Results tagged “preventing allergy” from Allergy

Medinose heralds a breakthrough in the way hayfever and allergies are treated. Using photo therapy (light therapy) Medinose can practically eliminate allergic symptoms such as congestion, runny nose, watery eyes, and headaches within a couple of weeks of use.

Using photo therapy, Medinose inhibits the release of histamine, relieving or even completely eliminating allergic reactions and complaints in a natural way. The body is not burdened by drugs and Medinose has no side effects. Medinose consists of a small power pack (about the size of an IPOD) and two probes which are inserted into the nostrils.

Each treatment session with the Medinose takes just approx. 4.5 minutes 2-3 times a day. The Medinose can be used anywhere: at home, on the move or at work. With severe symptoms, treatment can be repeated several times without any side effects. As soon as the symptoms subside, the number of treatments can be reduced. The Medinose is, however, also suitable for prevention.

Medical students stripped off their white lab coats and strutted their stuff down the runway in Sayles Hall Friday night in an effort to raise money for asthmatic children.

The charity auction, dubbed "Date a Doctor," raised $3,641 for the Community Asthma Programs at Hasbro Children's Hospital, including a top bid of $469 for a date with Stacey Weinstein '05 MD'09, who co-hosted and organized the event.

"It's all for the kids," participant Cliff Voigt '05 MD'09 said to the crowd after demonstrating his dancing talent.

A variety of agents, including some hand protection products, can contribute to contact dermatitis among workers. Contact dermatitis is a major problem for employees in many industries. Dermatitis is most often seen among workers involved in activities such as construction, healthcare and cleaning.

A common factor for these activities is the need for hand protection, primarily in the form of rubber gloves.

When contact dermatitis occurs, the first instinct is to blame it on the gloves.

More often than not, however, the reason for the allergic reaction is not contact with one agent but a combination of rubber and another source.

GA²LEN welcomes the vote of the European Parliament on the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) on 30 November that acknowledges allergic diseases as major chronic diseases to be addressed in European research during the coming 7 years (2007 - 2013).

The European Parliament adopted the report of Prof. Jerzy Buzek that recognises “respiratory diseases including those induced by allergies” as health priorities to be addressed by translational research. This will allow respiratory allergic diseases (including asthma) to be covered by the research programme under the health theme.

By Will Hawkins, WOAI.com Heating & Cooling Expert

Q. We have family members that have allergies or asthma. What can we do about it?

A. Installing a Nature’s Home Media Filter can reduce these problems. The MicroPower Guard air filter will capture microscopic particles, and you only have to change the filter once every three months.

People spend about 90% of their time indoors. The EPA ranked indoor air pollution among the top five environmental dangers to the public. Why? Our homes are sealed, insulated and efficient. While this conserves energy, it locks in allergenic particles, infectious agents and other toxic agents. A quality filter can reduce or eliminate these household pollutants that can cause these health problems.

Christmas greenery, holiday flowers and yuletide fires can inflame allergies, causing itchy eyes, runny noses and skin rashes, experts warn. No wonder Rudolph's nose was red.

Most holiday allergies are minor, but for anyone with asthma and other lung conditions, they can cause serious breathing problems, says allergist James Seltzer, chair of the Indoor Allergy Committee of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology.

An increased consumption of whole grains and fish could reduce the risk of developing asthma by about 50 per cent, suggests a new study from The Netherlands.

The International Study on Allergy and Asthma in Childhood 2 (ISAAC-2) looked at dietary intakes for a range of foods, including fish, fruits, vegetables, dairy and whole grain products, for 598 Dutch children aged between 8 and 13.

“Our findings suggest that a high intake of whole grain products and fish may have a protective effect against asthma in children,” wrote lead author Cora Tabak in the current issue of the journal Thorax.

by Gloria Payne, DNJ

Did you know that almost 12 million Americans have a food allergy? About one out of every 25 American children under the age of 18 has a food allergy. Scientists have discovered that in the past five years, the existence of peanut allergy in children has doubled.

Did you know that there are approximately 150 to 200 food allergy-related deaths each year in the United States?

With the increased prevalence of food allergies, you probably will prepare food for someone with a food allergy, dine with someone with a food allergy or be a friend of someone with a food allergy.

Skin allergies can be caused by a myriad of different things ranging from environmental agents to ingredients found in personal care products like soaps, detergents, cosmetics, or even household products or pets.

It is still unknown why allergic reactions to products occur in some people but not others, although it is known that people who have allergies to certain agents are genetically predisposed, so if you find yourself itching like crazy at just the sight of a specific laundry detergent, you have at least one parent to thank.

GA²LEN welcomes the vote of the European Parliament on the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) on 30 November that acknowledges allergic diseases as major chronic diseases to be addressed in European research during the coming 7 years (2007 - 2013).

The European Parliament adopted the report of Prof. Jerzy Buzek that recognises “respiratory diseases including those induced by allergies” as health priorities to be addressed by translational research. This will allow respiratory allergic diseases (including asthma) to be covered by the research programme under the health theme.

In the first drafts, only food allergies (8% of all allergies) were covered. Allergic diseases will now be tackled under both the health and food themes of the research programme which should allow scientists to progress towards the overall understanding that is needed to help control this epidemic through effective prevention and treatment.

