The Must Know Info On Allergy

By Ashely Farrar

Peanuts could lead you breathless, a bowl of pulses may cause swelling of the tongue and throat, or a fish preparation may lead to redness of skin and an incessant rash. The list is endless, and these are just a handful of the common allergies that people suffer from. While their occurrence may be common, what really makes the task difficult is that there is no cure for an allergy, and the only way out is by preventing the intake of food that causes allergy.

Simply defined, an allergy is intolerance of the immune system to specific foods. You are allergic to food when your body reacts adversely to it, thereby producing excess histamine, which triggers a cascade of allergic symptoms that can affect the respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, skin or cardiovascular system.

Although an individual could be allergic to any food, such as fruits, vegetables and meat, it’s protein-rich food that more than 80 per cent of the people are allergic to.

You could either be allergic to specific food items, or preservatives. In case of food, allergies are generally caused by protein rich food stuffs like peanuts, fish, egg, soy, wheat and pulses.

While an allergy may develop at any age, there is no specific cure, which can be prescribed. Doctors prescribe anti-histamine drugs and may even have to inject steroids in severe cases, but these only subdue the effects after an allergy has occurred. There is no long-term cure or means to get rid of any allergy and the only way out is to prevent the intake of food that causes the allergy.

The symptoms vary from urticaria – red patches, indicating excess of blood supply to that region of the body, to general body rash and itching. In severe cases it may lead to breathlessness and angioneurotic oedema, where the wind pipe is blocked.

Patch test to find out the specific food that causes allergy exist. These are restrictive in nature and can only test allergy to 50 to 100 food stuffs. The method of exclusion serves best. Doctors recommend maintaining a diary. Once you know that you are allergic to something, start recording everything that you eat in a diary. It will be easier to detect the particular food whenever you develop symptoms next.

Once you determine what you are allergic to, it is important to learn to read food labels and thereby avoid eating food that you are allergic to. The dictum, prevention is better than cure, works best in case of allergy.

Symptoms of an allergic reaction

Symptoms typically appear within minutes to two hours after a person has eaten the food to which he/she is allergic.

1. Tingling sensation in the mouth

2. Swelling of the tongue and throat

3. Difficulty in breathing

4. Vomiting

5. Abdominal cramps

6. Diarrhea

7. Drop in blood pressure

8. Loss of consciousness

Symptoms may be mild or very sever, depending on how much of the food you have consumed and extent that you are allergic to it

Allergies – Start With The Bedroom

By Michael Russell

If you an allergy sufferer that suffers from dust, pollen, or any other nasal allergies, you should consider the most important room in your house: the bedroom. Why the bedroom? The bedroom is where we spend the most time in the house, or even anywhere. In fact, on average, we spend roughly eight to nine hours a day in the bedroom. So why not take the room that’s the most important and make it an allergy-free environment?

The bedroom is where we sleep. So to make sure that the room remains allergy-free, check the most important areas of the room.

Since we spend more time in bed, we need to find ways to make sure that the bed isn’t a source of dust or dust mites. One way to maintain an allergy-free environment is to have a mattress encasing. A mattress encasing shields exposure to molds, bacteria and dust mites. In most cases, the encasings are made of a fabric (cloth) that is tightly constructed so that allergens can’t enter them. There are various encasings that are available in many sizes.

Like mattress encasings, pillow encasing is vital. Pillow encasings have the same properties as mattress encasings but they are more important since we rest our heads on them. If you can get only one item, the pillow encasing would be a necessity.

Dust mites can live almost everywhere, including blankets. The blanket could be a haven for these creatures since it has an environment that’s hospitable for these creatures. There are hypoallergenic comforters and blankets for the bed that can dramatically reduce the dust and dust mites.

Another way to combat dust mites is to make sure that your bedroom is clean. Carpets should be thoroughly vacuumed and blankets washed consistently. By washing and cleaning these items, you can eliminate most of the dust and other allergens. Interestingly, there are carpet treatments to handle dust mites such as X-Mite Carpet Cleaning formula.

Clearing the air is a good practice as well. The air in the bedroom can become stale and full of allergen particles. Air purifiers are ideal for the bedroom. It’s a common mistake to put an air purifier in the family room if there’s only one—simply because we spend more time in the bedroom. Air purifiers are efficient in eliminating not just dust, but other allergens such as mold and pollen.

Sometimes rooms with furry dolls and teddy bears could be a hazard for young sufferers. Dust mites can cling on these toys, just like carpets and blankets. Eliminating some of the furry dolls can help the bedroom environment become dust free. If the child does insist on keeping dolls, there are stuffed dolls that are hypoallergenic.

Humidity is ideal for dust mite survival particularly in environments of 75-80 degrees F and 70-80% humidity. If the humidity is lower than 50 percent, mites have little chances for survival. To lower dust mites in the bedroom, make sure that the room doesn’t have high humidity. There are plenty of dehumidifiers available if your room is naturally humid.

There are plenty of other ways to make the bedroom allergen free but the suggestions here are a start. The bedroom is the most important room in the house where allergies matter. Learn to make the room a more pleasant environment and you’re on your way to making your life better.

Allergies and Asthma – Differences and Similarities

by Mike Herman

Allergies are the most common cause of the inflammation which underlies most asthma particularly in younger sufferers.

Allergy rates are on the increase especially in Western countries (compared to people in less affluent rural parts of the world) and there is a growing body of evidence that strongly suggests that asthma is an environmentally induced disease.

This raises the challenging possibility that we may be able to prevent asthma by altering our environment.

Treating asthma by removing the causes, aka triggers, may prove to be successful when the cause is easy to remove, such as a dust or vapors inhaled at the office.

