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Increasing exposure may lessen kids' sensitivity to milk.
THE QUESTION Can children allergic to milk develop a tolerance of it?
THIS STUDY randomly assigned 20 children, who averaged about 10 years old and had a severe milk allergy, 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 five to eight 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 United States have food allergies, an 18 percent increase in the past decade.
CAVEATS The study had a small number of participants. It did not determine if the children's increased tolerance was permanent or if 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.
FIND THIS STUDY Oct. 28 issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
LEARN MORE ABOUT milk allergy at http:/
