Isn't it annoying when you smell the delicious aroma of a meal only to find out that it has an ingredient to which you are allergic? Ah! The demise of every person with food allergies! It is no fun to watch other people devour food that seems so delicious but you can't take part of the experience. How many times have you encountered comments like, great food isn't? And sometimes you just can't bear to admit you are allergic and just smile as if you knew how it tasted.

Then you try to ask questions, what is food allergy? What are causing these annoying symptoms? What's happens inside the body during allergic reactions? Ah! Understanding ones own health condition will better help them accept and overcome whatever's bothering them.

To start with, food allergy is unusual reaction to certain type of food allergen. An allergen is the substance or thing that causes the allergic reactions. Exposure to the allergen sets off the alarm in the human immune system which consequently releases antibodies to fight off the invasion of the perceived foreign body that is the food allergen. It then causes the symptoms you would see when you are in a state of allergic reaction.

The aforementioned is just an overview of the whole picture. Looking more closely, allergic reactions undergo two courses of action. The initial course is the release of immunoglobulin E or IgE by the immune system into the blood stream. IgE is a food-specific antibody and a protein that is the body's immune defense against the food allergen.

Following the initial response is the attachment of the IgE to the mast cells. These mast cells are present in body tissues specially locations of the body where allergic reactions are common. These locations may include the lungs, skin, nasal and oral cavities, and the gastrointestinal system.

As for the food itself, you may have noticed that you are not just allergic to one type of food. There are instances that you experience an allergic reaction to oyster and then later you found out that you are also allergic to crabs and other seafoods. This occurrence is what medical professionals call cross-reactivity, wherein an individual can be allergic to closely related or similar types of foods.

The only way to deal with this unfortunate mishap is to try as best as you can to avoid the foods that set off allergic reactions in your body. There is no cure to food allergy but there are medications out there that can alleviate its symptoms. With the help of a medical health professional, you can be assisted in the ways you can avoid exposures to food allergens. Nutritionists may teach you alternative ingredients or foods to replace the food that will be eliminated from your diet. Also, make it a habit to check food labels for possible ingredients that you may be allergic with and do not hesitate to warn the restaurant employees, like the waiter, about your food allergy to prevent any unwanted accidents.

Individuals who are highly allergic are advised to put on medical alert necklaces or bracelets which declare your condition. As for the medications, some patients who are very vulnerable are also advised to bring with them at all times a self-injectible epinephrine, which is prescribed by the doctor, that can be of great help during sudden attacks of allergic reactions before seeking out for the assistance of an emergency team.

Other medications are antihistamines, bronchodilators, and corticosteroids. Antihistamines help improve symptoms of rhinitis, hives, rashes, and gastrointestinal problems. Corticosteroids alleviate the severity of inflammations of the skin and in other areas of the body. While bronchodilators are utilized to open up air passages of the respiratory tract that has become inflamed which would have resulted to breathing difficulties.

To understand more about your food allergies, you can consult your physician. There are also comprehensive books in the market that can be easily understood by just about anybody that has complete information about food allergies and how to fight it.

Before we discuss common allergies and symptoms, you might find it helpful to have a little background. An allergy is a specific reaction of the body's immune system to a normally harmless substance, one that does not bother most people. Those people who find themselves dealing with allergies will often find they are sensitive to more than one substance.

Common Allergies

There are many types of allergies. The most common are seasonal allergies which result from certain trees, plants, or pollens (birch trees, ragweed, rye grass and timothy grass) in the air at certain times of the year. Approximately 35 million Americans are allergic to pollen (also commonly referred to as hay fever). Pollen is a powder made by flowering plants and trees. Though most people tend to think of pollen season as spring, pollen grains can be in the air in the spring, summer, and fall, depending on the type of tree, grass, or weed.

People can also be allergic to some foods, particularly peanuts, shellfish, milk, fish, wheat and soy. If you're unsure which food allergens are giving you trouble, a visit to your physician or allergist can uncover the guilty culprits. An allergist can perform tests to identify and isolate any specific sensitivity you may have, whether or not they're food related, and the severity of your sensitivities. In addition, since some allergies can be life threatening, the allergist can provide you with instructions on life saving measures to be taken in the event of a severe allergy.

Other common allergies include animal dander (animal hair, cockroach calyx), insect stings (bee venom, wasp sting), dust mites, mold spores, medications (penicillin, salicylates, local anesthetics, sulfonamides), even latex rubber.

