Food allergies can range in severity from mild to life-threatening, with severe reactions potentially leading to anaphylaxis (which impacts breathing and lowers blood pressure) occurring in some cases.
People suffering from other allergic conditions like hay fever or eczema are more likely to have food allergies, including milk, eggs and wheat reactions in children; however peanuts, fish and shellfish tend to remain lifelong allergies.
What is a food allergy?
Food allergies occur when your immune system mistakenly misidentifies certain food items as potential invaders and overreacts, producing chemicals to combat these problem foods, leading to symptoms like itchy rashes (eczema), swelling of lips, throat or tongue swellings, belly pain nausea or vomiting, wheezing trouble breathing even low blood pressure or shock in extreme cases.
Food intolerances do not involve the immune system and cannot result in life-threatening reactions. Most food intolerances do not stem from allergies, but instead occur when your body cannot properly digest certain foods – often as a result of issues with stomach, digestive tract or hormones; triggers may include various factors.
If you suspect that you have a food allergy, keeping a food diary is vital in tracking when the symptoms begin and how long they last. Your physician can use this record of symptoms to better diagnose them using skin prick tests, oral food challenges (in which problem foods are gradually introduced into one’s diet under medical supervision), blood tests or adrenaline auto-injectors like EpiPen to provide emergency treatments at hospital as needed.
Symptoms of a food allergy
Food allergies occur when your immune system reacts inappropriately to certain food items, triggering itching in your mouth or throat (oral allergy syndrome), swelling of lips and tongue (also called Oral Allergy Syndrome), difficulty breathing and even sudden drops in blood pressure (anaphylaxis). Although more likely among children with a family history of allergies, asthma or eczema; food allergies can occur at any age and in any individual; peanuts/tree nuts, fish, dairy products, eggs wheat soy and shellfish being more likely than others to trigger symptoms.
An accurate medical diagnosis is critical in order to identify which food triggers an allergic reaction in your child, as avoiding these foods will help limit any serious health consequences. Your child’s doctor may also provide them with an autoinjector such as Adrenaclick or EpiPen in case any life-threatening allergy symptoms appear.
Food allergies and intolerances can be hard to distinguish. Allergies involve the immune system while intolerances don’t involve it and only affect specific parts of the body. A GP can diagnose food allergies by asking you about symptoms that arise after eating certain foods and how severe they are, then performing various tests – including skin testing – such as applying liquid extracts of potential allergens on either arm/back and pricking them to see if reddish raised spots called wheals appear.
Diagnosis of a food allergy
Doctors typically diagnose food allergies through patient histories and skin/blood tests. Within minutes after eating a problem food, symptoms will usually emerge in multiple parts of the body and include: tingling in the mouth/throat/throat region or throat region, lips swelling up/tongue swelling up, belly ache or diarrhea, hives itching wheezing trouble breathing (anaphylaxis). If severe reactions arise they must be treated immediately with an injection of adrenaline epinephrine (epinephrine/adrenaline).
Skin tests involve applying liquid extracts from suspected foods to the patient’s back or forearm and pricking the skin in order to check for reddish-red spots that indicate possible food allergies. If positive, allergists might conduct further blood testing that measures immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies specific for that food; if IgE levels are elevated then that person is likely allergic.
An allergist might also suggest an oral food challenge, in which patients consume small quantities of the suspect food under medical supervision and observe for symptoms. This test is considered the most accurate way to make a diagnosis if skin or blood tests fail to make clear determinations. If an allergy is identified, seeing a registered dietitian for advice about how best to avoid foods while still receiving essential nutrition is highly advised.
Treatment of a food allergy
Food allergies should be managed by avoiding foods which trigger allergic reactions; this is particularly important when treating children who may encounter foods during school and family outings.
Food allergies often develop within several hours after consuming the offending food and can affect multiple parts of the body, from mild to severe reactions such as tingling in the mouth or lips to swelling tongue or throat swelling, belly pain, hives, wheezing or trouble breathing. In extreme cases, anaphylaxis (drop in blood pressure leading to shock) may occur and lead to serious health complications.
Allergy tests can help your physician quickly diagnose food allergies. Skin prick testing uses diluted extracts of suspected allergens injected directly onto the skin and checks for any reactions, such as raised bumps or itches, on testing. This test is highly accurate when applied to foods that contain stable proteins like peanut, milk, egg and fish but less reliable when testing some fruits and vegetables.
Oral immunotherapy (OIT), commonly referred to as sublingual or epicutaneous immunotherapy, is another way of diagnosing food allergies. Under medical supervision, your food of concern is administered orally in small increasing doses until eventually you are able to enjoy it without an allergic reaction – either in your doctor’s office or through specially equipped food challenge centers that offer this therapy.
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