What are allergies?

An allergy is a catch-all word for a wide variety of reactions to substances such as pollen, cat hair, or other substances that the body determines to be foreign. Statistics state that nearly 15 percent of the current population suffers from allergies, and in some cases serious allergies.

+ Allergies are the result of a hypersensitive immune system. The allergic immune system misidentifies an otherwise innocuous substance as harmful, and then attacks the substance with a ferocity far greater than required. Allergic people are hypersensitive to some elements that most people find innocuous or harmless. Common allergic triggers include pollen, cigarette smoke, dust mites, feathers and animal hair or dandruff, certain foods, house dust and, in some mere cases, contact with very cold air or water can cause an allergic reaction.

THE MOST COMMON ALLERGIES

Some of the most common allergic reactions include:

1. • Seasonal sinus allergies. This allergy, also known as “hay fever”, is the most common. Symptoms include: sneezing, runny nose, nasal congestion, itchy, watery eyes and itchy mouth, ears and throat. Exposure to pollen and dust mites can trigger hay fever or seasonal allergies. Dust mites are microscopic organisms that live in house dust, a mixture of potentially allergenic materials including fibers from different fabrics, dandruff from animals, bacteria, mold or fungus spores.
2. • Asthma. Though asthma is not always triggered by allergies, it is related to them. Most adults with asthma have an allergy-related condition. During an asthma attack the lining of the airways becomes swollen or inflamed and the cells that line the airways produce more mucus, which is thicker than normal. Symptoms include frequent cough, shortness of breath, wheezing and chest tightness, pain, or pressure.
3. • Food allergies. The body often reacts to foods, although only a small amount of those reactions are true allergies that are involved with the immune system. The most common allergies are to foods including milk, chocolate, eggs, fish, shellfish, wheat, soy, peanuts and other types of nut.
4. • Skin allergies. Atopic eczema and allergic contact dermatitis occur in people who are allergic to a specific ingredient or ingredients in a product. Symptoms include inflammation, redness, swelling, itching, and hive-like breakouts.
5. • Allergic reactions to insect stings. Bee, wasp, yellow jacket, hornet or fire ant stings most often trigger allergic reactions. Symptoms of a severe allergic reaction, called an “anaphylactic reaction”, may include: difficulty breathing, hives that appear as a red, itchy rash and spread to areas beyond the sting, swelling of the face, throat or mouth tissue, wheezing or difficulty swallowing, in extreme cases putting the sufferer at risk of death.