Chocolate allergies may cause asthma symptoms in susceptible people especially when a person is allergic to more than one ingredient in the chocolate. Some of the common ingredients include cocoa, milk, caffeine, gluten, soy lecithin, phenyl-ethylamine, nuts, theo-bromine, and dyes.

Chocolate allergy symptoms may include

• anxiety,
• confusion,
• headaches,
• hives,
• irritability,
• nausea,
• eczema,
• itching,
• watery eyes,
• runny nose,
• sneezing,
• wheezing,
• coughing,
• heartburn,
• difficulty breathing due to inflammation of the airway, and
• anaphylaxis or shock.

A diagnosis can be done through a skin test or a blood test that reveals antibodies in the blood stream. Treatments that can help with the symptoms include antihistamines, bronchodilators, corticosteroids, and epinephrine. The treatment largely depends upon the severity of the symptoms or reaction to the allergen. Of course, avoidance will help to prevent the reaction and discomfort.

Antihistamines can help to relieve the itching, digestive distress, watery eyes, sneezing, and the irritability. They can be obtained through a prescription or can be purchased over-the-counter at a drug store. The prescription antihistamines are less likely to cause drowsiness. People who experience asthma symptoms with chocolate allergies will probably need to use bronchodilators and corticosteroids to help with shortness of breath, wheezing, coughing, and inflammation. Epinephrine can be kept at home in an auto-injector so that it can be administered as soon as a person has a reaction. This can be used for any type of allergy and should be used as soon as possible to prevent anaphylaxis or shock.

Allergies seem to run in families and children who have both parents with symptoms seem to be at increased risk of developing them. Some sources believe that one of the main underlying reasons that lead to the development of symptoms have to do with a depressed or weak immune system. Other possible links may include chemicals and preservatives found in most processed foods. The most common foods that cause problems in susceptible individuals are wheat, dairy, shellfish, eggs, and peanuts. Chocolate allergy symptoms are similar to the reaction caused by other food sensitivities. Some of the worse reactions have been linked to peanuts and shellfish. Other possible food allergens may be found in products that contain proteins and yeast or molds. Some of these are soybeans, pickles, avocado, tomato, coffee, beans, cheese, wine, and beer.

People who have food sensitivities should make it a practice to read all product labels. Another good idea is to keep a food diary and record any time there is a reaction. This can help to narrow down the foods that a person is allergic or sensitive to so that he or she can avoid them in the future. For someone who is extremely sensitive doctors often recommend eliminated any foods that are possible culprits and then adding them back into the diet very slowly to find out which ones are offending foods. Someone with chocolate allergies will want to watch out for anything that has any of the ingredients found in chocolate such as cocoa and milk. “And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst”(John 6:35).

To diagnose a suspected allergen there are a few different things that can help to do this. Skin tests can be done with the suspected substance to see if there is a reaction to the skin. A reaction that indicates positive would be the showing of redness, inflammation, and irritation. A doctor may choose to use blood tests to measure the amount of the antibodies in the blood stream to the suspected substance. Someone with chocolate allergy symptoms who is also suffering with asthma may need a pulmonary function test. This test measures the amount of airflow through a device called a spirometer. After airflow is measured then the patient is given a bronchodilator and airflow is measured again. With the bronchodilator the patient should have improved airflow; if this happens then the test will show positive for asthma. Doctors also use a skin patch test; the patch is soaked with the allergen and then taped to the person’s skin for up to two days. If a rash develops then the test will be positive.

Food allergies in individuals involve a response by a person’s immune system that is usually caused by a protein. When the body perceives a foreign invader then it produces antibodies to defend against that invader. These antibodies attach to the cells and contain chemicals called histamines and leukotrienes. So if the body sees cocoa or some other additive in chocolate as an invader then the chemicals are released and the person starts experiencing chocolate allergy symptoms. This reaction should not be taken lightly because it can lead to shock. Some of the beginning signs that this could be happening are itching in the roof of the mouth, swelling of the eyes, hives, shortness of breath, increased heart rate, and swelling of the throat.

