WVXU: Food allergy sufferers want clearer food labels and new research may help
UC toxicologist discussing 'eliciting dose' for individuals with peanut allergies
Food allergies affect millions of Americans who have allergic reactions to everything from milk and wheat to peanuts, shellfish and soy. Labels on food products aren’t always the easiest to navigate or the most helpful. Lynne Haber, PhD, a senior toxicologist in the UC College of Medicine, spoke with a journalist from Cincinnati’s public radio station, WVXU, about her research that has identified a possible ‘eliciting dose’ of peanut that may trigger an allergic reaction in individuals with peanut allergies.
Lynn Haber, PhD. Photo by University of Cincinnati.
ReplHaber’s research looked responses in 481 patients with peanut allergies and the results are available in the scholarly journal Food and Chemical Toxicology. The dose calculated to elicit an allergic reaction in 1% of patients with peanut allergies was 0.052 milligrams of peanut protein, about the weight of a single grain of salt, according to Haber, also an adjunct associate professor at UC. The eliciting dose for 5% of patients was calculated to be 0.49 milligrams of peanut protein, or about the weight of a single grain of sugar.
Listen to Haber's Interview with WVXU online.
Learn more about the research of Lynne Haber, PhD, online.
Featured image of peanuts courtesy of Unsplash.
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