What Is Multi-Food Oral Immunotherapy?

When a person is allergic to more than one food, the precautions can add up quickly and make meals, school, social events and travel harder to manage. Multi-food oral immunotherapy, also referred to as multi-allergen OIT, offers a way to treat several of these allergies during the same course of treatment. With the help of a board-certified allergist who specializes in food allergies, North Texas patients can experience a better quality of life, parental peace of mind and child food freedom. Here’s a closer look at how multi-food oral immunotherapy works.

How Multi-Food Oral Immunotherapy Treats Food Allergies

Multi-food oral immunotherapy applies the same approach as single-food oral immunotherapy to raise the reaction threshold as treatment progresses. Multi-food oral immunotherapy can address two or more allergens during one treatment. When a patient has repeated exposure to increasing amounts of each food, the immune system gradually becomes desensitized. While this is not a cure for a food allergy, it means a patient can tolerate higher amounts of the foods before a reaction is triggered. Families dealing with multiple food allergies can find this treatment strategy helpful, as it lowers the risk of a reaction.

The Multi-Food OIT Dosing Process

Before starting multi-food oral immunotherapy, allergists will test for allergies and discuss a patient’s reaction history. There are several food allergy treatments available for kids and adults, including food allergy drops, so allergists will need to evaluate the best approach for each individual. Treatment begins with very small doses administered at the allergist’s office, with allergens introduced in a combined or staggered approach, based on the patient’s needs.

During the buildup phase patients take daily doses at home. They also visit the clinic regularly for the allergist to check progress and increase the dose at a safe level. After reaching the target maintenance level, patients keep taking regular doses at home to sustain desensitization.

Which Food Allergies Can Be Treated With Multi-Food OIT?

At Safe2Bite | Texas Food Allergy Center, multi-food oral immunotherapy can treat allergies to peanuts, milk, eggs, tree nuts, seeds and shellfish. However, be aware that some practices will treat a smaller number of allergies. Each food included in treatment should represent a diagnosed allergy.

Cross-reactive foods often do not need to be treated together, as treating one can also protect against the other. For example, cashew OIT also protects most patients against pistachio as well. In one study of patients receiving multi-food OIT, some of the most common combinations were cashew and peanut or cashew and walnut. Many other combinations are possible, depending on a patient’s allergies.

Who May Be a Candidate for Multi-Food Oral Immunotherapy?

Multi-food OIT may be a good option for adults and children with two or more confirmed food allergies. Before recommending treatment, allergists examine test results, reaction severity, treatment goals, and the ability to follow dosing schedules. Families unable to commit to long-term treatment or patients with severe, uncontrolled asthma may not be suited for OIT.

What Daily Life With Multi-Food OIT Involves

When at-home dosing begins, multi-food OIT becomes part of the patient’s daily routine. Doses should be taken at the same time each day, following the allergist’s instructions. Patients will also regularly return to the clinic for updosing visits, where the dose is gradually increased. It typically takes 6 to 8 months to reach the maintenance dose. Throughout treatment, patients should continue to carry epinephrine and follow their food allergy treatment plan.

What Are the Benefits of Multi-Food OIT?

For families managing multiple food allergies, the benefits associated with multi-allergen OIT include the following.

• Ability to increase the level of tolerance for one or several allergenic foods.
• Increasing the level of safety associated with exposure to the food allergens.
• Addressing multiple food allergies with one coordinated course of treatment.
• Reduction of the time and burden spent on completing separate OIT courses.

At Safe2Bite, a personalized multi-food OIT strategy is created for each patient based on their specific food allergies. To fully realize the benefits of multi-food OIT, it’s important for individuals to adhere to the instructions provided by the allergist during the course of treatment.

Why Families With Multiple Food Allergies May Consider Multi-Food OIT

Families and those who are managing two, three or even more food allergies face considerable challenges. It includes constantly reading food labels, worrying about cross-contamination, communication at school and in restaurants, traveling, and avoiding any accidental ingestion.

For the appropriate patients dealing with such issues, multi-food OIT provides another treatment option to consider beyond avoidance. Addressing multiple allergens within one treatment strategy may help families work towards greater protection and confidence on their journey to food freedom.

Visit Us for Multi-Food Oral Immunotherapy in DFW

Safe2Bite provides food allergy testing and treatment for adults and children. To discuss multi-food oral immunotherapy and other innovative treatments, visit one of our centers in Frisco, McKinney and Southlake. Call (469) 916-5504 or request an appointment.