There are additives in chocolate that may be the reason for the sensitivity. Much of what is purchased in stores contains milk, nuts, wheat or gluten, soy, and corn. These may be listed on the ingredient list as casein, whey, gluten, soy lecithin, and corn syrup. So individuals who think they have chocolate allergies may really have sensitivities to one or more of the ingredients. A person who has sensitivities to ingredients may not have any symptoms unless a large amount is consumed. For a proper diagnosis and the latest treatment a person should see a physician for an examination and inform the doctor about any symptoms that he or she is experiencing.

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If you suffer from Yeast Allergy then you have a Type 1 Allergy, also known as Contact Allergy. This is a hypersensitivity to a protein found in yeast that causes the immune system to overreact causing an allergic reaction. Antibodies and histamines are releases into the blood stream in an attempt to neutralize the yeast protein. These chemicals trigger the allergic symptoms.

Most food allergy reactions usually happen within a few minutes to a few hours after eating or inhaling yeast. Most mild to moderate reactions last less than a day and can involve a rash on the skin, cramps, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, runny nose, watery eyes, wheezing and coughing.

William G Cook M.D. 1983 published a book called The Yeast Connection. He claimed that the use of antibiotics to kill germs in the human body also killed friendly germs needed by the body to maintain a healthy balance. Yeast produces toxins that weaken the immune system. Diets rich in carbohydrates and yeasts, birth control pills, cortisone, and other drugs can stimulate yeast growth.

He believes that to correct the problem, he prescribed allergenic extracts, anti-fungal drugs, vitamins and mineral supplements, and diets that avoid refined carbohydrates, processed foods, and fruits and milk.

The allergic to yeast testing involves putting a liquid extract of the yeast protein on your body, usually the back or forearm, and then scratching the skin slightly. If you develop hives, or red bumps, or the skin turns reddish in color and itches then these symptoms could indicate a positive result for allergies to yeast.

Another test that can be performed is called The Food Challenge. You are told to avoid all yeast-containing foods for several weeks. Avoidance can be very difficult because yeast protein is often hidden in other foods.
The doctor will then have you eat only yeast under close supervision. If symptoms appear after eating the yeast products they you are allergic to yeast and will need to avoid anything that has on the label, contains yeast ingredients, made using yeast ingredients, or made in a facility that also processes yeast.

If you are allergic to yeast then absolutely avoid eating bread and other baked goods, drinking ale, beer, red or white wine, sherry, and vermouth. All alcoholic beverages will contain yeast to some extent. Whiskeys are distilled from beers; scotch, bourbon, rye, cognacs and brandies are distilled from wines.

All alcoholic beverages use yeast, as catalysts for fermentation so will contain some amount in the final products. Rum, gin, and vodka are type of liquor that is not derived from high-yeast so have the lowest yeast content for people with a Yeast Allergy.

Always consult your doctor before using this information.
This Article is nutritional in nature and is not to be construed as medical advice.

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Question

When I was little I had a milk allergy of which I grew out of. Therefore, my son also has the risk of getting it.
My son is 7 ½ months. Should I avoid giving him yogurt and cheese?

Answer

When you talk about milk allergy or hypersensitivity to milk you distinguish between allergies and intolerances. When it comes to allergies, the body produces antibodies against milk, and therefore allergies can be determined by a skin prick test or through a blood test. By intolerance no antibodies are formed and as such a positive determination can be difficult.

It is typical children under one year of age, who develops hypersensitivity to milk. The symptoms will be vomiting, diarrhea, eczema, asthma, swollen mucous membranes, in for example the eyes. It is always very important to have your child diagnosed by your doctor. If he suspect your child suffer from milk allergy, he will often put your child on a diet and the doctor will then make a provocation with milk. Since this is not entirely without risk, we should as parents not try to do this ourselves, and often it will take place at the hospital.

