Working together to tackle allergy issues

Guidelines on diagnosis and management of childhood food allergy have been published for the first time, says Ruth Charles

ABOUT 4% of Irish children (28,600 children according to 2011 census data) have all three major allergic conditions: Food allergy, eczema, and asthma.

This is a major burden for families and healthcare. Food allergy is a very common chronic condition in childhood. It causes great anxiety and distress, with many parents living in mortal fear of the next allergic reaction their child may have.