Food Allergies

People that are allergic to certain foods may have a hard time determining what it is they are allergic to. In some cases it is not a allergy but a food intolerance that does have some of the same symptoms and is hard for the individual to distinguish the difference between the two conditions. As a general rule, if your body can tolerate even a small amount of the food, this is a intolerance. The true food allergy will not tolerate any amount of the food no matter how tiny. It is best to talk to your physician to see if a food allergy test is recommended.

Your physician may suggest a food diary to be kept. This could be a good idea to help get an idea of what symptoms occur with what foods. Be prepared to give a good description of the symptoms to the physician. A family history may also be helpful. A careful examination by the physician can exclude or include if other medical problems are present. Children will often out grow some food allergies. Milk and soy is the most common to out grow. While the peanuts, fish and shrimp may never be outgrown.

One of the simplest treatments would be the elimination diet. After elimination of suspected foods for a week or two,then add that food back into your diet one at the time. This is not a foolproof methods many psychological and physical factors can trigger a response that is not a true allergic reaction.

A skin test will prick the skin with small amounts of suspected foods placed on the forearm or back. The skin pricked with a needle will allow a tiny amount of the substance to get under the skins surface. A bump or a reaction will develop if your are allergic to that substance.

A blood test can be preformed to measure the immune system’s response to a particular food. This test will assess the amount of allergy type antibodies in the bloodstream. These antibodies are known as the immunoglobulin E, or (IgE). The blood sample can be taken in the doctors office. Then it is sent to a medical laboratory where different foods will be tested. These test are not 100% accurate.

For the less sever reactions, the doctor may prescribe antihistamines which can be taken after the exposure to the allergen. This will help to control the reactions and help to relieve some of the discomfort. Creams may help to relieve some of the skin irritations and reactions. If you have a reaction and need treatment, the emergency room will give a injection of adrenaline (epinephrine).

Depending on how severely the reactions of the food allergies are, it may be necessary for the doctor to prescribe an injectable epinephrine such as EpiPen or Twinject. If your allergic reactions are this severe, you or someone with you will need to carry this at all times and know how to use this emergancy injection if it is needed.