Asian environment protects children from developing allergies: Australian expert

Children born in Asia are less likely to develop an allergy to nuts than those born in Australia, according to Australian scientists.

A University of Melbourne questionnaire distributed to 57,000 five-year-old children in the state of Victoria found that, of those polled, none of the children who were born in Asia then migrated to Australia had an allergy to nuts.

However, children with Asian parents who were born in Australia were found to be up to three times more likely to develop an allergy to nuts than children with Australian parents.

The findings have led researchers to believe that the Asian environment somehow protects children against developing many food allergies.

Professor Katie Allen, who led the University of Melbourne research, said that this discovery could help us understand why allergy rates were rising in Australia - and potentially lead to the development of a treatment.

"We know that food allergies are a new kid on the block; we know this has happened in the last 20 to 30 years so we know it's something to do with modern lifestyle," Allen told Xinhua in an interview on Wednesday.

"So if we can work out if it's one factor, or several factors working together, then we can turn back the tide."

Allen theorized that there were three contributing factors to the Asian environment preventing allergies from developing; Vitamin D, allergen exposure and exposure to a greater variety of organisms.

"People living in Asia have often had to deal with coming into contacts with different levels of sanitation so their immune system is robust and able to fight off allergies," she said.

"People are genetically at risk of developing allergies if they're Asian but if they're born in Asia those protective factors come into play."

Researchers will now incorporate into their experiments elements of the Asian environment proven to prevent allergies, as they continue to search for a treatment. Enditem