The study showed that feeding children peanuts regularly from infancy to age five reduced the rate of peanut allergy in adolescence by 71%, even after many years when the children ate or avoided peanut as desired. This evidence suggests that introducing peanuts into babies’ diets early will increase the likelihood of long-term prevention of peanut allergy.Professor Gideon Lack from King’s College London stated that the long-standing recommendation to avoid peanuts has led to parents being anxious about introducing peanuts to children at a young age. However, the evidence shows that introducing peanuts early in infancy leads to long-term tolerance and protects children from developing allergies well into their teenage years. This simple intervention could have a significant impact on future generations and lead to a decrease in peanut allergies.
The findings from the LEAP-Trio trial have been published in the NEJM Evidence by researchers from King’s College London, with sponsorship and co-funding from the US National Institutes of Health’s National Institut.The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) conducted a study on peanut allergies, which are becoming more common in Western countries. About 2% of young children in North America, the UK, Western Europe, and Australia suffer from peanut allergies, with even small amounts of peanuts causing life-threatening reactions in some individuals. This has resulted in conflicting advice and fear among parents and caregivers about introducing peanuts into diets.
The LEAP-Trio study, which builds on the results of the Learning Early About Peanut Allergy (LEAP) clinical trial, revealed new research findings. In the first trial, half of the participants were asked to regularly consume peanuts.
From infancy until age 5, half of the participants were given peanuts while the other half were told to avoid them. The researchers discovered that introducing peanuts early in life reduced the risk of peanut allergy by 81% by the age of 5.
The two groups were followed up from age 6 to 12 or older, during which time the children could choose how much and how often they consumed peanuts. It was found that 15.4% of the early childhood peanut-avoidance group and 4.4% of the early childhood peanut-consumption group had peanut allergy at age 12 or older. These findings demonstrate that regular and early consumption of peanuts reduces the risk of allergies.The study showed that early introduction of peanuts reduced the risk of developing peanut allergy in adolescence by 71%. Professor George Du Toit, Co-Lead Investigator from King’s College London, stated that the intervention is safe and highly effective, and can be started as early as 4 months of age. The infant should be developmentally ready to start weaning, and peanuts can be introduced as a soft pureed paste or as peanut puffs. Additionally, the researchers found that participants in the peanut-consumption group ate more peanuts throughout childhood compared to the other participants, but the frequency and amount of peanut consumption did not increase the risk of developing a peanut allergy.The amount of peanut consumption varied significantly between both groups, and there were times when peanut was not eaten at all. This demonstrates that the protective effects of early peanut consumption can persist without the need for consistent consumption of peanut products throughout childhood and early adolescence.
In the LEAP-Trio study, adolescents were tested for peanut allergies primarily through an oral food challenge. This involved gradually giving participants increasing amounts of peanut in a carefully controlled setting to determine if they could safely consume at least 5 grams of peanut, which is equivalent to more than 20 peanuts. The study team also asked participants about their recent eating habits.The researchers studied peanut consumption and confirmed the self-reports by measuring peanut levels in the dust from the participants’ beds, a method that had been previously approved by LEAP investigators.
Professor Lack, who leads the Children’s Allergy Service at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, stated: “Early consumption of peanut could prevent over 100,000 new cases of peanut allergy annually worldwide.”
