‘Breakthrough’ Treatment For Peanut Allergy Awaits FDA Check (Video)

A promising new drug called AR101 may help people who suffer from peanut allergies.

Information provided last year by specialists from the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (ACAAI) indicates that almost 2.5 percent of all children in the United States may live with peanut allergy.

This number represents a 21 percent increase in the number of possible peanut allergies in childhood since 2010, the specialists also found.

A critical challenge for those living with peanut allergy is distinguishing between food products that are 100 percent safe to eat, and those that may trigger an allergy episode.

For some people, the allergy can be significant enough to lead to anaphylaxis, a severe, life-threatening reaction. Many food items may contain traces of peanuts because the factories that produce them also handle peanuts.

However, a new treatment developed by experts from research institutions across the world hopes to help individuals with this type of food allergy. The treatment aims to build up enough tolerance to peanuts so that people with a peanut allergy can handle accidental exposure without any problems.

“We’re excited about the potential to help children and adolescents with peanut allergy protect themselves against accidentally eating a food with peanut in it,” says study author Dr. Stephen Tilles, who is also past president of ACAAI, and consulting advisor for the biotech company Aimmune Therapeutics.

The researchers presented their results Monday at the ACAAI Annual Scientific Meeting in Seattle, WA. These findings also appear in The New England Journal of Medicine.