The risks of a child developing allergies can be gauged, very roughly, from the health of the parents. If one parent has allergic symptoms, the chances of the child being atopic – predisposed to allergy – is 20-35 per cent. If both parents have allergies, the likelihood rises to 40-60 per cent. Where both parents are affected in the same way – if both have asthma, for example, or both have rhinitis (runny or congested nose) – then the chances are 50-70 per cent.
If neither parent has allergies, but one or both come from families with a history of allergic disease, then there is also an increased risk of the child being affected. However, almost a third of atopics are born into families where no allergic symptoms have ever been noticed. So predicting which babies will be prone to allergies by looking at their families is, at best, an inexact science.
A more accurate prediction can be made by laboratory tests that measure the amount of IgE being produced by the child. The level can be measured by taking a sample of blood from the newborn baby, or by measuring the IgE level in blood from the umbilical cord. A high level indicates that a child has a greater chance of going on to develop allergies. However, this test requires very sensitive chemical analysis, and is unlikely to be available in most hospitals.
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