An allergy is defined as a condition where the immune system reacts abnormally to a foreign substance. There are many different types of allergies. These include:

• Medications
• Food
• Pollen
• Latex
• Animal Dander
• Mold

The Genetic Risk

The tendency to develop allergies is genetic, therefore, they are hereditary, which means they are passed down from parent to child. However, this does not happen 100% of the time. Just because you or your spouse may have allergies doesn’t mean your child will definitely inherit them. For example, while approximately 17.6 million adults have been diagnosed with hay fever, less than half of that number of children, 6.6 million, have inherited the same allergy.

Additionally, children do not inherit a particular allergy, rather they inherit the tendency to develop them. For example, a parent may be allergic to pollen and develop hay fever, while their child may be allergic to chocolate and develop atopic eczema or dermatitis. Conversely, some children develop allergies when no known family member has them. Chances are if you are allergic to one substance, you are likely to be allergic to others.

Developing allergies because of your genetic links is known as atopic. While over half the children from atopic families will develop allergies, only one in five from unaffected families will be diagnosed. In families where both parents have allergies, this risk of their children inheriting them is slightly higher. If only one parent has been diagnosed, that risk decreases, however, it is important to note that if the mother has allergies, there is a slightly greater chance her children will develop them than if the father does.

The Allergic March

An allergy often follows a particular pattern where it is diagnosed in infancy through the toddler stage and into childhood, sometimes persisting into adulthood when a lifelong condition is diagnosed. When one allergic disease subsides and another takes its place, it is called the Allergic March. A common pattern is when atopic eczema leads to a food allergy, then asthma, and finally rhinitis. Some children, instead of experiencing the Allergic March, will experience a cumulative effect, meaning that one allergy does not replace another; it just gets added onto what they already have. Keep in mind, however, that all children are different; some may simply develop one allergy for life, instead of experiencing the Allergic March or a cumulative effect.

Common Allergens

Unfortunately, there are many allergens out there. The most common types are airborne and food. Some airborne allergies include:

• Pollen
• Dust Mites
• Mold
• Pets
• Cockroaches

Food allergies include:

• Wheat
• Soy
• Peanuts and tree nuts
• Fish
• Shellfish
• Eggs
• Cow’s milk.

Other common allergens include:

• Insects, such as a bee sting
• Chemicals
• Medications

There are also cross-reactions and cross contamination. Cross-reactions happen when someone who has an allergy to one thing, has a reaction to another. For example, someone who is allergic to birch tree pollen might react to eating an apple if it contains a protein similar to one in the pollen. Another example is that people who are allergic to latex often react to bananas, avocados, chestnuts, and kiwi.

Cross contamination happens when you come in contact with a substance you are not allergic to, but it was processed with something you are during production or packaging. It can also happen at restaurants or even at home when the same utensils or surfaces are used for more than one type of food.

While genetics is not the sole cause of allergies, it has been proven that many allergies are hereditary, so you should be evaluated if you have a family history.

There are a range of allergies, and food allergy falls among them. A food allergy is described as an abnormal response to the food eaten at that given time. Not all allergies are identical, as their indications maybe be minor or other times severe.

Symptoms of Food Allergies

The major symptoms of allergies may include among others the following:

• low blood pressure
• itchiness
• diarrhea
• itchiness

Most of the time it varies from different people. Some react within minutes, and others react within a couple of hours after exposure. However, when the condition is severe, it is referred to, as anaphylaxis.

Methods of Preventing Food Allergies

You can curb food allergies through the following ways:

Keep Away from Trigger Foods

It is also advisable to do away with trigger foods from the kitchen counters. Due to the fact that certain types of foods may cause allergy, keeping them around in the kitchen maybe lure one to consume the food, either intentionally or otherwise hence leading to allergic reactions. Exercising this may greatly reduce your risk of consuming allergic foods. Some of the most known foods to cause allergies include:

• Milk
• Eggs
• Fish
• Soy
• Wheat
• Peanuts

Be Keen on Ingredients

Another useful precaution is to throw away any food products that you are not certain of the ingredients. Always keep it a practice to read food labels as possible as you can. This requires you first to identify the ingredients that often cause allergic reactions and avoid foods with such contents. Most developed countries require manufacturers to label their food containers with the top ten allergenic foods on food containers. Most allergens have code names for allergens an example is lactose, whey or rennet casein for milk.

Let your Baby Suckle

Medical experts advise that a mother should breastfeed her infant for at least 4 months of age, this helps in preventing allergies such as cow’s milk allergy, wheezing and atopic dermatitis.

Replace your Stock with Trigger Free Food or Their Alternatives

Removing your favorite foods because of allergy maybe not be an easy thing to do but alternatively, you can keep your pantry full of alternative foods thus minimizing the risk of consuming food with allergic content. In case you are in an environment around those who freely consume your trigger foods, you might want to consider storing your food separately.

Other times it causes no harm to walk around in stores to check for products specifically for folks with allergies, this may be a good idea because many manufacturers are considering that trend.

Limit Cross Contamination

In many typical homes, it is not so accidental to get into contact with trigger foods through cross contamination. This, however, can be prevented by being on the look lout on what you bring home and how you store and even cook it. Some precautions may include; using different utensils from others, owning your own cooking appliances such blenders and lastly cleaning your hands properly before handling any food stuff.

