Imagine going to a cafeteria and ordering food. As you take a bite of your meal, you notice a strange tingle in your throat. A rash forms on your skin. Nothing seems to concern you. As you continue to eat, breathing becomes more and more difficult. Your throat is swollen. You panic, grab your epinephrine auto-injector and inject yourself. If you had arrived too late, your body would have gone into shock and could even have died. Instead, you return to normal and realize that the food you ate contained an allergen that you were sensitive to. This slight mistake could have ended your life if you had not had your epipen. This reaction is common among people with allergies. Perhaps a rash or just a slight swelling of the throat would occur. Allergic reactions are increasing. What causes allergies and why are so many people diagnosed with allergies? The basic response is insufficient training of the immune system. What constitutes insufficient training? Before this increase in allergies and life in the 21st and 20th centuries, cleanliness was not the main issue when it came to allergies. Society did not have the hyper-clean attitude it has today. Children played outside, got dirty and antiseptic products were not common in households. Life seemed more natural than it does today. Today, society appreciates technological advancements for household welfare and individual well-being. Hand sanitizers have replaced soaps, antibiotics have taken over in place of a natural immune response. This shift towards technology and progress has put a damper on our immune system and its ability to fight antigens. The preferred training of the immune system during adolescence has moved from T-helper response 1...... middle of article ......g of the immune system during adolescence. Many studies have been done that both support parts of this claim and also disprove certain sections. However, studies that deny certain parts usually strengthen the theory as a whole. For example, even with adequate training of the immune system, tolerance has not been achieved due to atopic individuals. These individuals are genetically predisposed to certain antigens and therefore sufficient training would not take place. Fortunately, methods of training the immune system are underway. Immunotherapy has been implemented before and has completely reoriented an individual's immune system from a T helper 2 response to a T helper 1 response. Allergies are perhaps on the rise due to society's ideals in hyper-clean environments, but implementing sufficient immune system training will deter extreme allergies..