Types

June 12, 2008 |

Food allergy is a very common problem nowadays. Those with food allergies must be very diligent in avoiding food triggers so as to avoid an inflammatory response. Food triggers tend to fall into a common list which includes milk, egg, nut, fish, shellfish, and soy. These will typically be the first items you will test if you notice any allergic flareups.

Milk:

Symptoms of a milk allergy may include immediate wheezing, hives, or vomiting. The problem often lies because many food products have milk products in them. These milk products can include: milk and milk solids, non-fat, skim milk, powdered milk, buttermilk, evaporated milk, sour cream, cheese, cheese powder, yogurt, cream, cream cheese, cheese sauce, butter, butter fat, artificial butter flavoring, curds, whey, whey products and also cottage cheese.

Here are some more clues. Check the labels for these milk and milk-containing ingredients on the food product that you intend to buy: casein, lactalbumin, lactalbumin phosphate, lactoglobulin, lactose and also sodium caseinate.

Milk or milk-containing foods to avoid include cake and cake mixes, chocolate and cream candies, donuts, coffee creamers, creamed foods or foods that are scalloped, food that contain nougat, mashed potatoes, custard, ice cream and sherbet, malted milk, some margarines, pudding, white and cream sauces, and also salad dressings.

Alternatives to less allergy symptom producing foods include soy milk, rice milk, non-dairy yogurt, non-dairy ice cream, almond milk, non-dairy chocolate, non-dairy cheese, and also kosher foods that are labeled as “parve”, or “pareve”.

Egg:

Egg allergies can trigger off hives and gastrointestinal tract upsets. Usually egg allergy reactions are instantaneous. They can be mild or severe. Kids are known to be especially allergic to egg whites.

As with milk, there are many food products that contain eggs. Be on the lookout for food listings that read egg, egg whites, egg yolks, dried egg, and egg powder or egg solids on the label. Egg-containing ingredients are also often “disguised” by the following terms: albumin, apovitellenin, globulin, livetin, ovalbumin, ovomucin, ovomucoid, ovovitellin, and also phosvitin.

Avoid the following foods: eggnog, bavarian cream food items, some breaded foods, caesar salad dressing, cake, some candies, some cookies can contain eggs like chocolate chip, creamed foods, cream pies and puffs, crepes, custard, muffins, pretzels, pudding, doughnuts, egg rolls, egg noodles, can or packaged frosting, hollandaise sauce, ice cream, mayonnaise, marshmallows, meringue containing products, soufflés, tartar sauce, waffles, certain wines, and also anything that is batter-fried, or fried. I know the list seems endless. It is difficult for the milk allergy sufferer.

Nut:

Those with nut allergies tend to react to peanut and tree nuts. Peanut products include peanut oil, peanut butter, and peanut flour. Peanut-containing ingredients include: hydrolyzed plant protein, hydrolyzed vegetable protein. Tree nuts include: almonds, brazil nuts, cashews, chestnuts, filberts, hazelnuts, hickory nuts, macadamia nuts, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, and also walnuts.

Tree nut-containing ingredients to look for on food labels include: marzipan a almond paste, nougat, artificial nuts, nut butters such as cashew butter and almond butter, nut oil, nut paste like almond paste, and also nut extracts such as almond extract used in baking. Nut-containing foods include: ground nuts, artificial nuts, nougat, mixed nuts, chex mix, foods of ethnic cuisines such as Chinese, and African, Thai. Also check foods such as cookies, candy, pastries, and other baked goods that are packaged or sold. Look into the ingredients listed for grain breads, high-energy bars, ice cream and frozen desserts, cereals and granola, salad dressing, and also marzipan.

Certain lotions and shampoos also contain tree nuts. If you have a peanut allergy, you should avoid using the inhaler, “Atrovent”.