Put Down Your Meal Plans

If you constantly prepare your meal yourself, at a personal level, you stand a chance of reducing the risk of consuming trigger food. This also goes a long way in ensuring you get the right amounts of required vitamins and keep fit. This can occasionally be, maybe once a week. Take keen notice on meals you often miss at home. If you get to a restaurant, it is advisable to check the menu first.

Living with asthma is manageable. But to understand how to live with it, you need to understand what can trigger it. Here’s a look at some of the things that can trigger asthma.

Allergies

While allergies manifest themselves in different ways, some allergic reactions cause asthma. The list of allergens that can trigger asthma is a long one. Dust mites, rodents, and pet dander are common household allergens. An often overlooked cause allergy is household mold. It can hide in your air vents and trigger a reaction.

There can be outdoor allergens as well. In the spring, pollen may irritate you and cause asthma. There are various types of pollen, and one pollen may cause asthma while another doesn’t bother you.

Respiratory Issues

If you’re not usually prone to asthma, you may experience it as a result of a respiratory illness. One of the symptoms of pneumonia and the flu is asthma. Other illnesses that can trigger it include a cold, sinus infection, and sore throat. While these respiratory issues can cause asthma in an adult, they most often do so in children.

 Airborne Irritants

These irritants are different from allergens because their presence doesn’t cause an allergic reaction. Instead, they make your airways swollen and more narrow. As a result, they trigger asthma.

These irritants include cigarette smoke, smoke from a fire, dust, chemicals, and strong fumes. Different people have different sensitivities to these irritants. So, what triggers asthma in one person may do nothing in another.

Exercise

When you exercise, your body fuels the work with Oxygen. And that means that you breathe harder. In some people, this causes asthma. Known as exercise-induced bronchocontsriction, this type of asthma is only triggered during exercise.

Exercise-induced bronchoconstritction doesn’t usually show up the second you start to exercise. It takes a few minutes for the asthma to kick in. Fortunately, it is manageable with medication.

Weather

The weather can have a direct affect on asthma. Cold air can trigger an attack, as well as dry wind. Sometimes, a seasonal weather change can effect asthma. Additionally, people with exercise-induced bronchoconstriction usually have more asthma attacks when they exercise in cold weather.

Strong Emotions

When you experience a strong emotion, your breathing changes. Anger, excitement, and fear can all trigger asthma. Some of the actions you take while experiencing these emotions (like yelling, laughing, and crying) can also trigger it.

Reflux

People who suffer from reflux may experience asthma as a direct effect of reflux. There are other medical issues that can have similar results.

Medicine

Some people are sensitive to aspirin and NSAIDs. Taking them can trigger asthma if you have a sensitivity. Taking beta blockers may make it harder for your to control your asthma.

Knowing Your Triggers

If you know what triggers your asthma, you may be able to prevent an attack. It can also help you and your doctor establish a treatment plan. The next time you have an asthma attack, consider which of these triggers may have been the culprit.

Image is from CDC

Asthma is a common respiratory infection and is often long-term. It is associated with recurring inflammatory characteristics such as bronchospasm and reversible airflow obstruction.

The symptoms one may experience include coughing, wheezing, breath shortness and chest tightness. These signs are bound to change depending on the person’s immunity, or the exercise one is undertaking.

Causes of asthma

Asthma is brought about by the effect of a combination of many factors. The factors include interactions that are genetically and environmentally instigated. The effect of the above factors often go along away in influencing the sensitivity and rigorousness of asthma to treatment.

Recent scientific research affirms that asthma cases are on the rise due to the changing environmental conditions. Further genetics study reveal that, while asthma is almost spread among the ages, it is most likely that onset before the age of twelve is likely to be caused by genetic influence while contracting asthma after the age of thirteen would be environment-influenced.

Environmental causes

There is a myriad of such factors that can actually lead to the development and exacerbation of this respiratory infection. They include to mention but a few,

• Air pollution, allergens that cause allergies and exposure to hazardous environmental chemicals.
• Expectant mothers are advised to restrain from smoking as this impends a high risk of asthma.
• Other factors such as traffic pollution could cause emission of dangerous gasses to the open air; this could be a major cause of asthma development and severity.
• This has been mostly the case in the US, as nearly half of the children who have asthma are from areas with air quality below standard.
• Organic compounds that are volatile may prompt asthma especially if one exposes themselves to the compounds for long hours. They include phthalates, formaldehyde and some types of PVC.
• One more common factor is contact with indoor allergens. There are many indoor allergens, and common ones include animal dander, cockroaches, and dust mites.
• A few viral respiratory diseases may increase the risk of contracting asthma, one of them was found to be respiratory syncytial virus.

Genetic causes

As seen above, genetics also plays a major role in contracting asthma.One sure cause of asthma-related to the above subtopic is family history with an innumerably different of genes being concerned. In case a twin is affected there is a chance of up to about 25% of the other contracting asthma. By 2006, twenty different gene types had been associated with asthma in at least six different populations. A good number of these genes are connected to the immune system or inflammation. However, results have not been consistent in the various tested populations.

In 2006, a study on genetic association associates over 100 genes with asthma. In other cases, genetic variants are found to cause asthma only when in combination with other environmental exposures. A good example would be single nucleotide polymorphism found in the region of CD14 and exposure to a bacterial product named endotoxin. Exposure to the latter may come from numerous factors related to the environment that include tobacco smoke, animals such as dogs and sometimes even cats. It could be concluded then that risk of asthma is contributed by both ones genetic composition and a given level of exposure to endotoxin.