Once an allergen is in your body, an allergic reaction may begin within seconds or minutes. Milder allergies may not cause noticeable symptoms for several hours. The most common allergens include foods, medications, insect stings, insect bites, plants, and chemicals. An allergist is a doctor who specializes in diagnosing and treating allergies. They can help determine your specific allergy issues. An anaphylactic response begins quickly after you come into contact with an allergen. Your body releases a lot of chemicals that are intended to combat the allergen.
These chemicals set off a chain reaction of symptoms. Symptoms may begin in seconds or minutes, or a delayed response may occur. These initial symptoms include:. Initial symptoms may quickly turn to more severe problems. If these symptoms go untreated, you may develop one or more of the following symptoms or conditions:. Fully explain to a responsible person what just happened, what you think the allergen is, and what your symptoms are.
If you are alone when the reaction occurs, call immediately. Anxiety can make symptoms worse. Identify what caused the reaction, if you can, and remove it. Make sure the person has no further contact with the trigger.
Monitor them for signs of a reaction. If they show signs of difficulty breathing or loss of circulation, seek emergency help. If you know that the person is severely allergic to the allergen, call Many people with diagnosed severe allergies will receive a prescription for an epinephrine autoinjector from their doctor.
If you are carrying your autoinjector when you begin experiencing the reaction, give yourself an injection right away. Even after an injection, you must seek emergency treatment.
Call as soon as you inject the epinephrine, or have someone drive you to a hospital immediately. Anaphylaxis always requires a trip to the emergency room.
If you do not receive the proper treatment, anaphylaxis can turn deadly in less than 15 minutes. The hospital staff will want to monitor you closely. Allergic reactions are quite common, though some are more common than others. People with certain allergies are very sensitive as any little negligence can be very harmful. People are allergic to different things, and it solely depends from person to person. When the body tends to have an allergic reaction , people experience cough, rashes, fever, and other such reactions.
The lasting time of an allergic reaction differs from one to another. It is considered that most allergic reactions are mild, but there are some which need urgent treatment. Different allergic reactions have different symptoms, and though more or less the period is the same for them to last.
Mentioned below are some of the most common types of allergies that people experience:. While the time for a food allergy to last depends on the intensity of the allergic reaction, the amount of food you eat, and its type. Seasonal: As the name suggests, seasonal allergies occur when there is a change in the climate.
The most common symptoms are runny nose, hay fever, but these allergic reactions are manageable to a great extent. This is an example of cross-reactivity. This following table shows the specific fruits, vegetables, nuts and spices that can cause pollen-food allergy syndrome in people who are allergic to different pollens.
Eating certain foods may cause some people to feel itchy and lightheaded soon after starting to exercise. Serious cases may even involve hives or anaphylaxis. Not eating for a couple of hours before exercising and avoiding certain foods may help prevent this problem.
A food intolerance or a reaction to another substance you ate may cause the same signs and symptoms as a food allergy does — such as nausea, vomiting, cramping and diarrhea. Depending on the type of food intolerance you have, you may be able to eat small amounts of problem foods without a reaction. By contrast, if you have a true food allergy, even a tiny amount of food may trigger an allergic reaction. One of the tricky aspects of diagnosing food intolerance is that some people are sensitive not to the food itself but to a substance or ingredient used in the preparation of the food.
Celiac disease. While celiac disease is sometimes referred to as a gluten allergy, it does not result in anaphylaxis. Like a food allergy, it does involve an immune system response, but it's a unique reaction that's more complex than a simple food allergy. This chronic digestive condition is triggered by eating gluten, a protein found in bread, pasta, cookies, and many other foods containing wheat, barley or rye.
If you have celiac disease and eat foods containing gluten, an immune reaction occurs that causes damage to the surface of your small intestine, leading to an inability to absorb certain nutrients. Food allergies are more common in children, especially toddlers and infants. As you grow older, your digestive system matures and your body is less likely to absorb food or food components that trigger allergies. Fortunately, children typically outgrow allergies to milk, soy, wheat and eggs.
Severe allergies and allergies to nuts and shellfish are more likely to be lifelong. Early introduction of peanut products has been associated with a lower risk of peanut allergy. Before introducing allergenic foods, talk with your child's doctor about the best time to offer them.
However, once food allergy has already developed, the best way to prevent an allergic reaction is to know and avoid foods that cause signs and symptoms. For some people, this is a mere inconvenience, but others find it a greater hardship. Also, some foods — when used as ingredients in certain dishes — may be well-hidden.
This is especially true in restaurants and in other social settings. Be careful at restaurants. Be certain your server or chef is aware that you absolutely can't eat the food you're allergic to, and you need to be completely certain that the meal you order doesn't contain it. Also, make sure food isn't prepared on surfaces or in pans that contained any of the food you're allergic to. Don't be reluctant to make your needs known. Restaurant staff members are usually more than happy to help when they clearly understand your request.
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