Every three minutes in the U.S., an allergic reaction to foods sends someone to the emergency room. But thanks to biotech, there is hope for people living with food allergies and sensitivities, as we explore in today’s new episode of the I am BIO Podcast.
An estimated 32 million Americans suffer from food allergies—the top nine of which are milk, wheat, soy, egg, peanut, tree nut, fish, shellfish, and sesame, according to Lisa Gable, CEO of Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE).
There's “urgent, unmet medical need for innovative treatments in food allergy,” she explains. “The standard of care has always been avoidance and that drastically impacts patient quality of life,” as well as creates risk and fear of accidental exposure.
But now, researchers are making foods safer for those living with allergies and sensitivities as well as “evolving the concept of food as medicine,” says BIO President and CEO Dr. Michelle McMurry-Heath.
Proteins are a major problem—especially those in wheat and peanuts, which can cause a reaction in a large percentage of the population.
Using both conventional breeding and genetic engineering, researchers are "targeting to eliminate those proteins so the plant does not produce those major allergens,” says Sachin Rustgi, Assistant Professor of Molecular Breeding at Clemson University’s College of Agriculture. They’re also researching how to “degrade these proteins into small pieces,” so the plants can keep necessary proteins in a way that’s easier for humans to process.
“Biotechnology could play a key role in either reducing food allergies or helping people overcome their allergies” with innovative new therapies, says Emily Brown, Founder and CEO of the Food Equality Initiative. “It’s going to take innovation and really the community coming together.”
But public policy is important, too: “We need to really look at the regulatory pathway for medical foods, biologics, multi-allergen strategies, and innovative ways of delivering the food, which serves to desensitize the patient,” adds Gable. This means working with FDA on “fast-tracking diagnosis, diagnostics, and therapies,” as well as on food regulation and labeling.
Listen to the whole thing. The episode is available now at www.bio.org/podcast and via Apple, Google, and Spotify.
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