Gluten Allergies (or Intolerance): Foods You Should Avoid

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Gluten is a protein that is found in grains such as barley, wheat and rye. Probably most familiar to you as the substance that is helpful in holding together dough, for bread and other baked goods.

Unfortunately, many people are allergic to this protein and cannot tolerate ingesting it. For those who are severely allergic, a reaction can be life-threatening.

Yet, another gluten-related condition is Celiac Disease, which is passed from one generation to the next. Symptoms occur when a person who has the disease eats any food that contains gluten. At that point, the immune system attacks the small intestine and hinders the digestive process.

In both of these cases, intake of foods which contain gluten must be avoided. One of the biggest problems with identifying these foods is the fact that these grains are used to process many other types of ingredients‚ making the gluten much harder to identify.

Besides avoiding products that contain barley, wheat and rye those with gluten allergies need to pay close attention to package labels, as well. Be on the lookout for the following:

  • Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein otherwise referred to as HVP, unless it has been manufactured from corn or soy.
  • Soy sauce products that contain wheat.
  • Modified Food Starch, unless it has been manufactured from potato, corn, arrowroot, tapioca or maize.
  • Cereal and flour products unless they have been derived from soy flour, potato flour, corn flour or rice flour.
  • Most types of Vegetable Gum

These are just a few things to be aware of. You should also avoid purchasing products, which refer to starch, emulsifier, stabilizer, flavoring and hydrolyzed plant protein on their packaging.

Other categories of foods, which should be avoided are soup bases, beer, coating mixes and croutons, lunch meats, imitation bacon and seafood, candy, marinades, vitamins and supplements, over-the-counter medications.

Suffering from a gluten allergy doesn’t mean that you have to eat bland foods. There are just as many foods you can eat, as those you can’t. Fresh fruits and veggies, eggs, fresh beef and pork, most types of cheeses, ice cream, tuna and other seafood, coffee, tea and soda are just the beginning.

Food Allergy Symptoms

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Symptoms of a food allergy can vary depending on the people suffering it. They can range from just an annoyance to a life threatening condition called anaphylaxis. These allergy symptoms usually appear within minutes, up to an hour after eating. There are some factors that affect the type, timing and location of these symptoms.

It all starts with common symptoms such as itching, swelling in the mouth and throat, and breathing problems, then as the food travels down the digestive system, other symptoms such as nausea, diarrhea and stomach pain start.

When the allergens reach the skin, they can produce symptoms of a food allergy such as eczema or hives, and when they reach the lungs, they can cause asthma. Other symptoms that appear once the allergen runs through the blood flow are light-headedness, weakness and a sudden drop of blood pressure (called anaphylaxis).

Anaphylaxis can be a serious allergic reaction to food and people who have asthma, eczema, childhood allergies or severe food allergies are at more risk of developing it. If you have anaphylaxis you need immediate treatment, as this condition can be fatal.

Severe Food Allergy Symptoms

You may have a severe food allergy if you have one of these symptoms:

  • tightness or pain in the chest
  • feeling of choking
  • respiratory problems
  • lightheadedness
  • loss of consciousness

Food Allergy Induced by Exercises

Some people are allergic to food after exercising. When they stimulate the body with exercises they feel light-headedness and itching. These symptoms can also lead to anaphylaxis. These can be avoided, restricting food 2 hours before exercising.

Baby Food Allergies

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Having a baby is perhaps the most beautiful thing in the world, and once the baby is born we need to take care of his/her health. It’s important, then, to know if a baby food allergy is present. This can be done by understanding how allergies appear and the symptoms they bring.

How A Baby Food Allergy Appears

The food allergy appears when the body feels certain food is an invader, to counteract the “threat” the body starts a series of defense mechanism, the symptoms. The body produces antibody IgE, and when the baby eats the food again, the immune system will release histamine to repel the attack.

In babies the symptoms are: hives, swelling, difficulty breathing and chronic eczema. As the food travels through the digestive system other symptoms may appear such as vomiting or diarrhea. It is also important to know that a severe allergy can be fatal.

What to Do if You Think Your Baby Has A Food Allergy

If you notice severe allergic reactions in your baby (breathing difficulties, vomiting, diarrhea, lips and face swelling), it is important that you call emergency or 911 quickly. Children have thin airways that can be blocked in a matter of minutes. This is why paramedics are important, instead of driving to the hospital.

If you notice soft food allergy symptoms appearing after your child has eaten foods, you should talk with the doctor. Depending on the case, some testing can be done to determine the source of the allergens.

In the future, a severe reaction may appear (even when previous reactions were soft). So you’ll need to talk with the doctor about a plan in case your baby develops a severe reaction.

Treatment must be supervised with time, allergic reactions are not erased, and they must be watched closely. In the future, a doctor can prescribe an epinephrine auto-injector to control any reaction.

Child Food Allergies

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Child food allergies are not as common as most people think. It is true though that they are even less common in older children. Most of the time these allergies are soft, and will be a thing of the past once the child grows up.

Symptoms of A Child Food Allergy

The symptoms of child food allergy will vary in timing and severity. The most common ones include:

  • respiratory problems
  • wheezing
  • rashes, hives
  • diarrhea
  • vomiting
  • stomach pain
  • swelling in the lips, mouth and throat

In kids, the symptoms appear mostly after minutes of ingesting the “trigger” food, although the reactions can appear after 1-2 hours.

When the reaction is severe, it can cause a condition called anaphylaxis… a sudden decrease of the blood pressure that can cause shock and even death.

What to Do When Your Child is Allergic to Food

The most important step is avoiding the food that triggers the reaction. If you are unsure, there are tests aimed at help you determining the problem food.  In case your child has severe <food allergy symptoms such as breathing problems, you should call 911 immediately, specially if he/she is a young kid.

It is important to know that even if the kid hasn’t shown allergic reactions to a food before, it can still have an allergy later. So parents, please don’t discard a food because the kid has eaten it before.

Prevent Child Food Allergy

Food allergy can be prevented to some extent, by first determining if your kid has a high risk of developing it. You should talk with a doctor about this.

On the other hand, the best way to prevent food allergies on children is by breastfeeding them. Breastfeeding has a lot of benefits for the children, especially when it comes to strengthening the immune system.

Food Allergy Cure

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Food allergy is a condition that affects millions of people around the world. It causes allergic reaction when you ingest a certain type of food (the specific food varies among different people) and can be fatal when sever symptoms such as anaphylaxis appear. Many people then try to seek for a food allergy cure, but is there such thing?

Food Allergy Can’t Be Cured

It’s sad to say, but it is the truth: There is currently no such thing as a food allergy cure. This is a condition that will stay with you the rest of your life, so be prepared to make some changes in your lifestyle.

This allergy can be treated though, primarily trough avoidance. This means that will have to stop eating the foods that are causing your allergic reaction. This can be done at first with a low allergen exclusion diet, a special type of diet aimed at restricting the common allergy-triggering foods.

Once you determine the trigger or triggers, it is time to fully stop eating them. This is an important step; in fact it is the only step that will assure you don’t have allergic reactions in the future.

So, as you see there is no current food allergy cure out there. It is possible that you live free of allergic reactions but only if you ban foods from your diet forever. Although it may be hard at the beginning, over time you’ll find it easier and easier, and the best of all is that you’ll stay away from severe symptoms, and possibly death.

You can find more about the food allergy symptoms, treatments and the diets in the articles on this site. Feel free to browse them and or give us your suggestions.