• Health
  • Research

A New Blood Test Can Estimate How Serious Your Food Allergy Is

3 minute read

A blood test can reveal just how severe a person’s food allergy is and could possibly replace more invasive testing, a new study published Wednesday morning suggests.

Around 4 to 6% of American children have food allergies, a risk the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) calls “a growing food safety and public health concern.” However, determining whether someone has a food allergy and then determining just how severe that food allergy is can be tricky.

To assess whether someone has a specific allergy, doctors will perform skin pricks or blood tests to look for skin reactions or high levels of allergy-specific antibodies. But doctors still don’t have a simple tool to test just how allergic a person is to a specific food. In some cases, the individual will need to eat whatever food they are allergic to in the presence of a physician so the doctor can determine the severity of their allergy in a safe space.

Of course, that experience isn’t without patient anxiety, which is one of the reasons why researchers at Mount Sinai Health System studied whether a blood test could predict allergy severity and potentially replace any tests that require ingesting allergens. Their research is published in the journal The Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology.

The test is called basophil activation test (BAT). It’s a blood test that measures the levels of an immune cell called basophil which is activated by food exposure. The researchers used the blood test on 67 people with food sensitivities between the ages of 12 and 45 while they also underwent an exposure test comparing their reactions to peanut, tree nut, fish, shellfish, or sesame versus a placebo. The allergens or placebo were given at random, and the goal was for the researchers to see if the results of the blood test corresponded to how the people reacted.

The test proved accurate, showing a high correlation with the BAT’s scores and the severity of the individuals’ reactions.

The researchers say the ultimate goal is to develop a new test that can become part of clinical allergy diagnoses in order to improve the quality of life for patients. “[This study] should encourage similar studies, which could lead to wide widespread clinical use,” says study author Dr. Xiu-Min Li, a researcher at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

Read next: Easter Egg Cookies Recalled For Containing … Eggs

QUIZ: Should You Eat This or That?

Which is better for you: A 1/2 cup of ice cream or 3 scoops of sorbet?
Which is better for you: Half cup of ice cream or 3 scoops of sorbet?Getty Images (4)
Answer: A 1/2 cup of ice cream
Answer: A half cup of ice cream If you eat what you’re craving, you’re more likely to feel satisfied and eat less. And scoop for scoop sorbet contains twice the sugar with none of the filling dairy protein and fat.Getty Images (5); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME
Which is better for you: Real butter or spray on fake butter?
Which is better for you: Real butter or spray on fake butter?Getty Images; Tara Johnson for TIME
Answer: Butter
Answer: Butter Serving size for spray butters (even low-calorie ones) are around a 1/3 second spray. What on earth does that mean? You're better off using a small amount of real butter as opposed to guessing how much you're using of the mystery melange of up to 20 ingredients.Getty Images (1); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME
Which is better for you: A sirloin burger or a turkey burger?
Which is better for you: A turkey burger or a sirloin burger?Getty Images (2)
Answer: Sirloin burger Restaurant turkey burgers are often made with dark meat and the skin, so they’re not necessarily better for you (and for the record, they aren't low-fat). You can get a sirloin burger that’s 95% lean meat and gives you 20 g of protein. Just be careful with the toppings.Getty Images (1); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME
Which is better for you: Almonds or pretzels?
Which is better for you: Almonds or pretzels?Getty Images (2)
Answer: Almonds
Answer: Almonds Almonds are high in protein, fiber and fat and will keep you feeling fuller longer. Give high-sodium pretzels about an hour and you'll feel hungry again thanks to the high-carb no-fat or protein content.Getty Images (1); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME
Which is better for you: Eggs or Special K?
Which is better for you: Special K or eggs?AP; Getty Images
Answer: Eggs
Answer: Eggs In the morning, you want a meal that will fill you up. Eggs offer protein and fat for satiety, but Special K cereal really only offers carbs and, well, air. If you want carbs to kick off the day, you're better off pairing eggs with a slice of 100% whole grain toast. Getty Images (1); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME
84505234
Which is better for you: Fat free salad dressing or regular salad dressing?Tara Johnson for TIME
Answer: Regular salad dressing
Answer: Regular salad dressingTo absorb fat soluble vitamins like Vitamins E and K in vegetables you need to consume them with a fat to aid nutrient absorption. Fat-free dressing, meanwhile, is low-calorie but gets its flavor from added sugar and salt.Tara Johnson for TIME (5); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME
Which is better for you: A low fat cookie or dark chocolate?
Which is better for you: A low fat cookie or dark chocolate?Getty Images (2)
Answer: Dark chocolate “People tend to believe fat free is calorie free,” says Keri Gans, a registered dietitian in New York City. “Go for the real thing.” Fat free cookies may be lower in fat, but higher in other ingredients like sugar. Try a nice piece of dark chocolate for those antioxidants.
Answer: Dark chocolate “People believe fat free is calorie free,” says Keri Gans, a registered dietitian in New York City. “Go for the real thing.” Fat free cookies tend to be high in carbs, sugar and fake sugar. Try a nice piece of antioxidant-rich dark chocolate instead.Getty Images (2); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME
Which is better for you: Low fat Greek yogurt or 100 calorie Yoplait yogurt?
Which is better for you: Low fat Greek yogurt or 100 calorie Yoplait yogurt?Tara Johnson for TIME
Answer: Low fat Greek Yogurt
Answer: 2% Greek YogurtA little fat is good in the morning to keep you full—plus it has upwards of 17g of protein per container. Fat-free "fruit" yogurt is high in sugar—7 to 10 g per serving—and lower in protein.Tara Johnson for TIME (2); Gif by Mia Tramz for TIME

Listen to the most important stories of the day.

More Must-Reads From TIME

Contact us at letters@time.com