Using Immunotherapy Drops Against Food Allergies

Filed in archive Allergy Medications , Allergy: Diagnostics and Treatment , Food Allergies , Hay Fever on October 18, 2007

From all I've been reading so far on the use immunotherapy drops, I've always had the impression that while they work wonders on alleviating symptoms of pollen, dust mite and other environmental allergies, they don't work on food allergies. So I am a bit perplexed after reading about this family from Iowa who report success in using allergy drops to treat food allergies (you can also watch the video of the news clip).

"We had little success in finding out why he was having rashes and reactions to different foods. We got tested and they told us that he was allergic to wheat, soy, milk and citrus, which is almost everything. They told us he was allergic to these things, but didn't tell us what to do about them."

After hearing about Allergy Associates, the Arguello family made the trip to La Crosse in hopes of helping their son, and finally they found the relief they were hoping for. Ty was prescribed allergy drops, which is a relatively new form of allergy treatment. The drops are placed under the tongue three times a day for three to five years depending on the severity of the allergies.

Not that I'm questioning the doctor here, but this is all too puzzling for me. I'll have to dig deeper into this, but I can't help thinking, could the child have been actually suffering from oral allergy syndrome? Oral allergy syndrome occurs when an individual with pollen allergies manifest allergy symptoms upon eating certain food items, usually certain types of fruits. In that case, immunotherapy might indeed work.

Or should we dare hope that this is indeed the eureka moment we parents of food allergic children have been waiting for?