Another interesting q&a about allergies:
The question: Can children who are allergic to milk develop a tolerance for it?
This study: Randomly assigned 20 children, average age 10 and with severe milk allergies, to take a gradually increasing dose of nonfat powdered milk or fake powdered milk daily. At the start, the children could tolerate just 1/4 teaspoon of milk, on average, without a reaction. After four months, children in the milk group could tolerate about 5 to 8 ounces of milk daily; those who had taken the fake milk still could tolerate just 1/4 teaspoon. As the dosage increased, reactions such as itchy mouth and abdominal pain were common, but 90 percent required no treatment.
Who may be affected? Children allergic to milk. An estimated 3 million children in the U.S. have food allergies, an 18 percent increase in the past decade.
Caveats: The study had a small number of participants. It did not determine whether the children's increased tolerance was permanent or whether they would lose their tolerance if they did not continue consuming higher amounts of milk. Anyone interested in testing an allergic child's tolerance of milk should consult a doctor before doing so.
