Adult-onset food allergy

The prevalence of food allergy is increasing in both the pediatric and adult populations. While symptom onset occurs mostly during childhood, there are a considerable number of patients whose symptoms first begin to appear after the age of 18 years. The majority of patients with adult-onset food allergy suffer from the pollen-plant allergy syndromes. Many of them manifest their allergy after exercise and consuming food to which they are allergic. Eosinophilic esophagitis, an eosinophilic inflammation of the esophagus affecting individuals of all ages, recently emerged as another allergic manifestation, with both immediate and late response to the ingested food. This review provides a condensed update of the current data in the literature on adult-onset allergy.