Peanut Allergy: Outgrowing It

A funny thing happened at B's annual checkup yesterday.

Her pediatrician was going through her health history and mentioned "Oh and you have the peanut allergy.  B, you know you're probably not going to outgrow that?"

So I said, "It's not out of the realm of possibility.  She has a negative RAST and her allergist has offered a food challenge."

She looked shocked.

Now, I've read all sorts of stories about kids outgrowing their allergies, or passing a challenge only to redevelop the allergy, or kids with stats like B's failing the office challenge.  That's life with a peanut allergy.

And I know the likelihood of B outgrowing her allergy is slim.  But the likelihood of a treatment to ease accidental exposure isn't.

But why dash her hopes like that?

Hope is something that keeps me going (selfish, I know) - hope helps ease the fears of what she might face down this long road.

But I want to know how you feel about it - are you resigned that your child will never outgrow this?

Or are you hopeful, like me?