Common Types of Allergies

What Are Allergies?

Allergies are your body's immune response to an external substance. These substances are what we call allergens. Common types of allergens include pollens, foods, pets, dust mites, as well as certain medicines. like a certain food, dust or pollen to which it's become hypersensitive.

When you have allergies, your immune system creates antibodies that determine a certain allergen is harmful, even if it's not. If you come into contact with this allergen, the reaction of your immune system is to inflame your skin, sinuses, digestive system and airways.

Each individual with allergies can experience different levels of severity, which can range from a mild irritation to anaphylaxis (a potential life-threatening emergency). Although there's no cure for most allergies, there are treatments that help ease your allergy symptoms.

Types of Allergies

Skin Allergies

Skin allergies could be either a symptom or sign of an allergy. They can also be a direct result of allergen exposure. For example, if you eat food you're allergic to, you can experience various symptoms such as tingling in your throat and mouth or you could develop a rash.

Contact dermatitis is the reaction of your skin directly touching an allergen like when you touch a plant or a cleaning product.

Types of skin allergies:

• Rashes: Red, swollen or irritated areas of the skin that may also be itchy or painful.

• Hives: Itchy, red and raised welts of different shapes and sizes that develop on your skin's surface.

• Eczema: Skin patches that can bleed, itch and become inflamed.

• Swollen eyes: Itchy, watery or "puffy" looking eyes.

• Burning: Skin inflammation leading to stinging sensations and discomfort on your skin.

• Sore throat: Throat or pharynx is inflamed or irritated.

• Itching: There's inflammation or irritation in your skin.

Food Allergies

A food allergy occurs when the body’s immune system sees a certain food (most often a protein) as harmful and reacts by triggering an allergic reaction.

Types of Food Allergies:

• Casein Allergy: If a slice of pizza or glass of milk causes hives, swollen lips or other symptoms, you could be having an allergic reaction to casein (a protein in milk). Whey is another protein in milk linked with allergies. Some individuals are allergic to both whey and casein.

• Milk Allergy: If you have a milk allergy, the only way to avoid a reaction like hives, wheezing or vomiting is by strictly avoiding milk, milk products and food containing milk.

• Nut Allergy: When suffering from a nut allergy, you need to strictly avoid nuts, including walnuts, peanuts and cashews as well as avoid food containing nuts.

• Egg Allergy: Both adults and children often have egg allergies with reactions ranging from mild to severe.

• Wheat Allergy: Since wheat is in a lot of things, it can be hard to avoid.

• Fish Allergy: Your doctor may have you avoid all types of fish if you're allergic to one kind of fish.

• Shellfish Allergy: The same goes for shellfish; you may need to avoid all types of shellfish if you're allergic to one type.

• Soy Allergy: With a soy allergy, you not only need to avoid soy sauce and tofu, but also soybeans which is a huge part of processed foods.

• Sulfite Sensitivity: Sulfites are sulfur-based compounds that might naturally occur or might be added to food to act as a preservative and enhancer.

Respiratory Allergies

Respiratory allergies are caused by proteins in the air that are inhaled and trigger airway inflammation. They may be due to specific allergic reactions, or more general reactions to irritants such as smoke and fumes in the indoor and outdoor environment that can aggravate allergy symptoms.

Types of Respiratory Allergies:

• Summer Allergies: Grasses, weeds and pollen often trigger summer allergies.

• Spring Allergies: While you can curb spring allergies through certain household habits and medication, you can't cure them.

• Fall Allergies: Mold, ragweed, and dust mites are huge fall allergy triggers.

• Winter Allergies: In the wintertime, indoor allergies like dust mites and mold may become worse since you're spending most of your time indoors.

• Pollen Allergies: Over 25 million individuals in the U.S. are allergic to pollen from grass, weeds or trees.

• Hay Fever: Also referred to as allergic rhinitis, hay fever is an immune disorder marked by an allergic reaction to grains, pollen and other substances. There are a couple types: perennial, which occurs year round and seasonal, which occurs during certain times of the year when some plants pollinate.

• Dust Allergies: These little creatures stir up a lot of problems, despite you not even being able to see them.

• Mold Allergies: Everyone, every day is exposed to some mold and typically without issues. However, if you're allergic to it, you could have a reaction when around it too much.

• Dog Allergies: Around 37 to 47 percent of households in the U.S. have dogs. For individuals with dog allergies, living in a country that loves dogs is challenging.

• Cat Allergies: Around 10 percent of the population in the U.S. has pet allergies, with cats being the most common culprits.

What Does an Allergist Do?

An allergist is a type of physician that is qualified to diagnose and treat different types of allergies or conditions that affect the immune system An allergy occurs if your immune system is triggered by external substances. These substances are what we call allergens. Common types of allergens include pollens, foods, pets, dust mites, as well as certain medicines. 

When you see an allergist, they will run various tests to determine the particular allergen that is triggering your immune system. Next, they would find out the severity of the symptoms and form a plan to treat them effectively. Treatment might include medication or advice to stay away from allergens as much as possible.

Your primary care physician is typically the first person you see when you have a health concern. Although your physician is well equipped to provide care for all of your medical issues, it’s best to see a specialist to treat an allergy or immunological disorder. If you have symptoms of an allergy, your physician can refer you to an allergist who can properly diagnose and treat your allergy symptoms.

Allergy Testing 

An allergist may conduct several allergy tests to identify the allergens that trigger your symptoms and determine the type of treatment to follow.

Types of Allergy Tests:

• Skin Tests: Your doctor will use a thin needle to prick the skin on your back or forearm with small amounts of different allergens to test your reaction. Skin tests are typically done for airborne allergies, food allergies, and penicillin allergies.

• Blood Tests: Blood tests can screen for allergies such as dust mites, molds, pet dander, pollen and foods by checking for IgE antibodies present in your blood.

• Patch Tests: This test identifies triggers for allergic contact dermatitis. The doctor will place stickers on your back that contain various allergens. You need to leave the patches on and revisit your doctor at 48 and 96 hours after the test is placed. Your doctor will then remove the patches to determine your skin reaction to the allergen.

• Pulmonary Function Tests: These are noninvasive tests to see how your lungs are working. Pulmonary function tests can help diagnose and determine the severity of your asthma.

Allergy Treatments

Depending on the results of your allergy tests, your allergist might recommend the following:

• Allergy Shots: These can help your body get used to the allergens that are triggering your allergy symptoms. Also known as immunotherapy, allergy shots are often prescribed if you suffer from allergy symptoms for three or more months in a year, and medicines do not provide enough relief.
  
  

• Prescription medicines: Your allergist can prescribe certain prescription medicines to help treat your allergy symptoms.
  
  

• Avoiding allergy triggers: The allergist can advise you on how to minimize exposure to allergens such as dust mites or pollens that can trigger your symptoms.

Allergies can affect your quality of life significantly. When you don't have your allergy symptoms under control, it can lead to chronic ear and sinus infections, poor sleeping patterns and reduced productivity at work or school. If you have allergy symptoms, the best way to get the most effective treatment is to visit an allergist/immunologist and take steps to avoid the allergens that have triggered your allergy.