Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast

Why do your ears feel blocked during allergy season? Can hay fever really affect your hearing? What causes that frustrating sensation of ear fullness, popping, crackling or pressure that just won’t go away?

In this episode of Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast, we explore the important relationship between allergic disease and Eustachian Tube Dysfunction (ETD)—a common but often misunderstood condition ...

Orofacial Granulomatosis (OFG) is a rare but often overlooked inflammatory condition that can present with persistent lip swelling, oral ulcers, gum changes, and facial swelling. Because its symptoms overlap with many other conditions, diagnosis is frequently delayed, leaving patients and families searching for answers.

In this episode of Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast, we take a deep dive into the science and ...

What happens when someone experiences anaphylaxis, but no trigger can be identified? In this episode of Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast, we explore idiopathic anaphylaxis—a diagnosis that can be both frightening for patients and challenging for clinicians.

Join us as we discuss the latest understanding of idiopathic anaphylaxis, including how it is diagnosed, important conditions that can mimic anaphylaxis...

Peanut allergy has become one of the most important and widely discussed topics in paediatric allergy. In this episode of Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast, we explore the prevention and treatment of peanut allergy in children, from the landmark evidence supporting early peanut introduction to the evolving role of oral immunotherapy.

We discuss why peanut allergy develops, which children are at higher risk, and ho...

In this episode of Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast, we explore Eosinophilic Oesophagitis, or EoE— an increasingly recognised allergic inflammatory condition of the oesophagus that can affect feeding, swallowing, growth, and quality of life in children and young people.

We break down the pathophysiology of EoE, including the role of food allergens, type 2 inflammation, eosinophils, epithelial barrier dysfun...

In this episode of Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast, we explore the diagnosis and management of Hymenoptera venom allergy in children, including allergic reactions to bee, wasp and other insect stings.

We discuss how to distinguish between normal local reactions, large local reactions and systemic allergic reactions, and when a child should be referred for specialist allergy assessment. The episode covers key asp...

Food allergies are often seen as a medical condition centred around avoidance, emergency plans and adrenaline auto-injectors — but the impact goes far beyond the plate. In this episode of Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast, we explore how food allergies affect children’s emotional wellbeing, family life, school experiences, social confidence and overall quality of life.

We discuss the anxiety, fear and ...

NSAID hypersensitivity in children can be challenging to recognise, diagnose, and manage safely. In this episode of Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast, we explore paediatric NSAID hypersensitivity, including reactions to commonly used medicines such as ibuprofen and other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

We discuss the different types of NSAID reactions, how to distinguish true hypersensitivity from other adv...

Penicillin allergy is one of the most commonly reported drug allergies in children — but many children labelled as “penicillin allergic” are not truly allergic. In this episode, we explore why penicillin allergy labels matter, how they can affect antibiotic choices, and why accurate assessment is so important for safer, better care.

We discuss the difference between true allergic reactions and common childhood rash...

In this episode of Hope & Histamine, we explore Alpha-Gal Syndrome (AGS) — a fascinating and increasingly recognised form of tick-bite-related allergy that can cause delayed allergic reactions to red meat and other mammalian-derived products.

We break down what Alpha-Gal Syndrome is, how tick bites can trigger sensitisation to the alpha-gal molecule, and why symptoms often appear several hours after eating foods such as be...

Chronic urticaria can be frustrating, unpredictable and deeply disruptive — but modern treatment has moved far beyond “just take an antihistamine.” In this episode of Hope & Histamine, we explore the pharmacological treatment of chronic urticaria, from regular non-sedating antihistamines and dose escalation to specialist therapies such as omalizumab and emerging treatment options.

We discuss how chronic spontan...

In this episode of Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast, we explore chronic urticaria in children, including its key clinical features, underlying pathogenesis, and practical approach to diagnostic evaluation.

Chronic urticaria can be distressing for children and families, often causing recurrent itchy wheals, angioedema, sleep disruption and anxiety about possible triggers. This episode breaks down how chronic urtic...

In this episode of Hope & Histamine, we explore the fascinating and often debated role of vitamin D in allergic disease. From eczema, asthma, and allergic rhinitis to food allergy, vitamin D has been linked to immune regulation and allergic inflammation in ways that continue to generate interest among clinicians, researchers, and families alike.

We discuss what vitamin D actually does in the body, why it matters for the immune s...

Severe asthma in children can be challenging to recognise, investigate and manage effectively. In this episode of Hope & Histamine: The Paediatric Allergy Podcast, we explore the evaluation and management of severe asthma in children, including how to distinguish it from difficult-to-treat asthma, key clinical assessments, common mimics, adherence issues, comorbidities, and the latest treatment approaches.

We discuss the importa...

In this episode, we explore the growing role of biomarkers in asthma and allergic diseases and why they are becoming essential in modern diagnosis, phenotyping, monitoring, and personalised treatment. We discuss key asthma biomarkers and allergy biomarkers, including blood eosinophils, FeNO (fractional exhaled nitric oxide), total and specific IgE, and their relevance in identifying type 2 inflammation, allergic asthma, severe asth...

How does cigarette smoke affect asthma? In this episode, we discuss the relationship between asthma and cigarette smoke exposure, including secondhand smoke, passive smoking, and the impact of tobacco smoke on airway inflammation, wheeze, cough, breathlessness, asthma attacks, and long-term asthma control. Learn why smoke exposure is a major asthma trigger, how it affects children and adults, and what families and healthcare profes...

Asthma care is changing. In this episode, we explore the concept of treatable traits in asthma and why a personalised, precision-medicine approach is transforming the way we assess and manage patients. Rather than viewing asthma as a single disease, the treatable traits model helps clinicians identify specific biological, clinical, and behavioural factors that drive symptoms, poor control, and exacerbations.

We discuss how traits su...

Frey’s syndrome can look exactly like a food allergy: facial flushing, warmth, sweating (sometimes even a “rash-like” redness) that appears within minutes of eating. Parents panic, clinicians worry about IgE-mediated reactions, and children can end up labelled with a food allergy they don’t actually have.

In this episode, we unpack Frey’s syndrome (gustatory sweating)—why it happens, who gets it (...

In this episode, we unpack The Foetal Origins of Allergy and the idea that the foundations of allergic disease may be laid before birth. Using the lens of early nutritional programming (often discussed within the DOHaD – Developmental Origins of Health and Disease framework), we explore how the in-utero environment can influence immune development, tolerance, and later risk of conditions like eczema, food allergy, allergic rh...