Question: Why do we have allergies?

Fiona McLean answered on 25 Jun 2014:

This is such a great question!

We have this thing called the ‘immune system’. And it’s really important! When something gets into your body (like bacteria or a virus) that shouldn’t be there it fights it and stops it making you really sick. However, sometimes the immune system gets confused about what might make you sick and starts fighting things that aren’t dangerous to you, such as pollen. And this is what an allergic response is.

Scientists have a few ideas why some people are allergic to things and other people aren’t. One is that it is to do with our genetics. Another is that if you have never come across something as a child or even as a baby when you were inside your mum then when you do come across it, you can have an allergic reaction!