The aroma of peanut butter wafts through the entire house. You want to devour a cookie as soon as the timer dings, but you know you must let them cool. Anyways, good things come to those who wait, right? The cookies are a vision of simpler times. They are perfect circles marked delicately with the imprints of a fork. Nostalgia sets in. One bite is heavenly goodness. Though the cookie is rich and creamy, it is able to be light and buttery at the same time. You can’t help but indulge yourself.
Now imagine if all of this vanished. Imagine if you couldn’t taste the perfect combination of sweet and salty that makes peanut butter so delicious. If you are anything like me, the sheer thought of this would be catastrophic.
Image Source: Jack Andersen
However, it is an everyday experience for millions of people. In the US, three million people currently suffer from peanut allergies, and the statistic keeps climbing. Studies have shown that the number of children living with a peanut allergy has tripled between 1997 and 2008.
This rapid increase is alarming since ingesting peanuts may lead to fatal consequences if someone proves to be allergic. A severe allergic reaction, termed anaphylaxis, can lead to the constriction of airways and consequently death by oxygen deprivation.
However, there may be hope in combating peanut allergies. DBV Technologies, a French biotechnology company, has recently invented a patch that works to lessen the severity of allergic reactions to peanuts and other foods. The patch is what the inventors call “epicutaneous immunotherapy,” in which an immune system-targeting drug–in the case of peanut allergies, a sprayed-on sample of peanut protein–contained in the patch is delivered to the body through the skin. Due to this delivery method, the peanut protein avoids binding to IgE antibodies in the bloodstream–preventing an allergic reaction. In a way, the patch is similar to the traditional immunotherapy of desensitization, in which small amounts of allergen are introduced into the body as a means of familiarizing the body to the allergen (direct ingestion of peanuts in the case of peanut allergies). While the patch does not eliminate allergies all together, it is able to minimize allergen sensitivity. Currently, the patch is in the third phase of clinical trials, which is the last human trial phase before the US FDA evaluates it for approval.
According to DBV Technologies, the patch allows people with peanut allergies to consume a small amount of peanuts if it is worn daily for approximately a year. Though people with peanut allergies may never be able to taste the deliciousness of peanut butter cookies, they may one day be able to eat a handful of peanuts–which is a sizable step in the right direction.
Feature Image Source: Peanuts by Daniella Segura
The sad picture after describing how catastrophic it would be to have a peanut allergy and not enjoy cookies made me laugh.