Pesticide Exposure Linked To Rising Rate Of Food Allergies Among U.S. Children

Food sensitivities are nothing to sneeze at.  Over 60% of the population know they must avoid certain foods.  Many others are not aware they have food sensitivities.

Many think that fatigue, itchy skin or a runny nose are “normal”. Researchers may distinguish between food sensitivities, food intolerances and food allergies. 

Intolerance's are reactions that do not involve the immune system, such as lactose intolerance. 

Food allergies involve typical allergic responses of the immune system.  However, the terms are somewhat vague and are used interchangeably in this brief introduction to a huge subject.

Researchers find links between pesticides such as dichlorophenols (DCPs) and the increasing prevalence of food allergies.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates food allergies affect up to 15 million people including one in 13 children in the U.S.

Researcher Elina Jerschow, M.D., an allergist at Montefiore Medical Center, investigated the chemicals called dichlorophenols (DCPs), which are created by the breakdown of common pesticides, including chlorinated chemicals used to purify drinking water. DCPs also can be found in moth balls, air fresheners, deodorizer cakes in urinals, and certain herbicides sprayed on crops.

Jerschow speculated that increased protection from germs might somehow be lowering the body's tolerance to foods. The 'hygiene hypothesis,' a medical theory originally proposed thirty years ago, suggests the cleaner our environment, the sicker we become, since our immune system has been robbed of the opportunity to meet and fight off invaders. Using data collected by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), Jerschow compared levels of the chemicals in urine to antibodies to foods in the blood. People can be sensitive to certain foods without having any problems when they eat, so Jerschow's method of measuring food allergies is not perfect, though it serves, roughly, as an accurate proxy.

Pasteurized Milk

People with the highest levels of DCPs in their urine were nearly twice as likely to show sensitivity to at least one food compared to those with the lowest levels of those chemicals, Jerschow found. Of the 2,211 people included in the study, most had detectable levels of DCPs in their urine. About 400 showed sensitivity to at least one food, like peanuts, eggs, or milk. Additionally, more than 1,000 people were sensitive to an environmental allergen, like ragweed or pet dander. Participants who had been exposed to two dichlorophenol metabolites or more were more likely to have one or more food allergies than those with no or less exposure; they were also 61 percent more likely to be allergic to a food and environmental allergen at the same time.

"Previous research indicated that both environmental pollution and the prevalence of food allergies are increasing in the United States. The results of this study suggest that these two phenomena might be linked," Jerschow wrote.

Meanwhile, the number of children affected by allergies continues to grow.

Rising Trend

Among children under 17 years old, the prevalence of food allergies increased from 3.4 percent in 1997-1999 to 5.1 percent in 2009-2011, according to the CDC. No significant trend emerged in the number of cases of respiratory allergies during the same periods, although respiratory allergies remain the most common type of allergy among children: 17 percent of children in 2009-2011 have a respiratory allergy. Hispanic children had a lower prevalence of food allergies (3.6 percent) and respiratory allergies (13.0 percent) compared to non-Hispanic white and non-Hispanic black children.

Eight types of foods account for 90 percent of all food-allergy reactions: cow's milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts (such as walnuts, pecans, hazelnuts, almonds, cashews, pistachios, and macadamia nuts), fish, shellfish, soybeans, and wheat.

Symptoms of an allergic reaction to food can range from mild to sudden and severe, and commonly include one or more of the following:

• Hives
• Tingling in the mouth
• Swelling in the tongue and throat
• Difficulty breathing
• Abdominal cramps
• Vomiting or diarrhea
• Eczema or rash
• Coughing or wheezing
• Loss of consciousness
• Dizziness

Although food allergies are often mild, they are the most common cause of anaphylaxis, a severe, potentially fatal allergic reaction, in which symptoms affect several areas of the body and may threaten breathing and blood circulation. For this reason, it is important that their cause and increasing prevalence be understood. Different, though related, research might lead to answers.

Pesticides & Parkinson Disease

Conclusion 

Last year, researchers at the Istituti Clinici di Perfezionamento in Milan published results of an investigation into the risk of Parkinson's disease (PD) and its association with exposure to pesticides and solvents. The researchers examined various studies that provided risk and precision estimates relating Parkinson's disease to exposure to pesticides or solvents (or to proxies of exposure that were considered eligible). A total of 104 studies/3,087 citations fulfilled the criteria for inclusion in a meta-analysis.

Analyzing the studies, the researchers found that PD was associated with farming. In the studies where PD diagnosis was self-reported, the association with pesticides was highly significant. In high-quality case-control studies, PD risk was increased by exposure to any-type of pesticides, herbicides, and solvents; in fact, the increase in risk ranged between 33 percent and 80 percent.

Specifically, exposure to paraquat or maneb/mancozeb was associated with about a two-fold increase in risk. No association was observed with fungicides, rodenticides, organochlorines, and organophosphates. Regarding specific chemicals, the researchers observed no link between PD and exposure to dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT) or tomaneb. Parkinson's disease was associated with the proxy conditions of exposure to organic pollutants investigated; the increase in risk ranged between 30 percent and 34 percent. Finally, the risk associated with rural living was found to be significant, causing a 1.5-fold increase in risk of Parkinson's disease.

The researchers concluded their results support the hypothesis that exposure to pesticides or solvents is a risk factor for PD. "Further prospective and high-quality case-control studies are required to substantiate a cause-effect relationship," the authors wrote, indicating that future studies should focus on specific chemical agents.

Food allergies contribute to hundreds of symptoms and illnesses.  In part, they are the result of a radically altered and often chemically-contaminated food supply.  In part, they are a product of modern unhealthy lifestyles, toxic living environments, a low level of general health in the population and the fast-food mentality.                  
Having suffered with many food sensitivities myself, I found that food allergies are an intriguing if annoying way to force oneself to clean up one’s diet and lifestyle, and to tune in to oneself better to figure out what foods and eating habits are best. 

Also, it may be our body’s way of keeping us from living on junk foods that aren’t healthful anyway.  So don’t despair if you suffer from food allergies.  Simplify, substitute, take life slowly and gently, and begin a corrective program based on nutritional balancing science and you can overcome food allergies.

References:

Jerschow E, McGinn AP, de Vos G, et al. Dichlorophenol-containing pesticides and allergies: results from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 2005-2006. Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. 2012.

Pezzoli G, Cereda E. Exposure to pesticides or solvents and risk of Parkinson disease. Neurology. 2013.

Lawrence Wilson MD

Josephine Certified Nutritionist. She earned and completed her certification in holistic nutrition and in Functional Diagnostic Nutrition and she is now practicing Hair Mineral Analysis and Nutritional Balancing Science to people all over the globe from her home in Vancouver, British Columbia.

You can contact Josephine here. 

---