More than one third of four month old infants with eczema already have established egg sensitisation, with their first introduction of egg in solid foods resulting in clinical allergic reactions, including anaphylaxis.
Regular consumption of traditionally allergenic foods, like eggs or peanut butter, in solid foods can reduce instance of allergy. However, this is often too late for many infants who already have food sensitisation prior to introducing solids.
A recent study has shown that higher intakes of maternal food allergens (egg) during the first six weeks of lactation can beneficially modify infant egg-specific immune responses. Thus, earlier and regular oral exposure to food allergens in the first months of life via breastmilk may be a possible food allergy prevention strategy.
The BENEFIT Trial is determining whether the incidence of food allergies in infancy can be reduced by a maternal diet rich in eggs and peanuts during breastfeeding.
The parallel, two arm, single blinded randomised controll trial will include 64 women with a singleton infant who are planning to breastfeed for at least six months. Both the mother and infant must have at least two family members with a medically diagnosed allergic disease such as asthma, eczema, hay fever or an IgE mediated food allergy.
The participants will be split into two groups. Group one will have regular maternal consumption of six eggs and two handfuls of peanuts per week from birth until six months of age. The second group will have maternal consumption of up to two eggs and up to 20 peanuts per week until six months of age.
At three to four months and six months of age, infant blood will be measured to determine levels of egg and peanut-specuific Ig64 concentrations.
The study expected the intervention group to have an Ig64 concentration of 88%, compared to the control group which was expected to be 22%.