Sunflower seed allergy in children and oral food challenge results
What it found
In children tested for sunflower seed allergy, most who were told to avoid it had positive allergy tests rather than a history of reactions.
Of 72 children who ate sunflower seed in a supervised test, 60 had no reaction and 10 did.
What they found
Studies in people
Who was tested
Sunflower seed allergy testing was done in 7% of children seen at the center (326 of 5008). Of these, 71% (230) were advised to avoid sunflower seed. Most were male (71%) and had other allergic conditions.
Other food allergies
All but one child had another food allergy, mostly to tree nuts, sesame, or peanut.
Reason for avoidance
Most advice to avoid sunflower seed (77%) was based on positive allergy test results, not on a history of reacting to sunflower seed.
Food challenge outcomes
Of 72 supervised sunflower seed food challenges, 60 (83%) caused no reaction, 10 (14%) were positive, and 2 (3%) were unclear. Four of the 10 children with a positive challenge were treated with epinephrine.
What predicted a reaction
A positive food challenge was linked to a history of reacting to sunflower seed and a larger skin prick test wheal at the first visit, but not to the most recent skin prick test or specific IgE level.
What the authors conclude
“SFS allergy is an emerging and potentially severe pediatric food allergy that may co-occur with other seed or nut allergies.”
Also in their conclusions
- They say sunflower seed allergy is an emerging and potentially severe food allergy in children that may occur alongside other seed or nut allergies.
- They note that sensitization is more common than true clinical reactivity.
- They advise that physician-supervised oral food challenge should be considered when clinically indicated.
How it was done
More reactions to sunflower seed have been reported in recent years, but little is known about the allergy.
The researchers looked back at medical records of children tested for sunflower seed allergy at a pediatric food allergy center between March 2017 and September 2018. They also reviewed the outcomes of 72 children who had supervised sunflower seed food challenges between March 2019 and June 2023.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- This was a review of medical records at one center, so the results may not apply to all children.
- The food challenge results show what happened in a supervised setting, not how often reactions happen in everyday life.
Who paid
- Authors work at
- Elliot and Roslyn Jaffe Food Allergy Institute, NY
The paper
- Title
- Sunflower Seed Allergy: Natural History, Oral Food Challenge Outcomes, and Review of the Literature
- Type
- ReviewThe authors read earlier studies and describe what they found. It isn’t a new study.
- Evidence
- Studies in people
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Shah A, Patel N, Dehbozorgi S, Cox AL, Baker MG (2026). Sunflower Seed Allergy: Natural History, Oral Food Challenge Outcomes, and Review of the Literature. The journal of allergy and clinical immunology. In practice. doi:10.1016/j.jaip.2026.03.032PubMed 41967675DOI
Summary written 26 Sep 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error