Resumen La alergia a los alimentos (A A) es un problema de salud en los paises desarrollados. En estos paises, las prevalencias oscilan entre el 6 y el 8% en ninos y alrededor del 3% en adultos. Un reciente metaanalisis mostro una marcada heterogeneidad en las cifras de prevalencia, atribuida principalmente a diferencias metodologicas o poblacionales. De otra parte, hay muy pocos estudios que revelen la verdadera dimension del problema en los paises en vias de desarrollo. Los escasos estudios existentes se realizaron con cuestionarios y sin confirmacion de los diagnosticos con pruebas objetivas. En general, los sintomas de alergia a los alimentos se presentan mas frecuentemente en las primeras etapas de la vida y casi siempre son desencadenados por un numero limitado de alimentos, como la leche, el huevo, el mani, etc. Recientemente se han desarrollado varios modelos animales que han facilitado el entendimiento de algunos de los mecanismos inmunopatogenicos involucrados en esta enfermedad. En diversos estudios epidemiologicos y experimentales se ha sugerido que algunos factores geneticos y ambientales (nutricionales, microbianos, farmacologicos y contaminantes) podrian jugar algun papel importante en la epidemiologia y la patogenesis de la A A. Palabras clave : Adyuvantes, alergia a los alimentos, factores de riesgo inmunopatogenesis, modelos animales, prevalencia. Abstract Food allergy (FA) is an important health problem in developed countries. In these countries the prevalence ranging between 6 to 8% in children and about 3% in adults. A recent metaanalysis showed a marked heterogeneity in the prevalence of food allergy that could be a result of differences in study design, methodology, or differences between populations. In addition, there are very few studies to reveal the true dimension of the problem in developing countries. In these countries the few existing studies were conducted with questionnaires and without confirmation of the diagnoses with objective test. In general the symptoms of food allergy occurs more frequently in the early stages of life and are almost always triggered by a limited number of food, such as milk, eggs, peanuts, etc. Recently, several animal models have been developed and they have facilitated the understanding of some of the immunopathogenic mechanisms involved in this disease. In various epidemiological and experimental studies have suggested that some genetic and environmental factors (Nutritional, microbial, pharmacological and pollutants) could play an important role in the epidemiology and the pathogenesis of FA. Keywords: Adjuvants, animal models, food allergy, immunophatogenesis, prevalence, risk factors.