Researchers are looking at Chinese herbs to develop treatments for food allergies, a growing problem in children:
•Food allergy herbal formula-2. Known as FAHF-2, this pill (not available in stores) is based on a 2,000-year-old Chinese remedy. It contains nine botanicals, including ginseng and oil made from cinnamon tree bark. It is being tested for peanut, tree nut, fish and shellfish allergies.
Building tolerance can take a year or more, and parents with children in the studies must drive them to a research center every other week. For a few, the round trip is hundreds of miles — a small price, in parents’ eyes.
“They will do anything humanly possible” to overcome their children’s food allergies, says Stacie Jones (no relation to Charles Jones), an Arkansas Children’s Hospital allergy specialist who helps lead several trials. “It is a testament to their commitment.”
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