Can allergen immunotherapy actually reduce my child's risk of developing asthma later?

Yes, this is one of the most clinically significant reasons I recommend immunotherapy for children with confirmed allergic rhinitis, particularly when there is a family history of asthma or allergy. Unlike antihistamines or nasal sprays, which only control symptoms while they are being taken, immunotherapy gradually retrains the immune system's response to a specific allergen, and this disease-modifying effect is what has been associated with a reduced risk of asthma developing in children who start treatment early. It does not guarantee that asthma will never develop, since multiple factors are involved, but it shifts the underlying allergic process in a way that ongoing medication alone cannot. This is why I discuss immunotherapy with parents as soon as a child's allergic rhinitis is confirmed through skin prick testing, rather than waiting until symptoms become severe or asthma has already developed.