Oldfart, I can in fact answer your question:

The reason so many more people are suffering from allergies is because we are no longer at risk from so many diseases.

Our immune systems have become under employed meaning that they sometimes misinterpret the proteins found in certain foods as pathogens. Our immune systems attack the proteins as they are absorbed into our bodies, creating swelling, irritation and the production of mucus etc. which we know as an allergic reaction.

The more we expose our bodies to these proteins, the quicker our immune systems kick in each time, meaning that we have a more extreme reaction each time our body encounters any food containing this protein.



I learned that from one of The Royal Institution Christmas Lectures this year.

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