Intestinal imbalance may be driving America’s food allergy epidemic, experts warn

With more than 32 million Americans battling food allergies, health advocates and officials are searching for the root cause, including examining microbiomes.

The Food Allergy Fund (FAF) hosted a forum Monday in Washington, DC, with HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, FDA Chief Martin Makary, and NIH Director Jay Bhattacharya.

In an interview with News Digital, Makary shared how the function of microbiomes has evolved over time.

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According to Makary, the intestine is home to more than a billion different types of bacteria, which normally live in balance.

The doctor added, “But when it is altered by the modern diet and by antibiotics and other exposures… that imbalance can cause inflammation, it can cause health problems and it can be involved in food allergies.”

“Gut health is critical to overall health,” Makary emphasized. Some beneficial microbes may be missing in modern populations due to dietary and environmental changes, which could play a role in the increase in food allergies, he added.

Researchers at Siolta Therapeutics are testing this theory. Its oral microbiome therapy, STMC-103H, has shown promising results in a Phase 2 trial involving 238 newborns with a family history of allergies.

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Early data suggests the therapy could reduce the risk of developing food allergies by 77%, indicating that improving gut bacteria early in life could prevent allergies before they start.

Final results are expected in early 2026.

Ilana Golant, founder and CEO of FAF, told News Digital that “food allergies may be the canary in the coal mine of a much larger microbiome-related health crisis.”

FAF launched its Food Allergy Fund Microbiome Collective in New York City to further investigate how gut bacteria could help prevent or treat not only allergies, but also autoimmune and neurodegenerative diseases.

“Gut health is essential for overall health.”

“Solving allergies could reveal how to prevent and treat a variety of diseases, from autoimmune disorders to neurodegeneration, that affect millions of lives,” Golant said.

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Food allergies are widespread, affecting one in 10 adults and one in 13 children, according to the FAF. Every three minutes, someone in the U.S. is treated in the emergency room for a severe allergic reaction.

Peanut allergies are among the most common food allergies in the U.S., and new research shows that early introduction of peanuts could significantly reduce childhood allergies.

Secretary Kennedy noted at the FAF conference that food allergies (particularly those related to peanuts) appear to be much more common among children today than when he was a child.

“Growing up, I never knew anyone with a peanut allergy,” Kennedy said. “I had 11 siblings and about 71 first cousins, and I didn’t know a single person in my schools or at any of the camps I went to who had one.”

“There may be many causes, or there may be just one; we don’t know yet.”

One of her children has severe anaphylactic allergies to peanuts, tree nuts and several other foods, she shared.

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“By the time I was 2, we had been to the emergency room about 22 times,” Kennedy said.

“At first, I focused on how we were going to treat him and keep him safe. But my mind quickly moved to the bigger question: Why is this happening? I have five of my seven children with allergies,” she said.

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“There may be many causes, or there may be just one; we don’t know yet,” Kennedy continued. “But we are going to study it. We are going to break that omertà, end the taboo and find out what is causing it.”