Allergies – A Growth Industry

American researchers have found that about 4 percent of the population has food allergies or 12 million people. The same researchers have studied people in China. There the results were surprising. They found over 16 percent tested sensitive to shellfish and 12 percent to peanuts. What is peculiar is that among practicing physicians in China, allergies are almost never diagnosed or reported as a problem. The reason for this discrepancy is not clear.

How often do we hear people complain about their allergies? How often are you subjected to advertising for allergy sufferers? We don’t fully understand the mechanism of what causes allergy reaction. Moreover there is a lot of food intolerance that are not true food allergies. The root of the problem lies in our incomplete understanding of the human immune system. Your immune system is the 24/7 defense against harmful bacteria, viruses, and other toxins. Why and how this defense system is affected by stress, fatigue, lifestyle and social habits remains a pattern of mystery. Unpredictably a reaction can be triggered by otherwise harmless factors such as dust, mold, pollen or foods.

Many things seem potential culprits in this murky world of allergies. Sometimes we are doing extensive detective work looking to blame something obscure like a food additive such as a food coloring or preservative. The first thing most of my patients say to me is “I haven’t changed the laundry detergent!” Everybody wants to blame the laundry soap. These things are rarely the cause. Actually 90 percent of all foods allergies are reactions to the one the following eight things: milk, eggs, peanuts, fish, shellfish, soy, wheat, and tree nuts like cashews and almonds. Change is another key concept. Childhood allergies typically start before the age of five years old and change, usually improving as they get older. Adults who never had a problem can also develop sensitivities to foods or products that never bothered them in the past. So there is no security in thinking “That never happened before when I took… or ate….” To confuse matters more, people frequently have an intolerance to foods or products that may cause an upset stomach or another mild symptom that is not actually an allergy but gets reported as one. Intolerance to dairy products, wheat and gluten and even some corn products are well known and may not be true allergies in those people.

The facts are that allergies seem to be a lot more common for no obvious reason. Severe allergic reactions account for 30,000 emergency room visits a year and as many as 200 deaths a year. Many theories are floating around about our culture, lifestyle, environmental reasons, pollution, and increased detection and reporting. However, none can adequately explain the experience in this country or abroad.

If you think you suffer from allergies you should definitely consult your physician to talk through your symptoms and explore what are the suspected triggers. A program of prevention using avoidance and medications can be tailored to your needs. If suspicious symptoms are severe, you may need to consult an allergist for testing to identify allergens more specifically.