Asthma symptoms in children ‘masking’ peanut allergy

Children with asthma may not realise they are allergic to peanuts because the symptoms are so similar, a study has suggested.

Scientists who carried out a study in the United States said symptoms such as shortness of breath, wheezing and coughing are seen in both conditions.

They analysed the records of more than 1,500 children from the paediatric respiratory clinic at Mercy Children’s Hospital in Toledo, Ohio, and found one in 10 tested positive to peanut sensitivity.