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From: morimoto@intvax.UUCP (Alan Morimoto)
Newsgroups: sci.med,sci.bio
Subject: Re: Allergies
Message-ID: <546@intvax.UUCP>
Date: 2 May 88 14:22:38 GMT
References: <1160@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu>
Distribution: na
Organization: Sandia National Labs, Org. 1411, Albq, NM
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From article <1160@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu>, by vu0112@bingvaxu.cc.binghamton.edu (Cliff Joslyn):
> As spring settles in, and as I try to live with our new cat, I'm struck
> by horrible thoughts about allergies, like: is it true that allergies
> are essentially a flawed immune responses? are allergies increasing in
> this population? are allergies as common in foreign coutries? is it
> possible to have evidence about the prevalence of allergies going back
> even twenty years, let alone twenty generations?
> I have heard it suggested that in the modern age our immune systems are
> deteriorating in general, and that this is not apparent because we've
> only known about immune systems for a few decades.  Any thoughts?

Hey Cliff, I have heard entirely the opposite.  I have heard from my
allergist that the reason we have allergies is because of our modern age.
In other words . . . Back in the dawn of times, allergies were pretty much
non-existent.  We have only recently started developing allergies.  The
reasons I have been given are the following.  We, in our previous lives,
have had worms and parasites in our intestines that our immune system had to
fight off busily.  Nowadays, we have no worms in our intestines so our
immune system attacks any other foreign invader. . . Enter the pollens.
Now, you say what is their basis for such a hypothesis.  The answer is in
the people who live in third world countries.  Look at people who live in
backward rural areas that have worms and parasites.  You will find that they
do not have allergies.  So there you have it.  So if you want to stop your
allergies give your immune system something to work on besides pollen.  I
doubt seriously that you or I would exchange an infection or a case of
intestinal parasites for our allergies!

>alan