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Archive for the ‘Allergy’ Category

Food allergies develop in around five percent of children. These allergies occur when the child’s body reacts to the food consumed as if it were a toxin or something that is harmful to the body and treats it as such. Antibodies are then produced by the immune system in order to protect the body against that specific food. Allergies are often confused with food intolerance, but these are not the same thing. Some of the most common types of allergies are allergies toward cow’s milk, nuts, gluten and eggs.

There are several symptoms that may indicate the presence of an allergy. These include an itchy throat, nausea, diarrhea, swelling of the throat, difficulty in breathing and coughing to name a few. While most children tend to outgrow their food allergies by the age of five or six, some allergies such as allergies to nuts tend to remain with the child for life. Occasionally allergies can be severe and potentially lethal which can result in anaphylactic shock.

There are no specific cures for these allergies; however there are a few tests which can be done to deduce whether or not the child is indeed allergic to something. Once this is known then the particular food types can be avoided to prevent any further allergic reactions. One test involves a blood test in which specially trained doctors examine the sample in a detailed analysis to find out exactly what type of allergies the child has. Another test is a simple prick test whereby the skin is pricked and the specific food is put onto the skin to see if a reaction develops.

Coping with these allergies often occurs without problems and needs a simple change in dietary habits. With some allergies like gluten, milk, egg and nuts it can be more difficult since many foods contain these products.

Parents are advised to educate the care-givers of the children as well as the children themselves so that they can learn what they can and cannot eat. If they are lucky, within a few years they will outgrow the allergy and be able to eat these foods as an adult.

If you often feel bloated, tired, or not so good after a meal; if you gave frequent have stomach pains, cramps, or bowel problems; if you have strong food cravings or food dislikes; if you experience a collection of symptoms that you just cannot explain, or sometimes become more anxious, irritable, or depressed f you may be suffering from food allergy.

Allergy has reached epidemic, proportions, and it has been estimated that at this rate, half of Europe will have allergies in a few years. Food allergies are of particular concern, as they are now being recognized as a factor in many health problems and diseases, especially in children.

Many scientists and health practitioners believe that a poor diet and the sheer quantity of toxins that are now present in our food are major factors in this unprecedented rise in the number and severity of allergies over the last decades.

When Food Harms Instead of Helping

Much of our food is over-processes and treated with toxins all the way from production to sale. Instead of being a major source of true health and resilience, therefore, the food we eat can actually undermine our body’s ability to deal effectively with daily stresses, and to clear out the toxins that assault us from all sides. No wonder that more and more of our bodies are reacting with food allergies.

Food allergies not only harm our bodies (and our minds), they also prevent us from deriving the full nutritional benefits from the healthful foods we do eat. By causing damage to our digestive systems, they can prevent complete breakdown of foods into essential nutrients, and interfere with the body’s ability to properly absorb what nutrients are available. This can lead to nutrient deficiencies and malnutrition, even though you might be eating lots of good food.

Another problem is that food allergies can restrict your ability to eat the foods you need. A diverse diet offers maximum assurance that you are getting the nutrients you need, but if you live in fear of a reaction, you might find yourself limiting your diet more than you need to. For instance, a person with an allergy to swiss chard or silverbeet might eliminate all greens from their diet, when really, they might only be reacting to a particular chemical found in plants of the ‘beet’ genus. By eliminating all greens, this person is losing many health-giving properties of greens, which are outstanding sources of chlorophyll, calcium and magnesium.

Allergenic foods

An allergenic or reactive food is one that causes an allergic reaction, such as hives, wheezing, stomach cramps or stuffy nose. The foods that tend to be most highly allergenic (especially to children) are: milk wheat corn sugar soy nuts eggs.

Other highly reactive foods are: oats, yeasts, chocolate, seafood, beef and citrus.

However, you can develop an intolerance, sensitivity or allergy to any food. The degree of sensitivity to a food depends on your tolerance ‘threshold’ for that food. You might be able to eat small amounts of a food, but react to larger amounts. Or some foods may be eaten without reaction once in a while, but not more frequently.

