An explosion in the number of Britons suffering from allergies will be revealed this week by a parliamentary report calling for more specialists to be trained to prevent a growing postcode lottery.
Four in 10 children now have conditions ranging from eczema or food intolerances to asthma and hay fever, with a tripling in one of the most severe forms - peanut allergy, which can trigger fatal cases of anaphylactic shock - over the last decade.
Yet there are only six paediatric allergy specialists nationwide and a shortage of specialist centres treating multiple allergies - forcing parents to resort either to private treatment, or potentially dangerous alternative remedies, the Commons Health Select Committee inquiry has heard.
One consultant warned of a 'jungle' that only the most determined parents could find their way through. Dr Shuaib Nassser said once rare allergies such as fruit or latex were now becoming so common that he saw two or three cases a week in his practice at Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge.
Labour MP Jon Cruddas, whose son who has a severe peanut allergy, warned the government had been taken by surprise by a sharp increase in allergic conditions. 'There's a real postcode lottery,' he said. 'Allergy is a massive issue now and it's come from nowhere, and we have all been pretty slow in taking it up.'
Evidence given to the inquiry blames the epidemic of allergies - with up to three million Britons so badly affected they need hospital treatment - on a range of factors from unhealthy diets to modern anxieties over hygiene, with children raised in super-clean homes where they are less exposed to germs, and fail to develop immunity.
One in 70 children now suffers from peanut allergy - almost unknown 20 years ago - with experts warning Britain could reach the US rate of 8 per cent of children suffering within a decade.
Ironically, Stephen Ladyman, the junior health minister responsible for allergy services, is himself severely allergic to rats - a reaction developed when working as a scientist. In his evidence to the inquiry, he described concerns about patients resorting to unregulated private therapists, describing hair testing - where a patient sends off a strand of hair and is given an analysis of their supposed intolerances - as 'poppycock'.
Tuesday's report is expected to recommend better training for GPs and recruiting more specialists. Doctors argue waste could be avoided if patients were seen by specialists treating multiple allergies: nearly two-thirds of sufferers have more than one problem yet may see a different specialist for each complaint.
