Food allergies can be very dangerous for people. Their bodies may itch(发痒). They may want to throw up and can even die from allergies. What's worse, food allergies are becoming more common these days.
Kari Nadeau, an allergy expert at Stanford University in the US, did a study of food allergies around the world. She found that while 3 percent of people had them in 1960, the number rose to 7 percent in 2018.
Nadeau said one reason for this might be that we have fewer interactions with microbiota(微生物群). Microbiota can" train" our bodies and stop us from getting allergies.
Our bodies have fewer chances to get close to microbiota these days. We live in cleaner homes. We stay indoors for longer hours. Doctors are using more antibiotics(抗生素) on us as children - antibiotics kill microbiota.
Scientists say it's a good idea for babies to eat many different kinds of foods so that they can build up tolerance(耐受) in their early years. Having a pet cat or dog can also stop the development of allergies.