Could caesarean births increase the risk of childrens food allergies?
THE CAESAREAN rate is climbing. Is the rate of childhood allergies climbing with it? That is the question raised by research which suggests that birth by Caesarean section could increase the risk of some children developing food allergies. A study published recently in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology found a fourfold increase in egg allergy in assessment through medical tests; when parents were asked to assess symptoms, there was a sevenfold increase in fish, nut and egg allergy. The study involved 2,800 children aged two-and-a-half, and compared those born by Caesarean section with those delivered naturally — both sets of children had mothers with food allergies. (The researchers also found a link with milk allergy, although this will be reported in a separate paper.) “No one has looked at food allergy and Caesareans previously, and although we expected to find an association we did not expect it to be so strong,” says Dr Merete Eggesbø, an epidemiologist at the Norwegi
