Journal article

Risk Factors for Food Allergy in Early Adolescence: The SchoolNuts Study

M Sasaki, RL Peters, JJ Koplin, MJ Field, V McWilliam, SM Sawyer, PJ Vuillermin, A Pezic, LC Gurrin, JA Douglass, MLK Tang, SC Dharmage, KJ Allen

Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology in Practice | ELSEVIER SCIENCE BV | Published : 2018

Abstract

Background: Despite the rising rates of anaphylaxis in older children and adolescents, risk factors for food allergy among this age group are understudied. Objective: The objective of this study was to investigate the risk factors for current adolescent food allergy using a population-based sample. Methods: The SchoolNuts study was a questionnaire survey among 10- to 14-year-old adolescents and their parents, followed by clinic evaluation including oral food challenge when food allergy was suspected from questionnaire response. We investigated the association between food allergy and demographic and environmental factors among a total of 4,991 adolescents using multiple logistic regression. ..

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Grants

Awarded by National Health and Medical Research Council


Funding Acknowledgements

We thank the students, parents, and schools who participated in the SchoolNuts study. We also thank the SchoolNuts safety committee that comprised Associate Professor Noel Cranswick (Australian Paediatric Pharmacology Research Unit, Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Parkville, Victoria, Australia) and Dr Joanne Smart ( Department of Allergy and Immunology, Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia). Finally, we wish to acknowledge the SchoolNuts research staff, George C. Patton, Maia Brewerton, Leone Thiele, Helen Czech, Nicola Palmer, Sigrid Pitkin, Holly Shaw, Olivia Hamilton, John Molloy, Dean Tey, Marnie Robinson, Jana Eckert, Noor Suaini, Deborah Anderson, Rebecca Bereny, Penny Blunden, Jeeva Sanjeevan, Prachi Samir, Giovanni Zurzolo, and Nadine Bertalli. This work was supported by the Victorian Government's Operational Infrastructure Support Program.