Common Symptoms

Symptoms of allergies are classified by degree of severity, including mild, moderate, and severe allergic reactions. Most people experience relatively mild symptoms, such as watery eyes, itchy skin, a runny nose, coughing, and hives. These types of allergy symptoms can usually be controlled by using an antihistamine. There are several over the counter antihistamines, as well as others you can only get with a prescription. You may also want to consider getting an allergy shot.

For other sufferers, the allergic reaction is moderate. In these cases, the reaction spreads to other parts of the body. For instance, you may experience difficulty breathing. Antihistamines, steroids, and immunotherapy can all held remedy the effects.

While very rare, severe allergic reactions do exist. Generally these are the result of food allergies. Peanuts, milk, and eggs are the most common. Symptoms include swelling of the face, abdominal pain, cramps, hives, and angioedema, which are hives inside the throat. Immediate medical attention is generally required for symptoms of a severe allergic reaction. Often a shot can help offset the reaction.

While there is no cure, common allergy symptoms (inflammation, rashes, hives, etc.) can be treated. The best treatment of all, of course, is simply to avoid those factors that trigger an allergy attack (easier said than done).

My dog always seems to have a tear on her snout and I was wondering if that could be some type of allergy? Or should I call the vet?

Allergy is a popular form of immune reaction which creates the process of irritating the body through means of itching. Allergy is basically a Greek term which means "other work." Allergy is a common disorder which is virtually affecting more than 50% of the total world population in one way or the other. Allergy often leads to the formation of certain chronic diseases. Allergy may be caused due to weather, dust, food, pollution, animals, flowers, plants etc and the list is quite unending.

Certain signs and symptoms of allergies may be enumerated as follows:

• Swelling of the nose in the nasal cavity area with continuous itching.

• When allergy affects the eyes, the eyes experiences redness and also itching in the conjunctiva areas around the eyes.

• Blocking of the airways which leads to continuous wheezing and sneezing.

• Pain in the inner portion of the ears.

• Rashes in the skin which is generally caused due to continuous rubbing and itching of the affected area.

Allergy needs proper treatment and medical diagnosis. But most importantly, allergy which is caused due to dust and pollution can be treatment by way of avoiding and thus taking precautions toward it. It is basically recommended to stay far away from those things which produce allergies. I myself would like to sate here that I m prone to catch allergy due to dust, so I better prevent myself to the explosion of dust than to suffer from the consequence of it. Thus prevention works better than cure in respect of allergy. But sometimes when allergy becomes very acute, proper treatment should be meted out to overcome it. Before providing the basic treatment to the allergy patient, the root causes of it should be firstly diagnosed. So for this purpose, a proper skin test should be conducted over the patient suffering from allergy. Through this process the basic cause behind the occurrence of allergy can be sorted out and on the basis of it the right treatment could be meted out to them.

Moreover, there are a lot of therapies which has been meted out for overcoming of allergy. These therapies are readily made available in the market. Certain alternative medicines like ayurvedic medication, homeopathy, herbal medication, and certain Chinese medicines are helpful in overcoming various types of allergies. Besides these, there are also to certain aromatic processes which also work wonders in the process of overcoming allergies.

My son had allergy testing. Wheat and soy were two of the things he is allergic to. Does anyone know of a decent bread made without these ingredients? Milk, eggs, peanuts, all the usual culprits are OK. The breads I've tried look and taste like hockey pucks, but we make good muffins, cookies, corn bread and other alternatives. Any links or recipes would be so helpful!

My nose is seriously stuffy and blowing it only makes it worse!!! I've had about enough with it!!! I have a talent show on Friday that I need to sing at..and I can't do that with a stuffy nose!! Is it safe to take allergy medications if im not even sure if allergies are whats causing it?

I am considering going for allergy shots. But I don't know how effective they are and from what I understand you must go for 2 to 5 years and there is no guarantee that your reactions to a sting will be lessened. If someone had gone thru this please let me know.

Most of which contain chemicals that are scientifically proven allergy triggers? My neighbor, who has bad allergies, uses all kinds of sprays and such. She hasn't even noticed that her allergy symptoms disappear after a few hours at my house. Why do allergy sufferers use products with known triggers like she does?

Well,the title pretty much gives it away lol.But,anyway,might be allergic to a food or two,but I'm curious about something.If after testing,they are sure you have an allergy to something,what do they do about it?(Food allergies,not things like allergies to grass etc.).Do they just tell you not to eat it anymore or what?Just curious.Thanks everyone.Peace.

This is a very bad case of chronic allergy. Making my runny drip on ends. A slight headache. A little roughness and soreness in throat. I am not sure general practitioner will do.