Using randomised, double-blind, N-of-1 trials of food challenge to diagnose food allergy and assess the effectiveness of food allergen avoidance

Food allergy leading to acute distress can result in chronic feelings of apprehension about recurrences. As the outcomes of food allergy include death, caution must prevail. The impact on the life of each person suspected of having a food allergy and those close to them can be substantial; so progress in valid identification of food allergy is very important. Specialists in allergies have been aware of these issues since the middle of the 20th century and have gradually developed stepwise experimental approaches through which alleged food allergies can be identified objectively and safely. In 1950, Loveless pioneered an improved method of establishing the existence of food allergy rigorously using placebos to blind both patients and clinicians.