Researchers have developed an online calculator that predicts in seconds whether a person has three of the major food allergies, reports Science Daily in Easy, Accurate Way to Predict Food Allergies Developed, Study Suggests.

This ‘Cork-Southampton calculator’ is 96 percent accurate, a significant improvement in current tests' accuracy, which ranges from 61 to 81 percent. The test was developed by scientists at University College Cork whose study was published in the March 3 online edition of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.

In the past, the best way to diagnose food allergies was through a double-blind, placebo-controlled food challenge. But this method is time-consuming, expensive, and comes with the risk of anaphylaxis. To come up with an alternative, Dr. Audrey DunnGalvin and Professor Jonathan Hourihane of the Department of Paediatrics and Child Health came up with a highly accurate, allergen-specific algorithim for predicting the presence of cow's milk, peanut, and egg allergies.

This mathematical model relies on known or suspected predictors of having a particular allergy. The more clinical information that can be collected, the more accurate the test. To devise the test, the researchers studied the outcomes of combinations of data, including the results of a skin prick test, allergic reaction, sex, age, allergen specific IgE in serum, and total IgE. These results were then compared to the results gained from food challenges. The calculator they came up with is more accurate than individual allergy tests.

The development of this calculator is exciting because it means less expensive allergy tests and better quality of life for allergic children