It is very important that if you as a parent, have any suspicion of milk allergy, that you contact your doctor and talk to your doctor about this. If you begin to put your child on a diet, without there actually is reason for this, it will, first of all be sorry for the child and secondly, there will be a risk that the child will be malnutritioned.

If the child has been diagnosed with hypersensitivity to milk, you should not give you child yogurt or products based on cow’s milk. A child with milk allergy should have hydrolysed infant formula, up to 3 years of age, to cover its needs for energy and calcium.

Whether or not you should feed your child products made with cow’s milk depends on whether you know that he has allergy to milk or not. If you, by your doctor has been prescribed hydrolysed infant formula for you child, in addition to breast feeding, then the doctor had a reasonable suspicion that you need to follow up on. If your son so far has been given ordinary formula and also gets cow’s milk in its porridge, etc., it should be no problem to give him yogurt and cheese.

Continued good luck with him,

Maya

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• occur when you eat the food you can not tolerate,
• disappear or decrease when you stop eating the food, and
• come back when you eat the food again.

Hypersensitivity to food are divided into food allergies and non-allergic food hypersensitivity.

Food allergies

Food allergies occur, when specific proteins (allergens) in food affects the body’s immune system. The body may respond by forming allergy antibodyIgE. The antibody is directed at the food you are allergic to. In rare cases, IgE is not formed, but the allergy is triggered in a different way. Coeliac disease an example on this – although coeliac disease normally is not considered as an allergic disease.

When you eat the food you can not tolerate, there is an allergic reaction with symptoms from the eyes, nose, lungs, skin, stomach and intestinal canal or heart-cardio vascular system. Most common two or more symptoms are seen.

It is different how much of the allergen, is required to produce symptoms, but in some cases even very small quantities can trigger severe symptoms.

The allergy antibody is measured by an allergy test – either a blood sample or a test on the skin, known as a priktest. Other tests, such as lappetest on the skin, are used in rare cases to investigate for other allergic mechanisms.

The allergy test is not enough to make the final diagnosis. 

Non-allergic food hypersensitivity

In non-allergic food hypersensitivity there is no allergic reaction from the body. The response can not be measured by an allergy test.

Most often, the symptoms of the non-allergic food hypersensitivity is lighter and comes later than with food allergy, and often you must eat more of the food (the allergen) before experiencing symptoms. You can not however, from the symptoms alone distinguish between food allergy and non-allergic food hypersensitivity.

Hypersensitivity to food additives is usually a non-allergic food hypersensitivity like sensitivity to milk (xyz). Some of the diseases, which falls under the non-allergic food hypersensitivity, was formerly called intolerance. 

The diagnosis

A blood sample or a skin prick test can only be used to support a presumption of allergy, but is never enough to make the diagnosis of food hypersensitivity. This diagnosis can only be made final by comparing the medical history and test with a period of diet and a provocation. During the diet, you should not eat the suspected food. In the subsequent provocation, you must eat them again.

In both food and non-allergic food hypersensitivity symptoms will disappear or be reduced when dieting and return when provoked. 

Contact allergy and food

Contact allergy may occur when chemicals comes in contact with the skin. The contact allergy appears as eczema on the skin. Nickel allergy is an example of contact allergy.

If you have a contact allergy,  such as nickel allergy, you might experience in rare cases, that the skin symptoms will flare up if you eat food that contains nickel in sufficient quantities.

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What is food allergy?

Food allergy is an allergic reaction, that is a hypersensitivity reaction to something in the food, which we can not tolerate.
Food allergy should not be confused with food intolerance, which is something quite different. In both cases you get symptoms when you eat a certain food in a normal or small quantity, so it can be easily confused.

