Understanding allergy

The prevalence rates of allergic conditions have risen at an alarming rate throughout the world in the past 50 years. The UK has the highest prevalence of asthma in the world and the rate of sensitisation to food allergen has trebled in a mere 6 years. The burden of allergic disease and service provision within the UK is such that large numbers of children are suffering a very poor quality of life. A phenomenon known as the ‘allergic march’ has also been described where children tend to progress from infantile eczema to developing food allergies, asthma and rhinitis.This review outlines the immunopathogenic origins of allergic disease and the clinical implications underlying the hygiene hypothesis as well as the influence of maternal and early infant nutrition on allergy prevalence. Factors associated with its primary prevention are also considered as a strategy to stem the current global epidemic of allergy.