Why do allergies or allergies occur?
When an extreme immune system is exposed to an allergen, several things happen:
1. To fight this substance, the body begins to produce a special type of antibody called an antibody called IgE.
2. Antibodies attach to a type of blood cell called a mast cell. These cells are abundant in the respiratory tract and gastrointestinal tract, which is the main entry point for allergens.
3. Drunk cells release various chemicals such as histamine when they explode, which is the main cause of many allergy symptoms, such as itchy throat and runny nose.
4. If the allergen is in the air, an allergic reaction occurs in the eyes, nose and lungs, and if this substance is ingested, an allergic reaction occurs in the mouth, stomach and other parts of the gastrointestinal tract. Sometimes the chemicals produced in the body are so high that very acute symptoms such as hives, low blood pressure, shock or anesthesia (anaphylactic shock) can occur.
How do allergies work?
Allergies are photo-sensitive reactions to substances that may even be completely harmless and have nothing to do with gender, age or race. In an operation called sensitization, the body makes antibodies to a specific substance that becomes an allergen. As a result, whenever a person comes in contact with that particular substance, this defense system reacts negatively to it. Anti-allergens release histamine into the bloodstream, which also has side effects. For example, histamine makes the mucous membranes of the nose and eyes watery and itchy. It also causes white, itchy rashes called urticaria.
Depending on the type of allergy and the part of the body that is involved, various symptoms such as itchy skin, eyes or body, hives and skin rashes, sneezing, coughing, shortness of breath, nausea and vomiting occur. In rare cases, even very dangerous and life-threatening allergies called anaphylaxis can occur.
What are the symptoms of allergies?
Allergy symptoms can be divided into three categories: mild, moderate and acute.
Mild reactions include symptoms that affect an area of the body, such as inflammation, itching, and runny eyes. Mild symptoms do not spread to other parts of the body.
Signs of a moderate reaction spread to different parts of the body, and itchy eyes can also lead to itchy throat and shortness of breath.
An acute reaction, called anaphylaxis, is rare and a dangerous condition that is among the medical emergencies. In such cases, the allergy spreads throughout the body. This condition can start with a series of itchy eye and face attacks and spread quickly throughout the body within minutes, leading to more serious symptoms such as stomach pain, muscle cramps, nausea and diarrhea. Inflammation of the respiratory and gastrointestinal tract to such an extent that breathing and swallowing become very difficult.
Mental confusion and dizziness are also symptoms of allergies because the problem of anaphylaxis also causes a severe drop in blood pressure.
Symptoms of allergies in the lungs include shortness of breath (asthma), redness and itching in the skin (urticaria and eczema), and diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal pain (food allergy) in the stomach and intestines.
Vaccination or desensitization is recommended in severe cases that do not respond to symptomatic treatment and cause allergies throughout the year. This treatment lasts between three to five years and is 70 to 80% successful and is performed in specialized allergy clinics.
Does everyone have any allergies?
Not everyone has allergies. Of course, most allergies are inherited and are passed from parent to child. Individuals can also inherit the ability to develop allergies and at the same time be insensitive to any particular substance and only play the role of transmitter. When one parent has some form of allergy, their child has a 50% chance of getting it, and if they both have allergies, the chance is 75%.
Who is at risk?
Anyone can get allergies at any time. The prevalence of allergies in the United States is approximately 9 to 16 percent. However, some childhood food allergies (such as eggs or citrus fruits) may develop as you get older. Factors such as heredity, breastfed babies, early use of certain allergens (such as eating cashews for children under 2 years old) can be a predictor of whether or not you are allergic.
Allergy testing
Your doctor can easily find out if you have allergies by performing skin allergy tests, but they are not 100% reliable. The doctor also becomes aware of this by scratching a small area of skin with a very small amount of the allergy on the skin. In some cases, blood tests can also be used to identify more dangerous and deadly allergies.
Common allergies
dust
If you are allergic to dust, your allergies are probably due to the presence of earthworms. These worms grow in discarded and unused clothes that cause dust in your home. These allergies are also caused by a large amount of dirt in dark, damp places such as basements or poorly constructed bathrooms.
treatment:
There is no definitive cure for allergies. It can only be controlled.
1- Avoiding exposure to allergic and allergenic agents
2. Do not eat allergenic foods during the period of allergy (any food or allergenic food that is swallowed can cause an allergic reaction. The foods that most often cause this condition are: cow’s milk, eggs, wheat. , Soy, peanuts, fish, nuts such as walnuts and hazelnuts, melons, sesame, sunflower seeds and chocolate)
3. Using nasal sprays such as cromolyn spray, these sprays prevent secretion.
4- Regular rinsing of the nose with saline serum
5- Taking one of the available antihistamines with a doctor’s opinion
Source: Fars News Agency
