Foods prone to allergies

For people who are susceptible to allergies, there has never been a unified list of "definitely not to eat" foods. The core principle is to first identify your own allergens and then avoid them in a targeted manner. It is not recommended to blindly follow the trend and avoid "foods" or "highly allergenic foods" spread online. On the contrary, it may cause an imbalance in nutritional intake and aggravate the frequency of allergies.

Not long ago, my best friend's 3-year-old child suffered from urticaria repeatedly. She heard the elders at home say that eggs, milk, and seafood are all harmful substances, so she stopped eating them all, and even replaced the rice with millet. After two months, the child lost a lot of weight, but the rash still didn't go away, so she went to the hospital for an allergen screening. It was discovered that the baby was not allergic to eggs, milk, or seafood at all. The main culprits were the mangoes that he always eats every time he goes to his grandma’s house, and the gluten in the ordinary wheat noodles he usually eats. After stopping these two, the rash completely disappeared within two weeks, and he quickly replaced the milk and eggs.

Of course, this does not mean that the highly allergenic foods reported on the Internet are completely unfounded. The eight categories of highly allergenic foods recognized by the WHO account for more than 90% of all food allergies: milk, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, seafood, soybeans, wheat, and stone fruits. However, this is just The high-risk categories calculated from large samples may not be relevant when applied to individuals. I have met people who are so allergic to peanuts that they gasp at the smell of peanut butter. I have also encountered people with allergies who eat peanuts every day without any problems. Individual differences are ridiculously large. Oh, by the way, there are two types of allergies. One is the immediate type, which is IgE-mediated. You will have reactions within a few minutes to half an hour after eating, such as rash, tight throat, and wheezing. This type of allergen must be strictly avoided after the allergen is detected. You cannot touch it even if you take a mouthful. In severe cases, you may go into shock. ； There is also a delayed type, non-IgE mediated, which may cause reactions a few hours or even a day or two after eating, such as diarrhea and eczema. This kind of disease is more troublesome to check. Keeping a food diary is the most practical method.

Here we should also mention something that is often referred to as "hair-raising foods". In the traditional Chinese medicine system, it is believed that hair-raising foods such as mutton, leeks, and seafood can stir wind and produce phlegm, which can easily induce old diseases. Eating them during an allergy attack may indeed aggravate the symptoms. However, from the perspective of modern medicine, either these foods themselves have high histamine content, or they contain There are proteins with a similar structure to your own allergens, which can easily trigger cross-reactions, and not everyone needs to avoid them across the board - for example, if you are not allergic to seafood at all, eating steamed fish and shrimp during an allergy attack can supplement high-quality protein and help your body recover, and you don't have to be a vegetarian at all.

I have sorted out the food diaries of nearly a hundred people with allergies, and found that many people’s allergenic foods are actually very well hidden: some people are only allergic to apples with the skin on, but eating them without the skin is fine.； Some people are allergic to peach hairs. It is perfectly fine to rub the skin clean with salt before eating it. ； Some people only get swollen mouths when eating mangoes when hay fever occurs during the change of seasons, but they are fine no matter how much they eat. There is also a more interesting case. A boy had never been allergic to crayfish before. During that time, he stayed up all night for a week to catch up on projects. After eating crayfish with a friend, he went straight to the emergency room. It was found that after the immunity was weakened, the body had an overreaction to the protein of crayfish. After eating it for two weeks, he was fine again.

Nowadays, many people on the Internet say that those who are prone to allergies should eat less highly processed foods. This statement is actually half right and half wrong: if you are allergic to preservatives and artificial flavors, you should eat less highly processed snacks. However, if you are a child with a milk protein allergy, highly processed foods such as deeply hydrolyzed formula milk are much safer than ordinary milk. There is also the amazing idea of ​​"taking probiotics to treat allergies". Currently, only a few specific strains have been clinically proven to be effective. They can alleviate the milk protein allergy of some infants and young children. Adults can regulate their gastrointestinal conditions at most, but they are basically useless against allergies. Don't waste your money.

What many people don’t know is that food allergies are often linked to inhaled allergens. For example, people who are allergic to wormwood in spring will most likely feel uncomfortable eating peaches, mangoes, and lychees.； If you are allergic to ragweed, your mouth may become numb when you touch cantaloupe or banana. ； For those who are allergic to dust mites, eating dried foods that have been stored for a long time, such as fungus and shiitake mushrooms, may also trigger a reaction. Many people mistakenly think that the food is unclean due to cross-sensitivity. In fact, the body's immune mechanism recognizes similar proteins as the same enemy.

In fact, to put it bluntly, there is really no standard answer to the diet of people prone to allergies. Don't just follow other people's taboo lists. If you really want to find out, you can either go to the hospital for an allergen screening, or keep a food diary for two months. Write down what you eat before each allergic reaction, and you will slowly be able to understand your body's temperament. After all, your body is much more accurate than the unified list on the Internet.