A new report published by nonprofit FAIR Health has found that private insurance claims related to diagnoses of anaphylactic food reactions increased 377% nationwide from 2007 to 2016.
The nonprofit consulted its database of more than 23 billion privately billed healthcare procedures to identify any notable trends. Among the food allergy claims during 2007-2016 listed by FAIR Health, the most common reaction (33% of claim lines) was associated with “other specific foods,” which means that the actual allergy is not known. Among specifically-identified foods, the most common were peanuts (26%), followed by tree nuts and seeds (18%). Egg allergies (7%), crustacean allergies (6%), and dairy allergies (5%) were also found to be common.
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The report also noted that in urban areas, the number of food allergy claims has increased 70% since 2006. In rural areas, the increase is at 110%.
Dr. Maxcie Sikora, of the Alabama Allergy and Asthma Center, believes that the increase could be due to something she calls the “hygiene hypothesis.”
“Basically we’re too clean, our immune system is overreacting to things because it’s bored, for a lack of a better word,” Sikora told WBMA News. “The bacteria we encounter when we’re younger by playing outdoors and not necessarily washing hands all the time that we naturally encounter helps our immune system become stronger.”
FAIR Health’s report also noted that although it is known that food allergies can persist throughout childhood and carry over into adulthood, data suggests that most food allergies reported were predominantly found in young people. Twenty-seven per cent (27%) of all claims lines with diagnoses of a history of food allergy were attributable to patients between the ages of zero and three, while preschool age children (four to five-year-olds) accounted for 8%. Individuals between the ages of 6 and 18 made up 31% of claims.
Altogether, patients 18 years old and younger accounted for 66% of the claims lines, while those over 18 accounted for 34%.
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