Food allergies or an adverse reaction to certain food items trigger an abnormal immune response.
When you eat some particular food item and all of a sudden ranging from few immediate minutes after eating that to a few hour later, our body would get uneasy and show symptoms like :
Symptoms
Swelling of mouth or face
Burning sensation around lips
Itching
Vomiting
Hives – a skin rash
running nose or heavy eyes
These are a few of the symptoms which most of us have come across.
Imagine you go out to enjoy a meal on a Sunday evening, you order a meal for yourself and then that irritating feeling where your body starts itching and spreads under your skin. This itchiness could be because you were allergic to the food item you just ate.
Many people get confused with the terms ‘food intolerances’ and ‘food allergies’.
What is a food allergy?
Food allergy is a condition in which certain food items you consume might be treated as an invader and thus triggers an abnormal immune response.
Your immune system wrongly recognises some food as harmful. Hence, there will be an allergic reaction and to protect your body, your immune system in order to fight against it, releases chemicals such as histamine which leads to inflammation.
What is a food intolerance?
Food intolerance majorly has a digestive system in the picture. It means your body is not able to digest the food that you just ate or it disturbs the digestive system.
Food intolerances do not involve your immune system at large. While they can be disturbing to your everyday life, but they do not play with the immune system as that is very important to lead a healthy and strong life.
Hence, though both food allergies and food intolerances are used interchangeably they are different to deal with.
When a person is allergic to a particular food item, sometimes even just touching that particular food can cause our body to react adversely against it.
Allergies in india
Historically, India has had low issues caused by food allergies.
But, gone are those days when we could say the above statement. There is a huge change in lifestyle patterns, the way we store food, huge variety of food items which we now consume on an average and the list of changes could go on!
People now are more exposed to allergies. We can now hear the terms – lactose intolerance, food allergies, dust allergies and many more.
Given the situation, you might probably have one of the above listed symptoms and you haven’t even realised that you are allergic to that particular food item.
In today’s article, I will tell you about a few of the most common foods that can trigger allergic reactions.
5 Common food allergies
Tamarind
Tamarind has a sweet and sour flavor, easily available and regularly used in Indian cuisines. It has great healing benefits however tamarind might trigger some allergic reactions too.
There are lots of people who are sensitive to the properties of this fruit. Hence, might end up developing symptoms like rashes, itching, wheezing, inflammation on the foot or hands etc,. by consuming it in any form.
Milk and dairy
Allergic reactions caused due to the consumption of animal milk are very common nowadays. Most people are allergic to the protein that is present in milk – Casein and Whey.
The source of milk plays an important role in the reaction it has on your body.
Lactose is a kind of sugar that is present in milk and in simple terms if your body is not able to digest the lactose (sugar) present in the milk it will lead to symptoms like bloating, stomach pain, skin rashes etc.,
Fermented foods
Amines (is an organic compound) are found in dried food or fermented food.
Foods that are fermented or which have vinegar contain histamines. Histamine is a type of amine that’s related to food intolerances.
Some people are sensitive to histamine and other amines. Amine stimulates the central nervous system and that is the reason people who are sensitive to amine or histamine might have severe headaches after consuming fermented food, as those kinds of foods are high in amines.
If your body is not able to break down histamine rightly or histamine is not digested then it will build up inside you and get absorbed in the bloodstream. Hence, this leads to allergic symptoms listed above.
Eggs
Being allergic to eggs is uncommon among adults. This allergy is majorly prevalent in children. However, eggs are rich in protein content and if you over do the protein intake in your everyday food habits, where your physical activites are very less, then this might lead to digestive issues.
There is also a chance where one might be allergic to egg white and not the yolks or vice versa as the proteins present in egg whites and yolks are different.
However, heating eggs can change the situation as it changes the shape of the protein which causes the allergy. That is the reason even if a person is allergic to eggs, you will not be allergic to cakes, cookies or any other form which has cooked egg in it.
Peanuts
This is one of the most common allergies.
If you are allergic to them then even a tiny amount can trigger or the worst, just by touching it could trigger the allergy.
Family history also plays a role when it comes to being allergic to peanuts.
Symptoms could range from itchy skin, hives, congested nose, itching in the throat etc.,
Summary
These are a few of the commonly triggered food allergies. However, any food item can lead to allergies if your body doesn’t support it. Different people have different body functioning and the reactions you body has to food consumed.
Food allergy is on the rise. Being aware of what you eat and how it could lead to your health, whether it breaks or builds your health and being able to understand that is what is important.
Being able to understand what you are allergic to is a big task in itself. If you think you are having allergic symptoms regularly it is always better to speak to a doctor and get some help.
Have a happy and healthy life!