This is also true when the cause is a pet such as a cat or dog, however the reluctance to not have loved pet commonly prevents this.

An allergy to house dust mites is one of the commonest cause of asthma but getting rid of mites sufficiently to make a significant difference requires such a major and expensive change in lifestyle for the sufferer that it is rarely successful..

Research is currently being carried out to develop future treatments which may be able to modify or diminish the allergic process in the body and help all asthmatics.

Asthma and Allergies

*The cause of the inflammation (of the airway) which underlies most asthma in younger sufferers is one or more allergies.

*More people in western countries suffer from allergies, compared to people in less affluent parts of the world, and allergy rates are on the increase.

Allergies – Additional Nutrients May Help Alleviate The Misery

By Chuck Lunsford

I found it rather appropriate to be sitting on my couch here in Southwest Florida in the early spring writing an article on allergies. As an allergy sufferer and a diabetic I know oh too well just how debilitating the effects are. My nemesis happens to come in two guises … plant pollen and black mold. I have found certain nutrients added to my diet greatly contribute towards managing the allergen’s ill-effects.

An allergy is the body overreacting to a substance that normally is not harmful. Quite literally the body’s immune system is duped into identifying a non-toxic substance as an invader, causing the white blood cells to overreact, and do more damage to the body than the invasive substance. The allergic response itself becomes a disease. Common responses are asthma, eczema, and hay fever.

The substances that create all this trouble are called allergens. For every known substance there is a possibility one person is allergic to it, but the most common allergens are grass pollen, dust, certain molds, some metals, some cosmetics, animal dander, insect bites and stings, some drugs (e.g., penicillin), some foods (e.g., eggs, shellfish), and some chemicals found in every day cleaning products.

Why some people react to certain substance no one knows. It is believed allergies run in families. Emotional factors may cause the problem as well; stress and anger are contributing factors.

Some nutrients that I use daily during the allergy season that may be beneficial in reducing the effects of allergies include:

• Bee pollen

• Calcium to help reduce stress.

• Vitamin B-complex

• Multienzymes

• Multivitamins

• Extra Vitamin C stimulates immune function

• Beta Carotene is a free radical scavenger that stimulates the immune response

• Extra Vitamin E is another free radical destroyer

• Protein supplement

Please keep in mind that these nutrients are in no way to be substituted for proper medical care. They are suggested as additional tools to fight the effects of allergies.

Allergies Or Heart Attack?

By Michael Russel

A few years ago a woman started having a wide variety of medical issues. They ranged from a skin condition all the way to classic heart attack signs and symptoms. Her family doctor ran a complete array of tests over a period of months, but never considered the possibility of a heart attack. The doctor’s lack of concern with ruling out any heart problem worried the husband from the first appointment. The end result was all of her medical issues were allergies, lots of allergies to a host of different things. None of the ailments suggested allergies were the cause; either alone or collectively. Why would they? The lady had been suffering from extremely dry skin with flaking and itching all over, but mostly on her back. She assumed it was from the brand of soap she was using in the shower. Later she began to notice unusual sensations around her mouth and in her throat, but it didn’t seem to last for any length of time. Still later she started to notice she was having stomach problems on a semi-regular basis. She still had no major concerns with her health in general, nor did she have any idea they might be somehow related to a common cause. After several months she started noticing headaches, something she almost never experienced in the past. Even more time passed and other abnormal conditions developed. Last was the chest pain and pressure, pain radiating down her left arm, shortness of breath and pounding heartbeat. Up to this point she had made little or no mention of any of these issues to her husband. When she started seriously loosing sleep because of the chest pain and related discomforts she informed her husband. The very next day she made an appointment with her family doctor. After the very first appointment her husband was really concerned because the doctor hadn’t ruled out any heart disease before considering anything else. The doctor ran tests for gall bladder and several other possibilities. Each test meant another follow up with the family doctor and each time nothing showed up. Still no attempt was made by their family doctor to deal with the possible heart problems. After new problems popped up and the scare with the chest pain continued both the husband and wife decided to change family doctors. The very first appointment with the new doctor quickly showed the couple they had made the right move by getting a second opinion. The new physician made two appointments for his patient. One appointment was with a dermatologist for the skin problems and one appointment with an allergist. The dermatologist explained exactly what the course of treatment was going to be and explained that nothing was going to happen until the woman had seen the allergy specialist. He explained everything he was going to do in satisfying detail. Finally the couple felt some relief, all but knowing positive results were just around the corner. In just a couple of appointments with the allergy doctor, the couple knew exactly what all of the medical problems were a result of and knew what they had to do to avoid repeats of the discomfort. It seems the list of different things the lady was allergic to was two and a quarter pages long. Almost all of the allergic reactions were different from the next. Some of the allergies were causing the skin dryness. Some were much more dangerous, causing her airway to constrict. The allergy doctor told her that some of the things she was allergic to would close off her airway so rapidly that emergency medical treatment would not be quick enough to save her life. The husband was most relieved by learning that the heart attack signs and symptoms were all allergies too. It is important to know this woman was age 49 when she demonstrated allergic reactions. Prior to that time, she had no known allergies throughout her lifetime. In the event that someone you know does have similar medical conditions, insist that the doctor consider allergies as the cause. If the conditions present themselves like a possible heart attack, first insist that all heart issues are ruled out. That should be the doctor’s first focus. Hopefully, simple testing will prove that the heart is healthy. If so, insist the doctor test for allergies. Keep in mind that this lady had lots of medical difficulties and none seemed related. That is because there were lots of different allergies – each producing different symptoms with different levels of severity. It is worth the uncomfortable feeling of pushing the medical professional for the peace of mind you will finally gain.