Share of Cost, Confusion about allergies is putting people needlessly at risk
In Making Sense of Allergies, a guide published today by Sense About Science, allergy specialists and charities warn that essential information and life-saving actions are being diluted in a sea of over diagnosis.
There has been a rapid rise in allergies across developed countries. The percentage of children diagnosed with allergic rhinitis and eczema have both trebled in the last 30 years4. Allergies are now better diagnosed and their incidence in populations has risen. But there is concern that allergy has also become a catch-all diagnosis for unexplained symptoms, and this rise has been accompanied by a lot of non-medical diagnosis and treatment.