Suffering From Food Allergies?
Posted on June 13, 2009
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Food allergies effect such a large number of people that it seems most people know at least someone with a food allergy. These allergies can be difficult to live with and even worse they send thousands of people to the emergency room each year; they are also the cause of a few deaths each year.
Because so many people have food sensitivities sometimes people think they have a food allergy when they really have a food intolerance. The two conditions are distinctly different.
People who have a food intolerance will have a delayed reaction to the trigger food, but if there is a true food allergy the reaction to the trigger will usually be seen within minutes. Also an allergy is an immune response while an intolerance is generally caused by a lack of necessary enzymes to properly digest the food.
The job of the immune system is to protect the body by watching for foreign substances that appear to be potentially harmful. When someone has a food allergy it means the body has labeled that allergen as potentially harmful and when it detects signs of this substance it will trigger a defense response. This defense response includes the release of chemicals in the body that can cause an allergic reaction.
How do you know if you’re having an allergic reaction? Some of the signs are a tingly feeling in or around the mouth, swelling of the tongue, throat or lips, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, hives or shortness of breath. In more serious cases the reaction can lead to anaphylactic shock which involves several systems in the body and can even lead to death.
A small number of foods are responsible for the vast majority of food allergies in the U.S. The eight foods that most commonly cause allergies are dairy, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, seafood, shellfish, soy and wheat. Allergens can vary a bit from country to country, but these eight are typically the most common in all countries.
Of course the most effective way to treat allergies is to avoid the allergen. With airborne allergies this is difficult, but you might think it would be easy with a food allergy — that’s not always the case. Processed foods can often contain hidden allergens. To help with this problem the United States has required that companies label foods containing any of the eight common allergens.
The labeling has been a big help, but unfortunately it doesn’t assure the food is completely free of allergens. They can also slip into the food system through cross-contamination. This can be a problem when a plant products multiple foods, some of which contain common allergens. The machines are cleaned before processing a new food, but traces of the allergen can remain and be passed to the next food that’s processed.
Luckily most labels now have an allergy section where they list what other types of foods are processed in the same facility, but there are other things food allergy sufferers will need to look for as well. Ingredients that contain allergens can be listed under different names, for example casein and whey are forms of milk protein. Those with a dairy allergy will need to avoid these ingredients.
People with allergies will need to be familiar with the signs of a possible allergy reaction. They will also need to know how to treat themselves to prevent or reduce the chances of anaphylactic shock. Treatment usually involves the use of an epinephrine injector, often called an EpiPen.
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