More than 1 million residents of the Washington-Baltimore region already live close to heavily trafficked motorways where dangerous soot pollution is at levels that can trigger asthma attacks, heart attacks and respiratory disease. Building the $2.4 billion (and rising), 18-mile intercounty connector linking Interstate 270 to Interstate 95 through neighborhoods and near schools would worsen these health problems.

Maryland Gov.-elect Martin O'Malley (D) reiterated his support for the road following his election last month, but if the public demands protection for our children and the elderly, he still could take steps to prevent these health hazards.

Dogs can offer babies all kinds of love and attention -- and they might help them breathe easier, too.

Living in a home with multiple dogs may help reduce an infant's risk for developing wheezing in the first year of life, according to a study in the December issue of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

University of Cincinnati researchers found that infants living in homes with high levels of endotoxins and multiple dogs were more than two times less likely to wheeze than other infants.

Gut parasites could hold the key to increasingly common conditions such as eczema, asthma and hay fever, according to scientists at The University of Nottingham.

Gut parasites, such as hookworm, have evolved together with their human hosts for millions of years. Over time, these parasites have developed ways of surviving in the human gut by 'turning down' the immune response directed against them, prolonging their survival inside the host.

This reduction in immune response may also have the effect of reducing allergic tissue reactions that characterise asthma and other allergic conditions.

Allergy sufferers cringe during one of the most celebrated traditions of the winter holiday season - trimming the Christmas tree.

Allergists say itchy noses, scratchy eyes and sneezing during the holidays can have more to do with what is on a holiday tree than the tree itself.

While festive fir trees have thick, waxy pollen, studies have never shown them to cause significant allergic reactions. The real culprits behind holiday sniffles are Christmas tree dust and mold, and the chemicals sometimes sprayed on fresh trees to control pests or reduce needle shedding, says Dan Atkins, a pediatric allergist at National Jewish Medical and Research Center.

Scientists have identified a new gene in peanuts that codes for a protein with no apparent allergic effects, research that opens up the possibility of allergen-free GM nuts.

The identification of the new gene, called ara h 3-im, by researchers from the University of Florida offers some hope for estimated 2.5 million people in Europe and the US now vulnerable to the food allergy.

"If it is true that Ara h 3-im has lower allergenic properties than other Ara h 3 proteins, this study may provide the information necessary to produce a hypoallergenic peanut through silencing of the major allergens and selecting for the reduced allergenic polypeptides via mutational breeding and/or genetic engineering," wrote authors I-H Kang and M. Gallo.

LONDON (Reuters) - A new clinical tool to help doctors identify asthma patients most likely to need hospital treatment could improve the care of patients and reduce costs, researchers said on Tuesday.

The TENOR Risk Score determines the most difficult-to-treat cases by assessing factors such as the patient's age, weight, smoking status, medical history, medications and breathing and exercise tests.

In a three year study published in the European Respiratory Journal, patients with the highest score were 10 times more likely to need emergency treatment or be admitted to hospital than other asthma sufferers.

"The risk score derived is a clinically useful tool for assessing the likelihood of asthma-related hospitalization or emergency department visits," said Mary Miller of Genentech Inc who is a co-author of the study.

Report suggests changes in European diets over the past 20-40 years may have contributed to the increased incidence of allergic diseases in both children and adults seen over this period.

The publication from the Global Allergy and Asthma European Network (GA²LEN) provides new insights into the role that diet may play in the development of allergies, especially in children.

The prevalence of allergic diseases has increased dramatically over the past few decades, especially in children. One child in three is allergic today and one in two people in Europe are likely to be suffering from at least one allergy by 2015.

The growing number of people suffering from allergies is due to changes in European diets over the past 30 years, says a new review from the Global Allergy and Asthma European Network (GA²LEN).

But by targeting several key areas, particularly how children are fed early in life, including breastfeeding, their early diet and increasing the use of pre- and probiotics could have a direct positive effect on the subsequent development of asthma and allergies.

According to the European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients' Associations, an estimated four per cent of adults and eight per cent of children in the 380m EU population suffer from food allergies.

Plagued by poison ivy allergy? It might be possible to coax the body to build up immunity to poison ivy.

That news comes from researchers including Mary Morris, MD, of Allergy Associates of La Crosse in La Crosse, Wis.

They studied 115 people with a history of severe skin reactions to poison ivy who were treated at their clinic over the past 15 years.

The treatment was a small amount of poison ivy extract placed under the tongue. The goal was to train the body's immune system not to overreact to poison ivy.

The patients took skin tests to see if the treatment helped.

PHILADELPHIA -- Home is where the heart is, and increasingly, where allergens lie in wait.

For people with allergies and asthma, home sweet home could be masking a festering stew of molds, dust mites, noxious gases, building debris, and other unhealthy substances, suggested speakers at a symposium held at the American College of Asthma, Allergy & Immunology meeting here.

Variables that can affect the severity of allergic rhinitis and asthma among the occupants of a given house included the age and condition of the house, type and condition of heating and cooling systems, humidity, air flow, indoor tobacco use, pets, and hygiene habits of the occupants, said James L. Sublett, M.D., of the University of Louisville School of Medicine.