In fact, you may not be reacting to the specific food, but to one of more of the components of that food. It might surprise you to learn that the most common problematic substances are the vitamins and minerals in foods. They can cause us to have allergic reactions to many foods we eat on a daily basis. Other major causes of food allergy are food additives, sulphur, pesticides, biotechnology and genetic engineering.

Symptoms of Food Allergy

There are many warning signs that indicate that you might have a food allergy: dark circles under the eyes, frequent sniffing or throat-clearing, irritability, moodiness, hyperactivity, or frequent fatigue. Other signs may include headaches, stomach aches, bowel problems, muscle pain, coughing or wheezing, and frequent digestive or respiratory problems. Symptoms vary from person to person. Common signs of food allergy include the following:

Digestive problems – Reactions to food allergens can damage to walls lining the digestive tract, and also disrupt the balance of hormones and chemicals needed for proper digestion and elimination. This can lead to problems such as Leaky Gut syndrome, where the walls of the small intestine leak partially-digested food into the blood stream. This can lead to bloating, stomach cramps and inflammation, Irritable Bowel Syndrome, autoimmune and immune deficiency diseases, and many other problems.

Blocked airways – Food allergens are responsible for excess mucus in many allergic people, leading to chronic blocked noses, and mucuosy throats – as well as ear infections. Babies have very small upper airways and it takes very little to block them. When the allergens are removed from the diet, the mucus dries up.

Middle Ear infections – Over 70% of children suffer from middle ear infection at some time or other, and it believed by many researchers to arise from food allergies, particularly to milk and wheat. One study reported that 78% of the children with otitis showed allergies milk, wheat, egg white, peanuts, and soy, and when these foods were eliminated from their diet, 86% experienced significant improvement.

Psychological or emotional problems – Food allergies have been clearly linked to a range of psychological and behavior disorders such as autism and hyperactivity in children, anxiety, depression, inability to concentrate, mood swings, and ‘fogginess’.

Food addictions – If you are addicted to a food, you are probably allergic to it. This is because allergic reactions in the body trigger the release of certain chemicals, among them, opioids, which make you feel good. If you feel happier when you eat that food, you can develop a craving for it.

Types of Food Allergies

If you are allergic to a food, you can experience either an immediate or a delayed reaction to food. The immediate reaction pattern is referred to as Type l food allergy. Immediately or within a short time after eating the food, you show clear and often dramatic symptoms. If you are allergic to fungus, you might develop abdominal cramps within an hour of eating a ragout containing mushrooms. A child with a type 1 reaction to kiwi fruit might experience severe itching in the mouth or vomiting within 15 minutes of eating a kiwi fruit.

The most dangerous Type l reaction is called anaphylaxis – a severe reaction that can be fatal within minutes. If you or your child experiences light-headedness), swollen tongue or throat, difficulty breathing, fainting or facial swelling immediately after eating food, seek immediate emergency care.

Type l food allergies are easy to diagnose. They respond to allergy skin tests, and show up on blood tests because they result in an excess of IgE antibodies. For many doctors, this is the only kind of real food allergy. Recent estimates show that that Type l food allergies occur in between 3-5 % (sometimes to 8%) of children, and in 1-2 % of adults.

Type ll food allergy does not involve IgE antibodies. Instead, IgA, IgG and IgM antibodies may be produced. This reaction pattern is associated with the release of inflammatory substances by the immune system. Many food allergies are of this type, therefore, they are not detected by standard allergy tests, which usually only test for the IgE antibodies.

Some reactive patterns are ‘hidden’. Delayed patterns of food allergy (referred to as Type lll food allergy) often go unrecognized because the symptoms are not usually obvious, and may occur days after the food is eaten. Also, since they do not involve the production of excess IgE antibodies, delayed allergy reactions to not show up on skin tests or IgE antibody tests. Rather, they tend to show up as clusters of physical, behavioral and learning problems affecting several body systems at once.

