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Help educate and empower families to address food allergies

Key facts, considerations, and hypoallergenic solutions.
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Food Allergy Prevalence

Childhood food allergies

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Estimated annual cost per child3*

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US children affected3

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Estimated increase in prevalence every decade5

Rising food allergy rates

 

Food allergies in children (under age 18) have nearly doubled in the US in the last 20 years, and food allergy–related hospitalizations have tripled. The top 9 food allergies include milk, egg, peanuts, tree nuts, soybeans, wheat, fish, shellfish, and sesame. Food allergies cost families more than $20 billion annually.1-4*

 

 

Clear reasons for the rising incidence of food allergies have been elusive so far. Some researchers hypothesize that epigenetic environmental factors and lack of early exposure to important microbes are at play.5,6

 

 

Young children are the most commonly affected7, and awareness of food allergies in early childhood is especially important, as infants with food allergies are 2 to 4x more likely to exhibit other allergies as they grow.8

 

See long-term implications ↓

 

*Includes direct medical costs, out-of-pocket treatment costs, lost labor productivity, and opportunity costs.

 

 

 

 

Impact of Food Allergies

 

The allergic march

Infants with cow’s milk allergy (CMA) are 2 to 4x more likely to have other allergic manifestations—atopic dermatitis, asthma, and rhinitis—in the future.8 This time-based progression of allergic manifestations is called the allergic march. It typically begins with food allergy and/or atopic dermatitis in infancy, progresses to aeroallergen sensitization in pre-elementary ages, and culminates in allergic rhinitis and/or chronic asthma later in life.9

 

 

Because allergic reactions can be caused by an overreactive immune system response, management approaches that help regulate this response can help avoid an infant’s progression along the allergic march.

 

See how formulas modulate immune system response ↓

 

Allergy progressions over time10-13

allergy progression image
Allergic march representation adapted from Spergel et al, Meyer et al, Bergmann et al, Gabryszewski et al.

Allergy tolerance

In the past, it was generally accepted that avoiding or delaying infants’ introduction to common allergenic foods was the most effective way of avoiding food allergies.

 

However, newer studies suggest—and global guidelines reinforce — that introducing certain foods into an infant’s diet between the ages of 4 and 6 months (and regular exposure thereafter) can actually help build and maintain tolerance.6,14,15

See Global Guidelines
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Cow’s Milk Allergy

 

An immune system response

Cow’s milk allergy (CMA) is an immune system response to proteins in cow’s milk. Upon exposure to the proteins, histamine and other immune compounds are released, causing allergic inflammation.

 

CMA reactions are classified as rapid onset, occurring within an hour of milk ingestion, or slow onset, where reactions take hours or even days to present.16

Common indications of cow’s milk allergy

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Gastrointestinal

  • Blood or mucus in stool
  • Diarrhea
  • Constipation
  • Vomiting
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Skin

  • Atopic dermatitis: red, itchy, dry, cracked skin.
  • Hives or rashes: itchy red bumps; swelling of the lips or face, or around the eyes.
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Respiratory

  • Sneezing, runny or blocked nose.
  • Breathing difficulties: coughing, chest tightness, wheezing, or shortness of breath.
Download Parent Guide

 

 

Recognizing Cow’s Milk Allergy

 

A diagnostic challenge

The presence of cow’s milk allergy (CMA) typically appears within the first few months of life and usually before six months.16 Identification involves several steps, usually beginning with the patient history and physical exam. It is important to understand the timeline of suspected reactions. Encourage parents to keep a feeding log for 1 to 2 weeks, tracking the type of feeding, stool behavior, and when the possible indicators occur.16

 

 

If CMA is suspected, allergist-administered serum and skin prick tests may be helpful; however, these tests may elicit false positives. The next diagnostic step is often an elimination diet, followed by an oral food challenge in a medical setting.16

 

 

Severe CMA

Severe allergies create an excessive and ongoing inflammatory immune system response. Infants with severe CMA are at greater risk of anaphylaxis, which requires emergency attention.17 See a hypoallergenic formula for severe CMA. ↓

 

 

 

 

Managing Cow’s Milk Allergy

 

Modifying proteins to impact allergic response

Infants with cow’s milk allergy (CMA) cannot easily digest the milk’s proteins. In hypoallergenic formulas, cow’s milk proteins are broken down extensively through hydrolysis—and the degree of allergenicity determines the allergic response. For severe CMA, amino acids are used as the protein source. 

Degree of allergenicity

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Intact cow’s milk protein

Intact cow’s milk protein can cause an allergic response.
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Partially hydrolyzed cow’s milk protein

Easier to digest than intact cow’s milk protein but not hypoallergenic due to large peptide size, and may still elicit an allergic response.18,19

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Extensively hydrolyzed cow’s milk protein

Short peptide chains that are hypoallergenic and do not elicit an allergic response in most babies.20

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Amino acids

For babies who do not respond to eHF,* individual amino acids are a hypoallergenic protein source. They are well tolerated by babies with severe cow’s milk allergy or other gastrointestinal issues.

Hypoallergenic Options for Cow’s Milk Allergy

*Published study showing fewer incidences of asthma, rhinoconjunctivitis, urticaria, and eczema at 3 years with Nutramigen® with Probiotic LGG® vs Nutramigen® without LGG®. Feeding began at 4 months of age or older in the study.

†In patients with IgE-mediated CMA. For non-IgE–mediated gastrointestinal CMA, the percent of patients may be higher.22

‡EoE is the most common type of eosinophilic gastrointestinal disorders (EGID).

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