What Are The Symptoms of Food Allergy?

Food allergy symptoms become apparent within a minute to an hour after eating or drinking. There are several symptoms that correspond with food allergies and should you experience any of these after eating a certain type of food, consulting a doctor is necessary as food allergy testing might be unavoidable for you.

The most important symptoms are stated on this food allergy list:

A sudden sharp abdominal pain after eating
Nausea
Vomiting
A sudden dizziness often combined with abdominal pains.

Often these symptoms start off with an itchy mouth or throat and possible difficulty swallowing.

Causes of Food Allergy

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There are several reasons why people might develop food allergies.A few of these causes are:

Irritable Bowel Syndrome

About 5% of the total population suffer from irritable bowel syndrome. This causes great pain and discomfort when eating certain foods and the pain and symptoms can be mistaken for food allergy symptoms. But as the bodies of people suffering from this syndrome will eventually interpret the foods that they respond to in this way as 'dangerous, allergic symptoms may follow. The body cannot copy with a certain type of food, and will (the next time the same food is ingested) respond by producing antibodies, causing an allergic reaction.

Toxins in Food

If a person ingests a food product that is contaminated with toxins, the body will respond by producing antibodies to get the food out of its system as quickly as possible. This response causes allergic reactions and symptoms.

Diagnosis of Food Allergies

It is difficult if not impossible to find out what food allergies you might be suffering from on your own. Even if you are pretty sure about the type of food that causes you trouble, you still cannot be certain as food allergy symptoms usually don't surface till after a certain amount of time after you have ingested the food.

There are different tests that are used to diagnose someone with food allergies. The two most used tests are:

Skin Tests

With these tests a small dosage of an extract of the food that one is possible allergic to is injected into the arm of the person has to hold a small amount of the food under the tongue. The reaction of the body is noted after which injections of a stronger or weaker solution of the same food is given to the person. If this solution clears up the symptoms, this can be used to neutralize the symptoms and can be used for further food allergy treatment.

Blood Tests

Hundreds of different types of food allergies can be tested with this test. a sample of blood is taken form the patient and in a laboratory the response of the blood and its antibodies is measured when minute amounts of food are dropped into the blood. This is a quick tests and causes no further allergic reaction to the body. All common food allergies such as the egg allergy can be tested quickly and safely this way.

Treatment of Food Allergies

There are two main kinds of allergy treatment, one kind for the treatment of severe and possibly life-threatening reactions for the body and one treatment for less severe and possibly more predictable reactions to food or drinks:

Antihistamine Treatment

Antihistamines are used to treat mild responses of the body to a food that a person is allergic to. The milder symptoms such as itchy eyes or a mildly swollen throat can be treated with antihistamine pills or drops. Eye drop are also available for people who get itchy eyes or swollen skin around the eyes in response to ingesting an allergen (the food that one is allergic to).

Epinephrine

Also know as adrenaline, a jot of epinephrine is given to a person experiencing severe and possibly life-threatening reactions to an allergen. The throat may swell up and constant vomiting or difficulty breathing might be experienced. It is important for someone suffering from these symptoms to get treatment quickly.

Prevention of Food Allergies

It is important for babies to be fed on breast milk for the first 6 months of their live to reduce the risk of developing a food allergy later on in life. Adults can prevent food allergies from occurring by following these rules:

Do not expose yourself to foods that you are allergic to. For example, if you have a nut allergy, do not loiter around the shelves containing nuts and nut based products in your supermarket and do not serve these foods to guests.
Read food labels very carefully. If you happen to suffer from a soy allergy, make yourself aware of all the different names of products that are made of soy. This knowledge will prevent you from buying something that will contain a possibly life-threatening allergen.
Wear a medical bracelet explaining what your allergy is, and also make sure that there is a phone number of a family member or friend written down on the bracelet.

Coping with food allergies is not easy but can be done if you make sure that you know your allergens and the products that they are used in. Even a difficult allergy such as a wheat allergy can be dealt with if you do some research. You do not always have to miss out on products just because you are allergic to them, substitutes can usually be found.

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