You may experience Type lll allergy as a combination of recurring or persistent symptoms such as breathlessness, frequent clearing of throat, episodes of hyperactivity and emotional hypersensitivity, chronic stuffy nose, and frequent flu-like symptoms. Another person may experience recurring headaches, frequent itching of the eyes, abdominal pains, fatigue, bouts of depression, sleep problems, and swelling of the lymph nodes. These delayed reaction patterns of food allergy are difficult to diagnose. Yet according to many health practitioners, they account for the majority of food allergies, especially in children.

In fact, food allergies are so common – and still so frequently undiagnosed – that you should take any undefined pattern of illness that involves different symptoms and different body symptoms as a sign of food allergy until proven otherwise.

Treatment

It used to be accepted that children outgrew food allergies, and adults sometime report the same, but we now that allergies just evolve and change over time. For instance, allergies to milk or eggs can evolve into respiratory or other allergies, or as various health problems. For true healing to occur, the underlying allergies must be addressed.

The most common treatment for food allergies is avoidance. This will relieved the symptoms and prevent further damage; however, it can mean a lifetime of restrictive diets.

There is some evidence that eating organic foods can decrease the incidence or severity of allergic reactions to food, and may even help protect against allergic reactions. Organic foods provide more of the quality nutrients needed to build up the immune system, which is always weak in those with allergies. Certainly, a diet high in organic foods decreases the chances of developing allergies to food additives and pesticides, and can reduce the incidence of allergies.

However, if you already have food allergies, the damage they have already caused still needs to be corrected.

The best solution to food allergies is desensitization. There are different treatment options available, some of them immunizing the body to allergens with extracts taken under the tongue or injections. Acupuncture has also been shown effective in treating some allergies. The problem is that these therapies may not address the underlying health issues, such as nutrient deficiencies, toxin overload or stress, that caused food allergies in the first place.

For a real solution to food allergies, choose a program that involves detoxification to clear the body of toxins that contribute to allergies, corrects other underlying health problems, and desensitizes you to the allergens that are affecting you.

Once the food allergies are under control or eliminated, it is important that you obtain solid nutritional advice to help you maintain and build the health of your immune system. If you don’t eat enough of the right foods, or eat too much of the wrong foods, you are at risk of developing new allergies or other problems. A good diet is still your best protection.

The world of being allergic is no fun and being allergic to food is even more NOT fun as everyone has to eat. When you have to pay attention to food ingredients for fear of having an allergic reaction to something you ate makes something that used to be fun (eating) suddenly become a chore! Many people have food allergies. Common food allergies in children are to eggs, milk, peanuts, shellfish, soy, tree nuts and wheat. Common allergies for adults are fish, peanuts, shellfish, and tree nuts.

Some individuals confuse food allergies with food intolerance. A food allergy is when your body’s immune system treats food as if it were a foreign body. The response the immune system has triggers the symptoms such as hives, swollen mouth and throat, coughing, wheezing and eczema. Food intolerance usually causes abdominal upsets.

Why our bodies react the way the do to certain foods is not completely understood. A food allergy can begin at any age, but frequently begins during childhood. Some food allergies can be outgrown and others stay around for a lifetime.

When someone is allergic to something they ate, the symptoms usually start within a few moments to 2 hours from the time the food is eaten. The severity can depend on the amount of food ingested and your body’s reaction to the allergen. Key symptoms can be anything from hives, to a hoarse voice, to wheezing. Severe reactions that can be life threatening may include low blood pressure that may cause dizziness or fainting, blocked airways and difficulty breathing, which may include wheezing. Other symptoms may include abdominal pain, vomiting, diarrhea, swelling of the eyelids, face, lips, or tongue. The individual may have difficulty swallowing or breathing, the mouth may itch, or the throat may feel itchy. The person may feel light-headed and pass out. They may have nasal congestion, nausea, a runny nose, shortness of breath and stomach cramping. They may have only one of the above symptoms or many of them.

An allergist can evaluate the individual by asking medical questions, examining them, running blood tests, asking the patient to keep a food journal, having a elimination diet done, or asking the patient to participate in a food challenge test. There may be a skin prick test to determine which foods the individual may be allergic to. There may be just one food allergy or there may be multiple food allergies.

