Why Does Everyone Have Allergies Now?

Examine the data and the pattern is unmistakable. In a single generation, allergies have exploded from a minor nuisance to an epidemic. In the United States, nearly 1 in 3 adults and more than 1 in 4 children now have a seasonal allergy, food allergy or eczema. More than 100 million people in America are affected by these types of immunity problems.

Emergency treatment for food-induced anaphylaxis rose 377 percent between 2007 and 2016, and more recent figures estimate that we now have 3.4 million food allergy-related emergency visits in America each year, roughly one every 10 seconds.

What makes this surge so striking is how quickly it emerged. Before 1960, asthma was rarely mentioned in pediatric textbooks; by 1990, it had reached epidemic levels. The World Allergy Organization Journal projects that by 2050, 4 billion people worldwide will suffer from allergic disease, concentrated almost entirely in developed and rapidly developing nations.

Even so, modern allergy care remains centered on symptom control through medications, combined with avoidance of known triggers. But why aren’t we getting answers as to why millions of people have developed allergies in the first place?

Why Are We All Allergic Now?

Many people say that allergies are caused by genetics. This shifts attention toward a practically unknowable mystery shrouded in the mists of the past and away from real causes and real effects—and the people responsible.

If dna were the cause, allergies would have shown up much more consistently throughout history, with gradual increases and decreases. They didn’t. The spike we are experiencing has happened over a 60-to-70-year period. Human dna itself does not change; only gene expression does. Genes can basically be turned on or off within a single lifetime, due to environmental triggers.

Simple, scientific logic keeps coming back to the basic question many are avoiding. The effect is a rapid spike in allergies within living memory. What is the cause? Significant changes in our environment over the past 60 to 70 years.

The evidence points to a cluster of modern environmental, dietary, infectious, chemical and medical stresses. Each carries its own risks, but combined, they are driving a massive surge in people developing allergies.

The first major immunity-shaping event of life happens during birth. One of the miracles of natural birth is the establishment of an infant’s microbiome. Births by cesarean section interfere with this process. C-section rates have climbed sharply and now exceed 50 percent of all births in some countries. Unfortunately, these are necessary at times, but estimates suggest that 10 to 15 percent of them are medically unnecessary. In any case, these deliveries are associated with increased risk of asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis and food allergies.

Another disruption has come in the form of broad-spectrum antibiotics. Widely available since 1965, their usage has climbed steadily. These pharmaceuticals of choice are obliterating protective gut bacteria. A 2025 Rutgers Health study found that repeated use of antibiotics before age 2 is associated with a higher risk of allergies later in life.

Allergic reactions might also be connected to vaccines. The mrna covid-19 variety, still in use today, contains polyethylene glycol (peg), a compound known to trigger anaphylaxis in certain individuals.

The immune system might also be nudged toward allergic responses by vaccine adjuvants such as aluminum compounds. Other adjuvants, including monophosphoryl lipid A, CpG 1018, and MF59, are not classified as allergy-causing, but they are biologically active substances that the body would not normally encounter through natural exposure. In susceptible individuals, it’s reasonable that these adjuvants could add to immune stress and influence gut balance.

Modern Lifestyles

The hygiene hypothesis is often cited as a cause of allergies. While the name implies that we should stop washing our hands or keeping things clean, that is not what it means. Research now shows the real problem is that we lack natural microbial exposure early in life, exposure that helps train the immune system.

Now renamed the “old friends” hypothesis, the idea is that children need regular contact with harmless microbes in everyday life—family interaction, outdoor play, animals and shared environments—to train the immune system’s response.

That training is being disrupted. Modern childhood has moved largely indoors, with children spending more than seven hours a day on screens and far less time outside than previous generations. At the same time, roughly half of Western populations are vitamin D deficient, a result of limited sunlight that is also strongly linked to higher rates of asthma, allergic disease and immune dysfunction.

Household chemicals represent another layer of immune disruption that is rarely examined. Cleaning products, air fresheners and personal care items contain synthetic compounds that act as endocrine disruptors and immune modulators. Research shows that children in homes using high levels of cleaning products have elevated rates of asthma and allergic sensitization; constant exposure to irritants keeps the immune system chronically activated, priming it to overreact to benign triggers.

The modern food supply reinforces the same pattern. Processed foods are packed with preservatives, emulsifiers, artificial sweeteners and chemical stabilizers that alter gut microbiota and intestinal barrier integrity. Ultra-processed foods are one of the largest drivers, with the highest intake linked to 1.76 times higher odds of asthma.

Conventional produce carries further poisons in the form of pesticide residues that damage beneficial gut bacteria, while meat and dairy from industrial farming contain antibiotic and hormone residues that further disturb the microbiome and immunity signaling.

A Systemic Failure

The allergy epidemic is not the product of a single cause. It’s the cumulative result of multiple modern causes acting on developing immune systems. Large population studies show that when this happens, the risk of allergic disease rises sharply across a person’s lifespan.

Yet recovery remains possible. Diets centered on whole foods, abundant fiber and fermented foods help restore microbial diversity and strengthen immune regulation. Regular outdoor exposure, contact with soil and animals, and avoidance of antibiotics and vaccines in early childhood further support the development of immune tolerance.

This leaves us with a choice. We can accept the allergy epidemic as the cost of modern living, or we can recognize it for what it is: a largely preventable outcome. To avoid being on the wrong side of allergy statistics, live “the clean life.”