Currently, there is no treatment for the allergies, so avoidance is the only protection. Food allergies are potentially life-threatening for children and adults. Food allergies among children have increased 18% since 1997, and in 2007, some 3 million U.S. This is one-quarter of the mouse life span, Li noted. For the study, Li's team tested their new herbal remedy, called Food Allergy Herbal Formula (FAHF-2), on mice allergic to peanuts. Children had food allergies, according to the National Center for Health Statistics. Xiu-Min Li, director of the Center for Chinese Herbal Therapy for Allergy and Asthma at Mount Sinai.

They found that the formula protected mice from allergic reactions from peanuts. "The herbal formula can stop peanut allergy and produce a prolonged protection," she said. In fact, FAHF-2 protected the animals from anaphylaxis for more than 36 weeks after treatment was stopped. In addition, protection from allergic reactions to peanuts persisted for almost nine months after treatment was stopped, Li said.

"We can reverse the peanut allergic reaction," said lead researcher Dr.

"This formula may be effective for human peanut allergy." The report was published in the February online edition of The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.