Maternal egg consumption not tied to egg allergy in offspring

Development of egg allergy at 12 months is unaffected by maternal egg consumption during the very early neonatal period, according to a study published July 10 in JAMA Network Open.

Ken-ichi Nagakura, M.D., Ph.D., from the National Hospital Organization Sagamihara National Hospital in Japan, and colleagues examined the effect of maternal egg intake during the early neonatal period on the development of egg allergy in breastfed infants at age 12 months. Analysis included 380 newborns randomly assigned (1:1) to a maternal egg consumption group (mothers consumed one whole egg per day during the first five days of the neonate's life) or the maternal egg elimination group.

The researchers found that on days 3 and 4 after delivery, the proportions of neonates with ovalbumin and ovomucoid detection in breast milk were higher in the egg consumption group versus the elimination group (ovalbumin: 10.7 versus 2.0 percent; risk ratio [RR], 5.23 [95 percent confidence interval (CI), 1.56 to 17.56]; ovomucoid: 11.3 versus 2.0 percent; RR, 5.55 [95 percent CI, 1.66 to 18.55]). The groups did not significantly differ at age 12 months for egg allergy (9.3 versus 7.6 percent; RR, 1.22; 95 percent CI, 0.62 to 2.40) or sensitization to egg white (62.8 versus 58.7 percent; RR, 1.07; 95 percent CI, 0.91 to 1.26).

"It is possible that the ingestion of larger amounts of egg protein and a longer intervention period, such as during pregnancy or after the neonatal period, might lead to different results," the authors write.

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