An Analysis on Prevalence and Allergen of Food Allergies.
- Author:
Kye Hee LEE
1
Author Information
1. Department of Nursing, Susung University, Korea. lily@sc.ac.kr
- Publication Type:Original Article
- Keywords:
Food allergy;
Prevalence;
Allergen;
Positive rate
- From:Journal of Agricultural Medicine & Community Health
2014;39(1):14-24
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:Korean
-
Abstract:
OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence of food allergies and find out food allergens. METHODS: Questionnaires were completed by 2,415 subjects in D city, among whom 452 subjects believed that they had food allergy. Skin prick tests were performed on these subjects. The data were analyzed using SAS Version 9.0 and chi2-test. In addition, several recent studies were reviewed. RESULTS: The prevalence rate of food allergic symptoms was 25.6% in males and 25.8% in females, respectively. The positive rate of skin prick tests among those who were allergic to any of 14 food items was 21.4% in males and 14.7% in females(p=0.018). Therefore, it was estimated that the prevalence rate of food allergy was 5.0% in males and 3.6% in females. It was shown that the major food allergens were hop, shrimp, lobster, oyster and egg(whole) in males, and egg(whole), hop, oyster, and pork in females, respectively. The prevalence in recent studies ranged from 1 to 35%. Major food allergens were milk, egg, nuts, fish, shellfish crustacean and fruits/vegetables. CONCLUSIONS: In order to provide effective care for food allergy, it is essential to find out the prevalence of food allergies and food allergens.
