Modern Health Observation

Posts Tagged ‘food allergies’

The doctor will first determine the existence of an adverse reaction to a food based on detailed medical history.

Then ask the completion of a test to observe the amount of allergen in the blood and skin tests as “prick test” which consists in establishing contact with the allergen skin with a needle, make a small scratch to penetrate in the outermost layer of the skin and cause a reaction if the child is sensitized, or patches with allergen extracts prepared, they keep in contact with the skin 72 hours, and then observe and quantify the reaction.

Once detected the source of the allergy, elimination diet is the first treatment applied which must establish the strictest possible way, but raises questions of compliance, nutritional or psychological.

Drug treatment is symptomatic with antihistamines, beta adrenergic and Corticosteroids.

In cases of severe immediate reactions to be administered epinephrine and other resuscitative measures.

When it comes to infants allergic to cow’s milk formulas are used based alternative protein sources such as soy or cow’s milk hydrolysates and even, on very special occasions, can be used based formulas amino acids.

The food allergy occurs when the body’s immune system reacts negatively to the ingestion or contact of a food. It also produces the allergy partículaso linhalación of an additive or artificial coloring in food content which is well tolerated by most people.

Foods that are most commonly allergic reactions in children are eggs, followed by milk and fish.

Cow’s milk, as the first food a child receives, is likewise the first that can cause adverse reactions. For children older children, predominantly sensitivities to tree nuts such as peanuts, legumes, fish and seafood.

Do not confuse allergy with intolerance to milk, which show different symptoms. Allergy to cow’s milk protein appears with immediate reactions with vomiting and acute onset diarrhea, skin reactions, shock while intolerance to cow’s milk occurs with a less acute symptoms or chronic frankly with a picture of malabsorption, lack of appetite, weight loss, sporadic vomiting, and irritability.

In communities and populations in which the allergy was studied, it appears that the prevalence of seafood allergy is usually increases with increasing consumption by the population in question. Conventional wisdom suggests that crustaceans (eg shrimp, lobster, crab and crayfish) and fish are among the four food groups that cause more severe anaphylactic reactions. In fact, in a study which analyzed hospitalizations for food reactions in emergency rooms of American hospitals, the crustaceans were most frequently responsible for the reaction in the elderly to 6. Algunos studies indicate that allergy to fish and seafood would be present in 1.3% to 1.9% of the population. And allergy to fish and crustaceans is common not only in the West, but also in Asian countries, which is common and significantly among both adults and children. In general, allergy to seafood tends to persist throughout life.

Clinical Features
The pattern of allergic symptoms after ingestion of seafood is similar to that occurring in allergic reactions to other foods: Most of the reactions usually occur immediately and are reported on a period of up to 2 hours. Particularly after the ingestion of shellfish symptoms may occur after minutes, and include itching, swelling of the lips, mouth and pharynx. In the case of shrimp, the allergic reaction can be triggered after physical activity. Read the rest of this entry »