Advancements in preventative methods against allergies may benefit those who suffer from this health complication, according to a study published in the journal Nature Medicine.

For the trial, researchers fed mice a protein that causes an allergic reaction in the animals, but modified it to contain certain sugars. The researchers hoped that by altering this compound, the animals’ immune systems would withstand the protein, and no longer cause a reaction.

After five days, the team fed the mice the original protein, and compared their reactions to a control group. As a result, the reactions experienced by the modified protein group were less severe than the control group.

“There is no cure for food allergies, and the primary treatment is avoidance of the offending protein,” said Yufeng Zhou says, co-author of the study. She added that “this could teach our bodies to create a new immune response and we would no longer be allergic to the protein.”

An estimated 4 percent, or one in every 25 Americans, have been diagnosed with food allergies, according to the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network.