Food allergies - subjectively dangerous

 

A food allergy (food allergy) is a condition in which one or certain foods cause an abnormal immune response.

That's because the body's immune system mistakenly recognizes certain proteins in food as harmful agents, thereby triggering a series of defense mechanisms (including releasing chemicals like histamine) that cause allergies.

How do food allergies occur?

Food allergies are more likely to occur in people with allergies (atopic dermatitis, allergic rhinitis, bronchial asthma...).

For people with food allergies, even very small amounts of allergenic foods are enough to develop allergic reactions, which can be mild and transient but sometimes cause a serious medical condition, even death. Symptoms of food allergies can be one or more manifestations such as rashes, itching in the skin. Redness usually goes away in a few days. Some cases that can persist for a long time are called atopic dermatitis. Itchy nose and eyes, sneezing and runny nose, there may be symptoms of asthma such as coughing, wheezing, heaviness in the chest and shortness of breath. Itching and swelling around the lips and mouth, especially when the lips and mouth come into direct contact with food. Some other symptoms such as abdominal pain, nausea, cramping-type pain, edema, vomiting and diarrhea may also occur.

Severe anaphylactic reactions are the most severe manifestation of food allergies and can lead to death. Common symptoms of anaphylaxis are oropharyngeal itching, angioedema (such as laryngeal edema), triggers, difficulty pronouncing, coughing, shortness of breath, wheezing, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, flushing, rash. Death can occur as a result of one or a combination of events: severe laryngeal edema, irreversible bronchospasm, irreversible hypotension.

Risk factors for an anaphylactic reaction that threatens death from food include: patients who already have asthma, especially those with asthma that is not well controlled; have previously suffered food-induced anaphylactic reactions; failure to detect early symptoms of anaphylaxis; slow or no emergency medications to treat food allergies.

The duration of the occurrence of allergies can be within a few minutes or hours after eating. In some sensitive cases, just touching or inhaling allergic foods can cause symptoms. But there are also cases of slow reactions, which occur after a few days with unclear manifestations such as irritability, irritability, rashes, vomiting, abdominal pain, loose digestion and bloody stools. Monitoring is required to distinguish it from other pathologies.

Urticaria is a common sign of an allergy.

Foods that are prone to allergies

It can be said that all foods can cause allergies, especially protein-rich foods (90% of the causes). In children, they are often allergic to eggs, milk (especially in infants and young children), peanuts, soybeans (soybeans), wheat, walnuts... In adults, allergenic foods are: Fish (especially sea fish such as puffer fish) and marine foods such as shrimp, crabs, oysters, snails, peanuts (peanuts), walnuts (similar to chestnuts), eggs.

Cross-allergy occurs in foods with the same composition. Like milk, if you are allergic to cow's milk, you may also be allergic to goat, sheep, buffalo, and beef milk. If you are allergic to chicken eggs, you may also be allergic to chicken, cakes that use eggs ... Some factors increase the risk of allergies: genetics (if a parent has an allergy, 20-30% of children are also likely to have allergies, if both parents have allergies, this rate is up to 50-60%), some combined conditions such as viral infection, damage to the intestinal mucosa ...

Prevention of food allergies

Prevention of food allergies is very important because if severe food allergies such as anaphylactic reactions occur, treatment will be very difficult, expensive, etc., which can have long-term consequences. Preventive measures include: An understanding of food allergens and the manifestations of food allergies is required. Avoid foods and products made from foods that you are already allergic to, including avoiding skin contact or inhaling them. Recognize the early symptoms of an allergic reaction. Keep in mind the common clinical symptoms of food allergies on the skin, digestive system, and respiratory system. When food allergy reactions occur quickly and tend to worsen, it is necessary to immediately go to a medical facility for timely diagnosis and treatment.

For children who are prone to food allergies, it is necessary to pay attention. For babies born in the early days, foreign objects, foreign antigens are milk, food. For breastfed babies, it is not a foreign antigen, only those who are fed cow's milk, formula milk is considered a foreign antigen. Therefore, the principle of reducing allergies for the first child is oral tolerance: delayed exposure to allergens in the first few months of life. At this stage, most of the allergens are derived from cow's milk nutritional formula. Babies who are fed nutritional formula will receive 106 times more foreign antigens than those who are exclusively breastfed. High-risk infants, including those not breastfed, should be given hydrolyzed milk up to 4 months of age. Partially hydrolyzed formula milk is preferred over active (complete) hydrolyzed formula. Nursing mothers should also limit foods that can cause allergies to babies in order to make breast milk safe.

Absolutely avoid foods to which children are allergic, especially children under 3 years old - the age group with the highest food allergy. Combining a diet with a supplemental diet is a safe solution.