The only truly useful treatment for food allergies is to learn how to avoid the food allergen that your are allergic to. This requires that every time you buy a food product, you read the label carefully for the food item that you are allergic to. It also requires that you become familiar with hidden food items in products. You will need to question restaurant managers and restaurant chef’s about how they prepare their food and what ingredients are in the food that they prepare for you to eat.

If your child has food allergies you must inform anyone who may give your child something to eat of what foods your child is allergic to. You must make sure that they know how to recognize the signs of an allergic reaction and that they know how to summon medical attention for your child quickly. Your child should have emergency medication available to him/her so that it can be administered in an emergency.

Allergic reactions, what are they? I can go into the medical explanation of allergies. I can explain the allergic reaction in very scientific terms (after all, I am a trained scientist). Let me illustrate with war and peace.

First of all, some people are born with an amazing gift for acquiring allergies. In terms of war and peace, this means that their immune systems have the ability to go to war for any reason, good or bad. This type of immune system can deploy a very large army very quickly. It can have bitter feuds with an imagined enemy who is really an ally. What is more, this immune system remembers the perceived enemy so well that an even bigger army is deployed every time the “enemy” is encountered.

When this army is out there in the body, eager to fight milk, cats, dogs, pollen, or whatever, it is the presence of the army itself rather than the “enemy” that leads to the next set of events! The presence of the army triggers off a series of chemical reactions in the body leading to the firing of chemical warfare. An overproduction of histamine can result, leading to sore eyes, skin rashes, choked throats, feeling sick, sneezing, coughing, and all the usual misery of an allergic reaction.

Left in a state of war for a long time, maybe with many “enemies”, a civil war eventually breaks out, with even more chemical warfare, and the soldiers no longer know why they are fighting, they just fight. The general of this army no longer has control over it and is too tired to anyway. Additionally, the general is too tired to communicate with the other commanders. Anarchy reigns. Invaders enter the country and it is pot luck whether they are seen. If they are seen, the army may be just too tired from all that fighting to ward off this real enemy. This weakens the whole nation, which then continues to produce more soldiers in a state of confusion.

The nation is tired of war but has lived with it for so long now, it doesn’t know how to break free. The president, convinced they are the enemy, decides to avoid contact with certain friendly tourists. He instructs all his generals to evade this “enemy” or fight it to the bitter end. But the country is in a state of high alert. People are wary. They are tired. They avoid all of these tourists that the president has announced are the “enemy”.

Some time passes and a few people feel unjustly that they had a bad experience with foreign investors. The papers publish this, and the nation, still in a war mood, is whipped into a frenzy. Soon enough, was is fought against foreign investors. They become the new enemy.

Soon almost every previously welcome visitor becomes an enemy.

The country is now almost always at war with somebody, anybody! Resources are depleted, the nation is tired. There seems no way out.

Now imagine a new president taking over, with a new government. The president gathers his generals and explains to them why the enemy is really a friend. The generals go on to reduce the size of their army. The nation rests. Resources are no longer diverted to the war but are spent on education, agriculture, and rebuilding the nation. The nation flourishes.

You can choose to let go of allergies. One of these days, common sense will prevail and those of us with the genes that makes us prone to allergies will not need to live in fear. In the meantime, if you have considered treatment, there is a technique that uses no medication, no fear and no nonsense. I have successfully used EFT on myself for allergies and would recommend it to anyone. I have met so many people who have taken control of their bodies and have freed themselves of them. Like my friend Ronny, who became free from his allergy to milk with EFT.

Why have war when you can relax in peace? Most of you those reading this will prefer to keep their allergies, but that’s another story. Choose to empower yourself now. Go and see an EFT practitioner that deals with allergies, or learn EFT for yourself. I’m certainly glad I did!

