Family Allergy Clinic Announces Help For Food Allergies With Oral Version Of Allergy Shots

Tired of living with food allergies? Arizona’s Family Allergy Clinic now offers help with oral drops that work a lot like allergy shots-but without the needles.

The drops are taken daily under the tongue and contain traces of allergy-causing food proteins. The drops absorb into the bloodstream through special oral cells. Over time, the drops can help desensitize the body to the foods that once stirred up allergy symptoms.

This process of bolstering the body’s immunity to allergens is known as “immunotherapy” and is commonly delivered through allergy shots in treating pollen allergies. However, recent studies, including high profile trials conducted at Duke and Cambridge Universities, have shown that an oral version of immunotherapy (known as sublingual immunotherapy or SLIT) can safely help minimize food allergy symptoms.

Dr. Stuart Agren, owner of the Family Allergy Clinic, was one of the first doctors in the country to use SLIT to treat pollen allergies in the 1980s. Recently, Agren began extending the treatment to patients with food allergies. He said the treatment has lead to marked quality of life improvement for many of his patients.

“Eating should be a pleasurable activity, but when people are constantly having to avoid trigger foods, it can take a lot of enjoyment out of life,” said Dr. Agren.

The Family Allergy Clinic drops treat for 59 different food allergies including milk, eggs, wheat, soy, tree nuts, and fruits and vegetables.

Dr. Agren said he derives a lot of satisfaction from offering a solution to a problem that has historically had few answers.

For years, the only thing I could tell my patients was just to avoid the foods that made them miserable,” said Dr. Agren. “Now I can help them eat more of those foods.”

Food allergies are on the rise. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, allergies in kids have increased by 50 percent in the last 20 years. Food allergies can lead to gastrointestinal distress, hay fever, eczema, itching and swelling of the mouth and throat, asthma, and, in some cases, to life-threatening anaphylaxis.

About Family Allergy Clinic

Doctors at this Arizona allergist clinic offer sublingual immunotherapy (under-the-tongue allergy drops) for pollen and pet allergies as well as for food allergies (including milk wheat, gluten, nut, and fruit). The treatment is effective for kids with allergies, asthma, hay fever, eczema, sinus infections, and more.

(These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.)