Food allergy is very rare. Many refrain from eating things that they mistakenly believe they are hypersensitive to without being properly examined.
If you believe that you or your children suffer from food allergy, it is therefore very important to have the right diagnosis made, including a systematic review of diet and the symptoms. This is done best at one’s own doctor or a specialist in allergic diseases.

Why do you get food allergies?

In order to develop food allergies your immune systems must overreact to foreign proteins in the surroundings. The response must be carried out with specific IgE antibody. It is called a Type 1 allergy. Antibodies are the body’s antidote to foreign substances.

When exposed to proteins in foods, your body may develop specific IgE in such large quantities that it triggers an allergic reaction the next time you eat that particular type of food.

As a general rule you can not have an allergic reaction the first time you eat a new type of food. But this is only a qualified truth. Sometimes an allergic reaction is not due to a genuine food allergy, but to the fact that you already are allergic, for example to birch pollen. This phenomenon is called cross allergy.

Examples of food allergens

In principle, you can react allergic to all foods, but the most common allergens are:

• Seafood
• Milk
• Fish
• Soybeans
• Wheat
• Egg
• Nuts
• Fresh fruit
• Vegetables
• Peanuts

Cross reaction allergens

• Birch cross reacts with hazelnut and other nuts, apple, pear, cherry, walnut, almond, plum, kiwi, potato peel, tomato and carrot.
• Grass cross reacts with beans, lentils and green peas and peanuts.

How does food allergy feel?

The allergic reactions are very diverse and can start immediately after eating the food or may start several hours later. Typical symptoms are:

• Swollen lips, face and / or throat
• Tingling in the oral cavity and on the lips
• Vomiting, stomach cramps, diarrhea
• Headache
• Fatigue, irritability
• Hay fever
• Asthma
• Skin eruption, deterioration of child eczema, (atopic dermatitis), or hives
• Very rarely anaphylactic shock, which is a circulatory collapse that requires emergency treatment with epinephrine.

The symptoms may one time be mild, the next time be life-threatening because of Asphyxia or anaphylactic shock.
It is therefore important not to expose yourself for provocations, only because you “will not be a burden”.
If you feel starting shortness of breath, you must immediately under medical treatment. Call 911 if necessary.

What you can do to prevent food allergies?

• Pay attention to the things you are allergic to, and on whether any cross-reactions arise.
• Get advice of a specialist in allergic diseases (an allergist).
• Please note the symptoms and contact your doctor at the slightest doubt.

How does the doctor diagnosed food allergies?

The examination largely depends on how annoying the symptoms are.
Often it is possible to find another causes of the symptoms, such as the inability to digest certain foods (among other coeliac disease and laktose intolerans), non-immunological reactions (eg. histamine in shellfish) and minor food-poisoning. This is seen in about two percent of the population. It may also be a irritated colon or a chronic inflammation of the intestinal tract (ulcerosa colitis and Crohn’s disease) which can give similar symptoms.

If the symptoms are pronounced, and the suspected food allergy is justified, a proper clarification of what caused the disease will usually take place in a specialist in allergic diseases.

Allergy tests with, for example skin prick test or RAST (blood test) can be good to rule out allergies, but unfortunately, they often show reactions, which has no practical significance.

It is important that the allergy tests are made and examined by experts.

The allergist will often take you through the following program:

• Two weeks on a normal balanced diet, with a carefully diary on the diet and the possible reactions.
• If you during those two weeks observe relevant reactions, you should probably go ahead with a two-week period without the suspected food, where you keep a diary as before.
• If the symptoms improve significantly, is the next step a food provocation. To begin with an “open” provocation in which both you and the examiner knows what you are eating. If symptoms appear, you will then be exposed to a number of double-blind placebo-controlled food provocation (DBPCFC), where neither the examiner or you knows what kind of food you are eating

In order to be diagnosed with food allergies, you should in most cases, go through the program outlined above.

