What's the Deal with Food Allergies?
Watery eyes, itchy mouths, wheezing and vomiting, welts on the skin - all from food? What’s going on?
For people with food allergies, meals and snack time are like walking through a minefield. While in some cases, food allergies can cause only minor discomfort, for others they can be severe, causing difficulty breathing and even shock. Learning how to recognize an allergic reaction, therefore, is critical to getting the medical care you or your child needs.
First, what is a food allergy? Like other allergies, such as to pollen, dust, or mold, the body is reacting to something it thinks is harmful. The immune system, which we need to fight infection and disease kicks in, creating antibodies to fight the allergen (the substance that triggers the allergy). When these antibodies react with the food, histamine and other chemicals (called mediators) cause hives, asthma, or other symptoms of an allergic reaction.
It is important to note that food allergies are not the same as food intolerance. Food intolerance is a metabolic disorder and does not involve the immune system. For example, a person who is lactose intolerant lacks the enzyme is needed to digest milk sugar. When he or she eats milk products, symptoms such as gas, bloating and abdominal pain may occur.
According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), up to 6% of children in the United States under age 3 have food allergies. They are less common in adults but, overall, food allergies affect nearly 4 million people. Eight foods account for 90% of severe allergies, including peanuts, tree nuts (walnuts, pecans, etc.), fish, shellfish, eggs, milk, soy and wheat.
Researchers don't know why but food allergies have increased over the past two decades, as have allergies in general. Genetics play a role, but they don’t entirely explain it.
One plausible explanation is the “hygiene theory.” It is believed that in modern, industrialized nations, such as the United States, food allergies are more common because of reduced exposure to germs. With overuse of antibiotics and anti-bacterial cleansers, and increased use of vaccines to protect us from illness, our bodies have fewer germs to fight off. As a result, the body then turns on itself and attacks food proteins as if they were foreign invaders.
Another theory is that infants are being exposed to some foods too early, before their digestive systems are developed enough to break down that protein and process it.
Unfortunately, you can’t prevent allergies altogether and doctors can’t predict who will have food allergies and who won’t. But some factors may place a child at higher risk for developing food allergies. Kids with food allergies may come from families whose members have a history of other allergies. Additionally, certain health conditions, like asthma, are associated with severe allergic reactions to foods.
To reduce the risk of developing food allergies, breastfeeding can help infants. If your child already has food allergies, make sure he or she avoids trigger foods. And be cautious about allowing your child to eat processed foods or sharing foods with others.
The good news is most common food allergies are outgrown in childhood. Talk to your doctor if you’re worried you or your child might have a food allergy. If your child does have a food allergy, make sure his or her school and other caretakers are aware of this and know what precautions to take.
- Modern Menus
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