Cheddar cheese allergy link to eczema severity in children
What it found
In 208 Taiwanese children with atopic dermatitis, those with a positive allergy test to Cheddar cheese had higher eczema severity scores.
The study also found that total IgE, white blood cell count, and eosinophil count were linked to higher scores.
What they found
Studies in people
Cheddar cheese and severity
Children who tested positive for Cheddar cheese IgE had SCORAD scores 8.591 points higher than those who did not, on average. This was one of the four factors that remained linked to severity after adjusting for other factors.
Total IgE and severity
Higher total IgE levels were linked to higher SCORAD scores. Each additional unit of IgE was associated with a 0.002 point increase in the score.
White cells and eosinophils
Higher white blood cell counts and eosinophil counts were also linked to higher SCORAD scores. Each additional unit of white cells changed the score by 0.924 points, and each additional unit of eosinophils changed it by 3.375 points.
Common allergens
The six most common positive allergy tests were house dust mite (D. Farinae) at 65.9%, house dust mite (D. Pterony) at 64.9%, house dust at 47.6%, cockroach mix at 37.0%, shrimp at 30.8%, and crab at 22.6%.
Cheddar cheese and seafood
Positive tests to Cheddar cheese were moderately linked to positive tests to tuna, codfish, and clam. The authors suggest this may be due to cross-reactivity but say more studies are needed.
What the authors conclude
“This study is the first to show the importance of cheese's influence on AD.”
Also in their conclusions
- They conclude that SCORAD index showed significant association with serum IgE levels but not with ECP levels.
- They state that this study is the first to show the importance of cheese's influence on AD.
- They advise that patients sensitized to foods may need to avoid them when AD is poorly controlled or have a food challenge test.
How it was done
The authors wanted to find laboratory markers that could help doctors monitor the severity of atopic dermatitis in children, since few studies have looked at specific allergens and the SCORAD index together.
They recruited 208 children under 18 with atopic dermatitis from a hospital in Taiwan between 2015 and 2017. They measured blood levels of total IgE, white blood cells, eosinophils, eosinophil cationic protein, and specific IgE to 36 allergens, and scored eczema severity using the SCORAD index.
What it can’t tell you
- This study cannot prove that Cheddar cheese allergy causes worse eczema, only that they are linked.
- The study did not use food challenge tests, so it cannot confirm a true food allergy.
- The results are from Taiwanese children and may not apply to other groups.
Who paid
- Conflicts
- The authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose.
- Authors work at
- Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and Chang Gung University College of Medicine, Kaohsiung; Kaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Taiwan
The paper
- Title
- Atopic dermatitis in Taiwanese children: The laboratory values that correlate best to the SCORAD index are total IgE and positive Cheddar cheese IgE
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Full text
- Licence
- CC BY. Words in quotation marks are the authors’; the rest is our summary.
- Cite
- Kuo HC, Chu CH, Su YJ, Lee CH (2020). Atopic dermatitis in Taiwanese children: The laboratory values that correlate best to the SCORAD index are total IgE and positive Cheddar cheese IgE. Medicine. doi:10.1097/MD.0000000000021255Free full textPubMed 32791702DOI
Summary written 30 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error