Food allergy may be associated with decreased risk for COVID-19 infection, according to results published in The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. Max A. Seibold, PhD, and colleagues examined the impact of food allergies on COVID-19 infection using data from 1,394 households with children (aged <13 years) and adolescents/young adults (aged 13-21). Household SARS-CoV-2 infection probability was 25.8%, and infection probability was similar for children (14.0%), teenagers (12.1%), and adults (14.0%). Selfreported, doctor-diagnosed food allergy was tied to reduced infection risk (adjusted HR= 0.50), and transmission was lower in households with food allergy (adjusted OR=0.43; P=0.04). Dr. Seibold and colleagues examined the possibility that the reduced infection risk among those with food allergies may have been associated with risk behaviors, such as dining out less, but found only slightly fewer instances of exposures in this group.
