Food allergies are thought to affect 4-6% of children and 4% of adults in the USA. Allergies are most common in babies but can appear at any stage in a person’s life. Having food allergies can cause significant stress for a person as the symptoms range from skin rashes and itching to severe gastrointestinal issues and anaphylaxis. Here are 6 foods that can trigger an allergic reaction.
Cow’s Milk
People often mistake lactose intolerance for milk allergy – but they are quite different.
Milk contains a sugar called lactose, and some people do not have adequate levels of an enzyme known as lactase which is required to break this down. The lactose stays in the body and is broken down by bacteria instead. The bacteria cause the lactose to ferment, which leads to diarrhea, excess wind, stomach cramps, and nausea. This condition is lactose intolerance.
Milk allergy occurs when the body reacts adversely to the substance. A person can experience symptoms such as wheezing, vomiting, and digestive problems shortly after consuming milk or a product that contains milk. In extreme cases, being allergic to milk can result in anaphylactic shock.
Nightshades
Nightshades are flowering plants belonging to the Solanaceae family. Examples of nightshades are potatoes, aubergine, bell peppers, cayenne pepper, paprika, tobacco, and tomatoes. These plants produce compounds called glycoalkaloids to help them fight pathogens such as bacteria. Glycoalkaloids can trigger an allergic reaction in some people.
Although allergies to nightshades are rare, some people with existing digestive disorders have found that their symptoms become worse after eating these foods. They experience heartburn, bloating, and stomach burning after eating. Sufferers of irritable bowel syndrome find that nightshades worsen their symptoms.
Eggs
Egg allergy is one of the most common allergies in children and can occur in infants as young as six months of age. However, most children will overcome their allergies as they approach school age, and egg allergy is very rare in adults. Allergic symptoms manifest as facial redness, skin rashes, and hives around the mouth.
Adopting an egg-free diet is a difficult task as so many foods contain eggs or egg derivatives. Foods will contain eggs if the ingredients include eggs, albumin, globulin, livetin, egg substitute, lecithin E322, mayonnaise, lysozyme, meringue, vitellin, simplesse, and silici albuminate.
Peanuts
Contrary to popular belief, peanuts aren’t actually nuts like tree nuts; they are, in fact, legumes like lentils, soybeans, beans, peas, chickpeas, carob, and tamarind. Peanut allergy is probably one of the most well-known and well-documented allergies as it is common, and a severe reaction can result in cardiac arrest. Milder allergic reactions include hives, sneezing, eczema, and itchiness.
Research has shown that the risk of a child developing a peanut allergy can be reduced by introducing peanuts to their diet within the first 12 months of their life. Babies with a high risk of developing eczema or an egg allergy are more prone to suffering from a peanut allergy.
People with a severe reaction to peanuts should avoid foods containing peanuts and any food that lists madelonas, earthnuts, Chinese nuts, groundnuts, cacahuete, goober nuts, or Arachis hypogaea in the ingredients.
Wheat
Wheat is found in many foods, so it’s challenging to avoid. People can develop an allergy to any of the proteins found in wheat when their immune system sees them as a threat to the body and produces antibodies against them. These proteins are globulin, gluten, albumin and gliadin.
A wheat allergy can cause disorders such as nasal congestion, nausea, vomiting, hives, diarrhea, and anaphylaxis. A doctor should be called immediately if a person with a wheat allergy develops chest pain or tightness, throat swelling, breathing difficulty, dizziness, or their skin turns blue because these are probably experiencing anaphylactic shock.
Fish and Shellfish
It is known that approximately 1 in every 100 people have an allergy to seafood, and adults and adolescents are more likely than children to develop an allergy. People can experience an allergic reaction when they eat shellfish such as oysters and mussels, scaly fish like haddock, cod, and salmon, or crustaceans such as lobster, crab, and prawns.
Some people can suffer from hives, itchy skin, nausea, vomiting, and swelling of the lips after eating fish and shellfish, but others can develop symptoms when they touch the product or even inhale the fumes given off when the fish are cooked. People with a severe allergy to fish or shellfish are at risk of anaphylactic shock, so they should do everything they can to avoid being near the cause of their allergy and always carry an EpiPen, which is an auto-injector filled with epinephrine that could help save their life if they develop anaphylaxis.
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