By Henry Ehrlich* (Another abstract from the AAAAI in San Diego)
341 Effect Of Duration Of Residence In Brooklyn On IgE
Responses Of Immigrants Dr. Edward Kleiman, MD et al
RATIONALE: Inner city areas including Brooklyn, New York suffer disproportionately from atopic disease. Brooklyn has ongoing immigration from regions of low allergy/asthma prevalence. We previously reported that ethnicity and history of hepatitis and other infections significantly affected development of new asthma and seasonal allergies in Brooklyn immigrants. Whether residence in Brooklyn is associated with increasing IgE response has not been determined.
METHODS: Immigrants to Brooklyn were interviewed about early like living conditions, previous infections, and total IgE, and HSV1 were determined. A generalized linear regression model was constructed, with dependent variable long (total IdE). Predictors were history of hepatitis, Herpes simplex 1 IgG, number of children in house, age, sex, rural/town/city and region of origin. Tests of utility of polynomial terms in continuous predictors were conducted. Model residuals were examined for skew and for outliers. Model-generated means with standard errors are reported. Analysis of effect included generation of Chi-Square value and degrees of freedom in order to determine significance.
RESULTS: While IgE levels decreased with increasing age, residence in
Brooklyn was associated with annual increases in serum IgE (p50.0003
and 0.016, respectively). Each additional year of age decreases IgE by
2.0% (95% CI 0.5, 3.1). Each additional year in Brooklyn increases IgE by
1.5% (95% CI 0.3, 2.6). No other predictor was significantly associated
with IgE (p5ns).
CONCLUSIONS: The decline in IgE levels with age is countermanded by
local immune stimuli which stimulate development of IgE responses in
previously non-allergic immigrants residing in Brooklyn. These local
stimuli may contribute to the ongoing asthma epidemic.
*I live a ten-minute walk from Downstate Medical School where this study was done. I am going to have to look into it further.
I moved to the US 11 years ago. I have developed allergies to salmon, grapes, and exercise induced anaphylaxis. Would there be a reverse, in case of going back to the original or other country were allergies are not prevalent?
Dear Del–
Interesting question. However, this study seems only to address seasonal allergies and asthma, not food. Sorry not to be more helpful.