Strongyloides & Allergies
- Our immune systems are designed to recognize and attack foreign cells and organisms. When the immune system attacks a normally harmless substance, such as a peanut, this is called an allergy. Allergic reactions can range anywhere from a rash to life threatening constriction of the airways.
- As people became more and more aware of the dangers of microbes, public sanitation and personal cleanliness improved. The average person living today is exposed to fewer microbes than his ancestors. However, many scientists have noticed that the average person today is also more likely to develop allergies. The hygiene hypothesis states that contact with microbes trains the immune system to react to foreign substances appropriately while retaining control over itself. Because we have less of these encounters today, our immune systems lack this vital training and overreact to innocuous substances.
- Roundworms such as strongyloides are known as helminths. Research has shown that long-term helminth infection is inversely correlated with allergic reactions. It has been postulated that these persistent infections lead to the development of strong regulatory networks that control the immune system, making allergy much less likely.