
- Low vitamin D at birth associated with later milk sensitization, allergic rhinitis and asthma – Nov 2014
- Pink eye (seasonal allergic conjunctivitis) associated with low vitamin D and high vitamin E – March 2014
- 11X more non-immigrant children allergic to peanuts if vitamin D less than 20 ng – Feb 2013
- 30 to 40 ng of vitamin D associated with the least peanut allergy – Nov 2012
- High level of maternal vitamin D and infant food allergy – controversy
- Youths with autoimmunity disorders were 2.3 X more likely to be vitamin D deficient – July 2012
- Still unsure of association between vitamin D and asthma and allergies – review April 2012
- Allergy - Overview
- 3X more allergy to peanuts if child born with low UV – Feb 2011
- More childhood allergies when vitamin D is less than 15 ng – Feb 2011