Glad I was able to make somebody's day better

Evidence shows that early exposure to potential allergies reduces the likelihood of getting that allergy. Since we've know this doctors have recommended early exposure to allergens, instead of avoiding them. Now that we no longer avoid peanuts before adolescence, the allergy is receding.

The article is paywalled but the gist is in the tagline: people kept peanuts but babies for fear of allergies but lack of exposure leads to allergies.

I've been casually following this for awhile so here's some further insight: peanut allergies were on the rise worldwide except in one place...Israel.

Have you ever seen those "puffs" baby snacks? They're like Cheeto Puffs but made for babies. Easier to eat with a weaker flavor. They're popular across the world but there's a brand with a peanut variety that sells particularly well in Israeli.

After realizing the connection, they started studying it. I am assuming this article is the conclusion of that study.

Non-evidence-based medical guidelines caused the spike as explained here.

That is interesting. I have wondered before why I regularly heard and read about peanut allergies in US media and US Internet forums when I've never actually encountered anyone with one here (in central Europe). This answers that question...

dos uno💀💀💀

It is because we are exposing infants to allergens which in turn trains their immune systems to not have the reaction to them. So any reaction other than sever from early, trace, exposure will allow for the child to grow up without the allergic reactions to them, and other allergens, not just peanuts.

or because of more awarness and better food safety standards.

But maybe... If we just covered our eyes for one year we'd be done with nut allergies forever. Of course not, but maybe...

it's pseudo-diagnostic, you don't know whether he would have been allergic to peanuts if you didn't rub it on his chest

As a late millenial, my guess for the cause of high prevalence of peanut allergy among younger people was because of being less exposed to dirt and being subjected to over-cleanliness when we were growing up. Iirc, the news and medical community overemphasised cleanliness in the 1990s. So, parents overdid it and the children's immune system has become less attuned and familiar to different foreign objects in the body. The immune system then overreacts to non-threatening objects in the body resulting in allergy.

Mid to late 90s was when it started becoming a talked about threat, but 2000s was when we reached "oh my god even a molecule on the hem of someone's clothing is enough to kill 10 people" shit. If you trace backwards that means late Boomers and Gen Xers started, I think, Ziplock parenting a lot - less real play in the dirt, more sit on the couch and eat Dunkaroos.

Basically the last generation that had "be home when the streetlights come on" was the last generation to have the more resilient immune systems, and the two things are probably fairly related.

And that's no coincidence as explained here.

It was definitely a thing at school in the 80s.