Possible deterioration

• Mucous membranes in the mouth and throat may swell so that breathing is troubled.
• Asthma attacks and / or anaphylactic shock may be triggered.
• It is getting increasingly difficult to get a proper nutritionally balanced diet.

Prospects for the future

Food allergy is a rare disease that primarily affects young children. Around three percent of young children are affected. Most grow from their allergy before the age of three years. Only about one percent of the adult population suffer from food allergies. Most of these can live a normal life with some limitations in their diet.

How are food allergies treated?

If, after a thorough investigation a food allergy diagnosis has been made, the main treatment is of course to stop eating the foods in question. The desease can not be cured medically, but it may possible to alleviate the symptoms by different measures. Typically antihistamines are used to alleviate the itching. But it is doubtful whether the anti-histaminerne have a preventive effect.

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First of all, wheat allergy is not the same as coeliac disease.

• Hay Fever
• Itching in the mouth
• Hives
• Asthma
• Vomiting
• Diarrhoea
• Or, at worst, anaphylactic shock
  

Physical and psychological reactions to allergy

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What causes wheat allergy?

Like all other allergies, wheat allergy is caused by an immune system malfunction. This malfunction causes your immune system to recognize certain proteins in wheat as harmful, and to protect your body against these harmful proteins, your immune system will start to produce antibodies (immunoglobulin E (IgE)).

Glutano Gluten-Free Crackers (Soda Style)

These antibodies will then try to neutralize the wheat proteins the next time you eat or get in contact with them by producing histamine and other chemicals.

It is the high concentration of histamine that causes the allergic symptoms such as red itchy eyes, a running nose and other symptoms.


This type of allergy is also known as instant allergy because the symptoms show immediately or within a few hours after you get in contact with the allergen.

The symptoms may be

• itching in the mouth,
• hay fever,
• hives,
• asthma,
• vomiting,
• diarrhoea
• or at worst anaphylactic shock.

Some will only have symptoms if they are making efforts, such as running, just after they have eaten or have been exposed to the allergen.

Allergies to wheat is not the same as coeliac disease, read more about coeliac disease in the “what is coeliac disease?”

The protein, you form antibodies to, can be gluten, but it may also be other proteins in wheat.

If you have wheat allergy, you may well eat the foods that are naturally free of gluten, because they are completely free of wheat proteins. It is not certain however, that you can withstand the so-called gluten-free products, which are special products, where the gluten content is reduced. Here there are still very small quantities of wheat protein left, which may be enough to trigger allergic symptoms in a person with wheat allergy.

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Korn, Danna – Living Gluten-Free For Dummies

If you have wheat allergy and will test you up with gluten-free products, it is therefore important that you first speak with your doctor.

It is most common to have allergies to one cereal only – mostly wheat. Therefore you do not have to avoid rye, barley, oats, corn, millet or buckwheat, unless you are allergic to these corn types.

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What is food allergy?

Food allergy is an allergic reaction, that is a hypersensitivity reaction to something in the food, which we can not tolerate.
Food allergy is not the same as food intolerance, which is something quite different. In both cases you get symptoms when you eat a certain food in a normal or small quantity, so it can be easily confused.

Food allergies are actually very rare. Many refrain from eating things that they mistakenly believe they are hypersensitive to without being properly examined.
If you believe that you or your children suffer from food allergy, it is therefore very important to have the right diagnosis made, including a systematic review of diet and the symptoms. This is done best at one’s own doctor or a specialist in allergic diseases.

Why do you get food allergies?

In order to develop food allergies your immune systems must overreact to foreign proteins in the surroundings. The response must be carried out with specific IgE antibody. It is called a Type 1 allergy. Antibodies are the body’s antidote to foreign substances.

When exposed to proteins in foods, your body may develop specific IgE in such large quantities that it triggers an allergic reaction the next time you eat that particular type of food.

As a general rule you can not have an allergic reaction the first time you eat a new type of food. But this is only a qualified truth. Sometimes an allergic reaction is not due to a genuine food allergy, but to the fact that you already are allergic, for example to birch pollen. This phenomenon is called cross allergy.

