What are the alimentary allergies that affect children?
First we must make clear that the three basic nutrients, carbohydrates, fats and proteins, it is the latter responsible for food allergies.
In Spain, the main cause of allergic reactions are milk, eggs and fish-age children, and fruits, seafood and nuts into adulthood. Unfortunately any animal or plant protein is likely to trigger allergic reactions.
When parents can say that your child is allergic to food. What are the symptoms?
Often the terms are often confused intolerance and allergy. In the case of the intolerant, and celiac disease patients, we talk about digestive diseases character. In the case of food allergies is responsible for the immune system responds abnormally to alleged offenders (proteins). Confusion usually occurs because among the symptoms of food allergies are the gastrointestinal, pain, swelling, vomiting, diarrhea, nausea … similar to those that occur in case intolerance, although other more specific as ODS (oral allergy syndrome) and angioedema. However, food allergies usually have other symptoms: skin: hives, eczema, DA (atopic dermatitis); Respiratory: rhinitis, congestion, asthma, broncho-spasm and edema of glottis. And the most serious, although fortunately the least common is that anaphylactic shock resulting in a multisystem failure with two or more of the symptoms already mentioned. In more severe cases there is reduced blood pressure, arrhythmia, weakness and cardiorespiratory failure that compromises vital signs becoming lethal. In any case, only a doctor allergist will give us the final diagnosis. Intolerances have a chronic but not life threatening, whereas allergies can get to overcome but are potentially fatal. (more…)
