Allergies and allergy testing

Allergic? Often the solution which gets overlooked when suffering from something: it could be as simple (or complicated) as being allergic to something you eat or a product you use.

Whenever we feel off colour, not quite right, or downright awful (mentally and or physically) we initially try to self-diagnose, we put it down to something. I am stressed and tired, I have a cold, I am run down, I’m not sleeping well, I haven’t been exercising enough, etc. We instinctively try to work out the cause of the effect. The symptoms however are not always indicative of what is going on within us. Sometimes they are unrecognisable, some go unnoticed for long periods of time and some we just learn to live with as though they are now just a new part of us. When we really begin to listen to our body and mind and realise that there is an issue, recognise that something isn’t quite as it ought to be, then we can begin to determine what that issue is. Perhaps it is something treatable. It could be as simple as drinking more water, or as complicated as fathoming out an allergy. We shouldn’t allow ourselves to live with burdens, it is and will continue to restrict our level of overall wellness and eventually may cause knock-on, more serious, effects.

There are SO many varieties of allergies on the table in our modern world that when it comes to working out first of all if you have one, and then to locate that needle in the proverbial haystack, it’s no simple task.

Symptoms of allergies can range from blocked or runny nose, loss of breath, skin irritation, tiredness, headaches, IBS and other digestive issues, nausea to fever and  so many more; and so can be difficult to diagnose.

This is a basic list of general allergies:

Respiratory allergies

Are generally caused by flora of the season, dust, mould, medication, animals.

Skin allergies

Can range from contact dermatitis, hives, reactions to bites and stings, cosmetic products, domestic products, sun exposure, nickel and more. With symptoms ranging from rashes, welts, bumps, itching, swelling, red patches, even anaphylactic shock.

Food allergies

More commonly known as food intolerances, are an ever more common occurrence in recent years. Negative intestinal reactions, wheezing, vomiting, hives, IBS, bloating, swelling, itching, nausea, tiredness, and more can all be caused by different food types. Most commonly milk, casein, eggs, wheat, nuts, fish, shellfish, sulphite, soy, gluten, etc. are all cases of discomfort and worse in thousands of people.

Other allergies

Include eye allergies which can present as conjunctivitis, or weeping itchy eyes. And something we wouldn’t correlate with allergies is medicine; thousands of people are allergic to penicillin or aspirin, for example, and so many other combinations of chemicals. Many medications can trigger allergies and so may present in an entirely unexpected manner.

So you can see that with such a wide range of allergens out there and each having varied effects on an individual it can be an impossible task to diagnose whether you are suffering from something in your atmosphere, something you ingested or whether you’re just having an off day.

What is worth doing is that if you suffer from something regularly try to cancel out certain things in your diet, or products you use and slowly reintroduce them to see if they have an adverse effect. I recently discovered I was allergic to my laundry detergent, having cancelled out nuts, skin creams, and dermatitis I tried using another type of washing liquid and the itchy raised skin disappeared. Alternatively of course, if your suffering continues, there are specialist doctors who can gradually work out what your personal make up is and what affects you and doesn’t.