New study to look at impact of food allergies on S'pore kids as cases rise

A new four-year study will examine how common food allergies are in children here, as well as the impact of these allergies on children's nutrition, growth, metabolic and mental health.

- Zhaki Abdullah

Led by the National University Hospital (NUH) and the KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH), the study was launched in response to a rising number of such cases locally.

KKH has seen a steady rise in the number of patients visiting the hospital's allergy clinics in recent years, said Dr Chong Kok Wee, the study's co-investigator and head of the allergy service at KKH's paediatric medicine department.

"Between 2012 and 2022, the number of children who have tested positive for common food allergies such as milk, eggs, peanuts and shellfish has risen threefold," added Dr Chong.

Allergies to eggs, milk and peanuts are more common in younger children, while teens and young adults tend to report shellfish allergies.

Emergency visits for food-related anaphylaxis in children have shot up 2 1/2 times between 2015 and 2022, Dr Chong noted.

Anaphylaxis can result in difficulty breathing and a severe drop in blood pressure, and can be fatal.

Other common symptoms range from itchy skin or eczema to swelling of the lips or tongue, as well as difficulty breathing.

Such allergies have typically been thought to be uncommon among Asian populations, said Associate Professor Elizabeth Tham, the study's lead principal investigator.

"However, in our clinical setting, we have been seeing rising numbers of food allergy patients," said Prof Tham, who heads the paediatric allergy, immunology and rheumatology division at the Khoo Teck Puat National University Children's Medical Institute at NUH.

NUH and KKH said they were unable to provide exact figures on the number of food allergy cases.