Can I have a hair dryer if I have a food allergy?

In most cases of common food allergy, the wind can be blown normally. There is really no need to deliberately hide from the wind or even stuff yourself into a tight air.

I usually meet many family members of patients in the clinic who have this misunderstanding. In fact, the essence of food allergies is that the immune system treats certain food proteins that enter the body as foreign "invaders" and releases a series of reactions triggered by inflammatory mediators such as histamine. The most common minor symptoms are red and swollen lips, local scattered rashes, and mild diarrhea. Winds are not affected at all. Blowing will neither aggravate the immune response nor slow down the recovery. Last week, I met a parent who brought his 6-year-old child to the doctor. The child was allergic to eating half a piece of pineapple, and developed a small light red rash around his mouth and forearms. The elder at home said that allergies should not be exposed to wind, so he was forced to stay in an air-conditioned room without opening the window and cover it all afternoon. Instead, the rash became red and swollen, and the child almost broke it when he scratched it. When they arrived, I asked them to go home and open the windows for normal ventilation, not to cover the baby with thick clothes, apply weak hormone ointment as prescribed by the doctor, and take oral antihistamines that can be used by children. The next day, the parents sent a message saying that the rash was completely gone.

Of course, not everyone can blow it without any scruples. If you have severe food allergy symptoms that have caused a large area of ​​acute urticaria, or you have allergic asthma, and this allergy has brought out symptoms of coughing and chest tightness, you must try to avoid direct cold wind blowing at very low temperatures. In fact, there are different opinions in the industry. Some doctors believe that cold wind stimulation itself may induce additional release of histamine in the skin, aggravating the itching sensation of wheals, and may also stimulate the contraction of airway smooth muscles, aggravating the condition of breathlessness. ； Some doctors also believe that as long as you don’t stay in a sub-zero windy environment for a long time, ordinary room-temperature winds will not have any impact at all. Whether you should avoid it or not depends entirely on personal feelings.

In fact, many people think that people with allergies should not blow the wind. They confuse food allergies with the old saying that "a rash should not be exposed to the wind." Most of the rashes that require shelter from the wind and taboos are viral infectious diseases such as measles and rubella. They are completely different from food-induced immune reactions. There is no need to copy old experience. If your symptoms worsen after being exposed to the wind, don't blame it. It's most likely that the allergy itself happened to happen during the progression stage, or other allergens such as pollen and dust carried in the wind happened to stimulate it. If you really itch or gasp, it's important to take medicine in time or see a doctor.