Allergy is a condition in which the body reacts with unusual sensitivity to a certain substance or substances. These substances, which are usually proteins, are called antigens. They stimulate the body to produce antibodies, which weaken or destroy the invading antigens. In some cases, when an antibody reacts with an antigen, the organic compound histamine is released from special body cells called mast cells. It is an excess of histamine that results in allergy symptoms.

Question: What are the common allergy symptoms?

A runny nose and watering or itching eyes are common to many persons who suffer each year from hay fever. In asthma, there is wheezing; with eczema and hives there is itching, redness, and lumps. An inflammation of the skin (contact dermatitis) may occur from wearing rubber gloves or touching a certain chemical, such as some kinds of soap. A reaction to antibiotics, particularly penicillin, may take the form of a rash.

Question: Why are some people allergic to certain substances and others not?

This is due partly to hereditary factors; some families seem to be more susceptible to allergies than others, although particular allergies are not necessarily inherited. Emotional disturbances can also set off allergic conditions, and many physicians believe that an emotional factor may be the main factor that triggers an asthma attack.

Question: How does a physician determine the cause of an allergy?

The physician usually gets a detailed history from the patient to find the most likely source of the problem and may then carry out a skin test. A weak solution of the substances that are suspected is injected into the skin. A read reaction indicates an allergy to that particular substance. Sometimes a patch test is done for the same reason.

Question: What treatment can be given for an allergic reaction?

If the cause of the allergic reaction is not known, a physician may prescribe antihistamine pills or corticosteroid nasal and lung sprays to control the symptoms. Various medications, including theophyline, are used to treat asthma.

When the cause of an allergy is known, the patient can undergo desensitization with injections of the allergen known to cause the symptoms. Beginning with a weak solution, the dose is gradually increased over a period of weeks until a strong solution is reached and the patient is possibly immune to its effects. This process is not always successful; it is considered by some to be potentially dangerous.

Question: Are there any dangerous allergic reactions?

An allergic reaction to an insect sting or antibiotic drug, such as penicillin, is potentially dangerous and can even be fatal. A mild reaction usually causes a rash. In a violent reaction, which is called anaphylactic shock, the patient finds breathing increasingly difficult. This is an emergency condition, and a physician should be consulted immediately. Fortunately, the condition is rare.

Allergy is a condition wherein the body responds negatively to the presence of certain apparently harmless objects in the surroundings. An allergic reaction can occur in people when they come into contact with dust, pollen grains, certain spices or even fruits or vegetables, or when they take some drugs. Allergy is characterized in most instances by itchiness, sneezing, inflammation or certain areas, redness, etc. A typical example of an allergy causing product is the rubber latex.

One of the better known examples of allergy is asthma. Though all cases of asthma may not be an allergic response, it has been noticed that nearly 60% of people who suffer from any form of allergy also have the tendency to develop asthma.

Though allergy symptoms may vary from person to person, many people suffer from inflamed eyes and nose when they have an allergy attack. Earache and headache are also seen in some people and the latter is often a response to taking a drug to which one is allergic.

The problem of constricted bronchia is commonly seen in allergy sufferers and this makes their breathing labored. Since labored breathing could result from other respiratory problems as well, it has to be first of all confirmed by tests that the problem is indeed the result of an allergy. An easy and common type of allergy test is the skin prick test which is believed to give fairly accurate results. Besides being reliable, this test is less expensive than a blood test as well.

The skin prick test consists of pricking the skin and marking it with a special type of ink. Then the possible allergen is placed on the pricked area where the pricks will allow it to enter the skin. If the individual is allergic to that object, the area will swell up and turn red and itchy within half an hour. It is a confirmation of allergy and generally a steroid cream is applied in the area to reduce the itching and swelling.

An allergy blood test is done to check the antibody content in the blood. The ELISA or EIA blood test is done to calculate the level of the antibody called immunoglobulin E, which is generally high in the case of those suffering from an allergy. The human body is likely to produce too much of these when it comes into contact with an object that it identifies as a foreign body.

Though there are no easy or foolproof treatments for allergy, many drugs like cortisone, epinephrine, and antihistamines have been found to give the patient substantial relief.