Food Allergies As An Adult?
A food allergy can develop at any time in a person’s life. So, yes, it’s possible for adults to develop food allergies. It’s not clear why or how this is done.
Food allergies occur most often in children, but can also appear at any given age and can be caused by foods that were previously eaten and enjoyed without any problems. Excessive exposure to a particular food may also affect the overall rate of allergy to that food, as seen in the Scandinavians who consume fish and the Japanese who eat a large quantity of rice.
The prime reason some people have allergies and others don’t deals with the matter of heredity. We are products of our parents, so in that gene pool, if our parents had allergies on both sides of the family, chances are we will have allergies too. If our relatives had allergies, we still have a good chance of having them passed on to us.
Once the food allergy has been confirmed, the most effective means of dealing with the food allergy is by the process of elimination. The patient should not eat the offending food in any form. The patient must be watchful and check labels on food products and learn other names of identifying the responsible food or food additive to make certain it is not present.
When eating in a restaurant, be particularly careful and take emergency medicines with you if you have a history of severe reactions. Waiters aren’t always aware of the exact ingredients of each item on the menu.
In many cases of adult food allergies, an elimination diet appears to promote the process of outgrowing the food allergy, but this must be done with strict adherence. The vast majority of people with documented allergic reactions to eggs, cow’s milk, and soy eventually become tolerant to these foods. Allergies to peanuts, fish, tree nuts and shellfish, however lasts a lifetime and are not outgrown.
One-third of children and adults will eventually be free from their allergic reactions to foods after carefully following the strict diets free of the offending food allergens.
After you have eliminated foods responsible for your allergic reactions for a period of at least six months, your allergist may recommend that you undergo an oral food challenge under observation to reassess your symptoms. If you have no reaction, then you will be able to reintroduce this food into your diet. If any symptoms do occur, however; the dietary restriction will be continued.