Examples of food allergens

In principle, you can react allergic to all foods, but the most common allergens are:

• Seafood
• Milk
• Fish
• Soybeans
• Wheat
• Egg
• Nuts
• Fresh fruit
• Vegetables
• Peanuts

Cross reaction allergens

• Birch cross reacts with hazelnut and other nuts, apple, pear, cherry, walnut, almond, plum, kiwi, potato peel, tomato and carrot.
• Grass cross reacts with beans, lentils and green peas and peanuts.

How does food allergy feel?

The allergic reactions are very diverse and can start immediately after eating the food or may start several hours later. Typical symptoms are:

• Swollen lips, face and / or throat
• Tingling in the oral cavity and on the lips
• Vomiting, stomach cramps, diarrhea
• Headache
• Fatigue, irritability
• Hay fever
• Asthma
• Skin eruption, deterioration of child eczema, (atopic dermatitis), or hives
• Very rarely anaphylactic shock, which is a circulatory collapse that requires emergency treatment with epinephrine.

The symptoms may one time be mild, the next time be life-threatening because of Asphyxia or anaphylactic shock.
It is therefore important not to expose yourself for provocations, only because you “will not be a burden”.
If you feel starting shortness of breath, you must immediately under medical treatment. Call 911 if necessary.

What you can do to prevent food allergies?

• Pay attention to the things you are allergic to, and on whether any cross-reactions arise.
• Get advice of a specialist in allergic diseases (an allergist).
• Please note the symptoms and contact your doctor at the slightest doubt.

How does the doctor diagnosed food allergies?

The examination largely depends on how annoying the symptoms are.
Often it is possible to find another causes of the symptoms, such as the inability to digest certain foods (among other coeliac disease and laktose intolerance), non-immunological reactions (eg. histamine in shellfish) and minor food-poisoning. This is seen in about two percent of the population. It may also be a irritated colon or a chronic inflammation of the intestinal tract (ulcerosa colitis and Crohn’s disease) which can give similar symptoms.

If the symptoms are pronounced, and the suspected food allergy is justified, a proper clarification of what caused the disease will usually take place in a specialist in allergic diseases.

Allergy tests with, for example skin prick test or RAST (blood test) can be good to rule out allergies, but unfortunately, they often show reactions, which has no practical significance.

It is important that the allergy tests are made and examined by experts.

The allergist will often take you through the following program:

• Two weeks on a normal balanced diet, with a carefully diary on the diet and the possible reactions.
• If you during those two weeks observe relevant reactions, you should probably go ahead with a two-week period without the suspected food, where you keep a diary as before.
• If the symptoms improve significantly, is the next step a food provocation. To begin with an “open” provocation in which both you and the examiner knows what you are eating. If symptoms appear, you will then be exposed to a number of double-blind placebo-controlled food provocation (DBPCFC), where neither the examiner or you knows what kind of food you are eating

In order to be diagnosed with food allergies, you should in most cases, go through the program outlined above.

Possible deterioration

• Mucous membranes in the mouth and throat may swell so that breathing is troubled.
• Asthma attacks and / or anaphylactic shock may be triggered.
• It is getting increasingly difficult to get a proper nutritionally balanced diet.

Prospects for the future

Food allergy is a rare disease that primarily affects young children. Around three percent of young children are affected. Most grow from their allergy before the age of three years. Only about one percent of the adult population suffer from food allergies. Most of these can live a normal life with some limitations in their diet.

How are food allergies treated?

If, after a thorough investigation a food allergy diagnosis has been made, the main treatment is of course to stop eating the foods in question. The desease can not be cured medically, but it may possible to alleviate the symptoms by different measures. Typically antihistamines are used to alleviate the itching. But it is doubtful whether the anti-histaminerne have a preventive effect.

No related posts.