British scientists are celebrating a major breakthrough in the treatment of potentially deadly peanut allergies

3:49PM GMT 30 Jan 2014

Children can be protected from the dangerous effects of peanut allergy by slowly building up their tolerance, research has shown.

After six months of the therapy, up to 90 per cent of allergic children taking part in a study could safely eat five peanuts a day.

Peanut allergy, which affects one in 50 children, can lead to anaphylactic shock – a potentially fatal immune reaction. It is the most common cause of deaths due to food allergies.

The STOP II trial, the largest of its kind worldwide, involved 99 young people aged seven to 16 consuming carefully measured doses of peanut protein.

Over a period of four to six months, the dose was gradually increased until their bodies could cope with the equivalent of five whole peanuts.

By the end of the study, between 84 per cent and 91 per cent of the participants could safely tolerate 800 milligrams of peanut protein a day, the amount found in five peanuts.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/10607527/Peanut-allergy-clinics-to-open-in-Britain.html