Living with an allergy is not easy. While some of them are harmless and only cause minimal discomfort, others are much more serious and threaten the lives of those affected. Peanut allergy is part of this second category:if it affects "only" 1% of the world's population, it is the main cause of anaphylaxis (violent reaction of an organism following the introduction of a substance to which he has already been sensitized) which can lead to death. It is therefore very good news that Australian researchers recently announced:the Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, a medical and pediatric research institute in the city of Melbourne, has finally found a cure for peanut allergy in children, and the desensitization treatment would even be effective over 4 years, as revealed by The Independent . Incredible!
Scientists gave 48 children immunotherapy treatment that included taking probiotics (live microorganisms such as bacteria or yeast that have a positive effect on health) along with peanut protein or a placebo, to be taken once a day for 18 months. At the end of the experiment, the results were more than conclusive:80% of children who had consumed peanut protein could eat peanuts without any allergic reaction occurring. Four years later, they were still 70% able to eat peanuts. “At the beginning of the study, the children had the allergy, they had to avoid peanuts at all costs and be very vigilant, which caused a lot of stress. […] At the end of treatment, and even four years later, most of the children who benefited from our peanut protein probiotic therapy could now live like children who had never had an allergy says Professor Mimi Tang.
How is it possible ? Probiotics act on the immune system by encouraging it to generate protection or tolerance rather than an allergy. Although the sample of participants remains small, the very conclusive results give hope of a potential cure for the 70 million people affected by this allergy worldwide. Fingers crossed that research will move in the right direction!
