A Sydney skin specialist recently told delegates at the  Australasian College of Dermatologists’ Annual Scientific Meeting that Australians are the world's worst allergy hypochondriacs, believing they have a sensitivity to food when they do not. Moreover, Professor Connie Katelaris, Professor of Immunology and Allergy at Campbelltown Hospital, maintains that women are more likely than men to attribute a skin condition due to a food reaction.

The European Union has allocated 6 million euros to the University of Helsinki for a 5 year research project investigating the ‘hygiene hypothesis’ in relation to induction of food allergies.  The project, entitled DIABIMMUNE, aims to establish whether the decrease in the infection load is connected to type 1 diabetes and the emergence of allergies.

A review of the Europrevall research projects into food allergy was recently presented on Euronews, the international news channel covering world news from a European perspective. The 8 minute program, entitled ‘The future for food allergy research’ is currently available via
www.euronews.net

New research into the effect of antacids on the development of food allergies has recently been presented in a paper published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (2008;121:1301-8.), currently available free on-line at www.jacionline.org/current