The Must know Info on Allergy
Peanuts could lead you breathless, a bowl of pulses may cause
swelling of the tongue and throat, or a fish preparation may
lead to redness of skin and an incessant rash. The list is
endless, and these are just a handful of the common allergies
that people suffer from. While their occurrence may be common,
what really makes the task difficult is that there is no cure
for an allergy, and the only way out is by preventing the intake
of food that causes allergy.
Simply defined, an allergy is intolerance of the immune system
to specific foods. You are allergic to food when your body
reacts adversely to it, thereby producing excess histamine,
which triggers a cascade of allergic symptoms that can affect
the respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, skin or
cardiovascular system.
Although an individual could be allergic to any food, such as
fruits, vegetables and meat, it's protein-rich food that more
than 80 per cent of the people are allergic to.
You could either be allergic to specific food items, or
preservatives. In case of food, allergies are generally caused
by protein rich food stuffs like peanuts, fish, egg, soy, wheat
and pulses.
While an allergy may develop at any age, there is no specific
cure, which can be prescribed. Doctors prescribe anti-histamine
drugs and may even have to inject steroids in severe cases, but
these only subdue the effects after an allergy has occurred.
There is no long-term cure or means to get rid of any allergy
and the only way out is to prevent the intake of food that
causes the allergy.
The symptoms vary from urticaria - red patches, indicating
excess of blood supply to that region of the body, to general
body rash and itching. In severe cases it may lead to
breathlessness and angioneurotic oedema, where the wind pipe is
blocked.
Patch test to find out the specific food that causes allergy
exist. These are restrictive in nature and can only test allergy
to 50 to 100 food stuffs. The method of exclusion serves best.
Doctors recommend maintaining a diary. Once you know that you
are allergic to something, start recording everything that you
eat in a diary. It will be easier to detect the particular food
whenever you develop symptoms next.
Once you determine what you are allergic to, it is important to
learn to read food labels and thereby avoid eating food that you
are allergic to. The dictum, prevention is better than cure,
works best in case of allergy.
Symptoms of an allergic reaction
Symptoms typically appear within minutes to two hours after a
person has eaten the food to which he/she is allergic.
1. Tingling sensation in the mouth
2. Swelling of the tongue and throat
3. Difficulty in breathing
4. Vomiting
5. Abdominal cramps
6. Diarrhea
7. Drop in blood pressure
8. Loss of consciousness
Symptoms may be mild or very sever, depending on how much of the
food you have consumed and extent that you are allergic to it.