PurposeThere is limited epidemiological evidence of food hypersensitivity (FH) in the adult population. We aimed to determine the prevalence of FH in Mexican adults, their clinical features and to establish common food involved in its appearance.MethodsWe designed a cross-sectional study using a fixed quota sampling; 1,126 subjects answered a structured survey to gather information related to FH.ResultsThe prevalence of FH in adults was 16.7% (95% CI, 14.5% to 18.8%), without statistical significant differences related to gender (women, 17.5% and men, 15.9%) or residential location. The most common clinical manifestations in adults with FH were oral allergy syndrome (70 of 1,126) and urticaria (55 of 1,126). According to category, fruits and vegetables were the most frequent foods to trigger FH (6.12%) and were individually related to shrimp (4.0%), and cow milk (1.5%). Adults under age 25 had a higher frequency of FH (OR, 1.39; 95% CI, 1.01 to 1.91, P <0.001). Personal history of any atopic disease was significantly associated with FH (P <0.0001).ConclusionsThe prevalence of FH is relatively high in Mexican adults, and FH is significantly associated with atopic diseases.

Background: In our country, the prevalence of latex allergy in health personnel has rarely been studied. Objective: To determine the prevalence and associated factors to self-reported latex allergy in health care workers. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1,292 health care workers of a second level hospital. All workers were included and they were required to answer a structured questionnaire aimed at identifying latex allergy, atopic personal and family history, exposure to latex gloves and surgical background. Odds ratio (OR) and 95 % confidence interval (95 % CI) were estimated using regression logistic to investigate factors associated to latex allergy. Results: The female to male ratio was 2.4:1. The men age 38.4 ± 11.6 years. The prevalence of latex allergy auto-reported was 9.7 %, with a confidence interval of 95 % (95 % CI) 8.1 %-11.3 %. There was no statistical difference by workplace (p = 0.508). Factors associated with latex allergy included female gender (OR = 1.68; 95 % CI: 1.03-2.73, p = 0.037), personal history of atopy (OR = 4.82;, p < 0.0001), family history of atopic dermatitis (OR = 4.33, 95 % CI: 1.20-4.41) and history of allergy to fruits (OR = 4.33; 95 % CI: 2.62-7.14, p < 0.0001). Conclusions: Up to 10 out to 100 health workers may have latex allergy. The main factors associated with latex allergy in this study were: being a female, personal or familiar atopy and allergy to fruits.

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Our findings suggest that exposure to dogs, whether they be indoor or outdoor pets, is associated to a decreased prevalence in atopic dermatitis.