For a study, researchers looked at whether emergency or elective caesareans, as well as cesarean delivery with or without labor commencement, were linked to the risk of food allergy. The HealthNuts study enrolled 5,276 12-month-old children subjected to skin prick testing and an oral meal challenge to determine their food allergy status. It then connected the child’s study data to the Victorian Perinatal Data Collection birth data. The parents of 3,006 children agreed to link their data, and birth records were collected in 2,045. About 30% of this subgroup was born through cesarean section, and 13% had a food allergy. When compared to vaginal birth, Caesarean delivery was not linked to an increased risk of food allergies (adjusted odds ratio [aOR]: 0.95, 95% CI: 0.70, 1.30). Neither caesarean delivery before or after the commencement of labor was linked to an increased incidence of food allergy (aOR: 0.83, 95% CI: 0.55-1.23 and aOR: 1.13, 95% CI: 0.75-1.72, respectively). Compared to vaginal delivery, delivery via elective or emergency caesarean did not increase the risk of food allergy (aOR: 1.05, 95% CI: 0.71-1.55 and aOR: 0.86, 95% CI: 0.56-1.31). There was no evidence of nursing, older siblings, pet dog ownership, or maternal allergies modifying the effect. In a population-based cohort of 12-month-old infants, Caesarean birth, whether with or without labor, elective, or emergency, was not linked to the risk of food allergy.

Source:www.jaci-inpractice.org/article/S2213-2198(22)00346-4/fulltext

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