Certain preventive measures can be put in place to prevent the onset of allergies.
Discover them in this sheet.
Allergies: preventive measures
Can we warn?
At the moment, the only recognized preventive measure is to avoid smoking and second-hand smoke. Tobacco smoke would create a breeding ground for various forms of allergies.
Otherwise, we do not know of any other measures that can protect against it: there is no medical consensus in this regard.
Nevertheless, the medical community is exploring various avenues of prevention that could be of interest to parents with allergies who wish to reduce the risk that their child will also suffer from them.
Prevention assumptions
Important. Most of the studies we report on in this section have involved children at high risk for allergies due to family history.
Exclusive breastfeeding
Practiced during the first 3 to 4 months of life, or even the first 6 months, it would reduce the risk of allergies during early childhood. However, according to the authors of a review of studies, it is not certain that the preventive effect is maintained in the long term.
The beneficial effect of breast milk may be due to its action on the infant’s intestinal wall. Indeed, growth factors present in milk, as well as maternal immune components, would contribute to the maturation of the intestinal mucosa.
Thus, it would be less likely to let allergens into the body. It should be noted that there are non-allergenic milk formulas on the market, to be preferred by mothers of children at risk of allergies who do not breastfeed.
Delay the introduction of solid foods
The recommended age for introducing solid foods (eg cereal) to babies is around 6 months. It is considered that before this age, the immune system is still immature, which increases the risk of suffering from allergies.
However, the scientific evidence is insufficient to be able to confirm this beyond any doubt.
Interesting fact: children who eat fish from their first year of life are less prone to allergies.
Delay the introduction of highly allergenic foods
Allergenic foods (peanuts, eggs, shellfish, etc.) could also be given with caution or avoided while making sure not to cause dietary deficiencies in the child. It is important for this to follow the advice of a doctor or dietitian.
The Quebec Association of Food Allergies (AQAA) publishes a calendar that can be referred to for the introduction of solid foods, which begins at 6 months.
However, be aware that this practice is not based on solid evidence.
Hypoallergenic diet during pregnancy
Intended for mothers, this diet requires avoiding major allergenic foods, such as cow’s milk, eggs and nuts, in order to avoid exposure to the fetus and infant.
A meta-analysis by the Cochrane Group concluded that the hypoallergenic diet during pregnancy (in women at high risk) is not effective in reducing the risk of atopic eczema, and may even lead to malnutrition problems in the mother and the fetus. This conclusion is supported by other summaries of studies.
However, it would be an effective and safer measure when adopted only during breastfeeding. Following a hypoallergenic diet while breastfeeding requires supervision by a healthcare professional.
In a study with a control group, researchers tested the effect of a hypoallergenic diet followed during the third trimester of pregnancy and continued until the introduction of solid foods, at the age of 6 months, among 165 mother-child couples at risk of allergies.
The children also followed a hypoallergenic diet (no cow’s milk before one year, no eggs before two years and no nuts and fish before three years). At 2 years, children in the “hypoallergenic diet” group were less likely to suffer from food allergies and atopic eczema than those in the control group. However, at 7 years, no difference in terms of allergies was noted between the 2 groups.
Measures to prevent recurrences
- Regularly wash bedding in case of allergy to dust mites;
- ventilate the rooms frequently by opening the windows, except perhaps in the case of seasonal allergies to pollen;
- maintain low humidity in rooms conducive to the development of mold (bathroom);
- do not adopt pets known to cause allergies: cats, birds, etc. Give up animals already present for adoption.
