An allergy is
an over-reaction of our immune system. Causes of such an overreaction
are known as allergens. Allergens may be absorbed into our bodies
through the following means:
| Inhalation |
dust mite droppings, mould spores, pollen and
animal proteins |
| Contact with our skin |
dust mites, dust mite droppings, cockroach droppings, cosmetics
and insect bites |
| Ingestion of food |
corn, wheat, malt, milk, soya and yeast |
Super – sensitive immune systems tend
to run in families. For example, if you have one parent with allergies,
your has a 50% chance of developing some kind of allergy. If both
parents have allergies, chances increase to 75%. But the child
may not have the same allergies as the parent, eg. parent may
be allergic to certain foods, while child is allergic to dust
mites. Only one thing is true for all allergic people, the more
often and more directly you come into contact with any potential
allergen, the likely you are to develop an allergy to it.
Thus, it is always recommended to keep your
home free of the common allergens. And for infants, which are
more susceptible to food allergies, especially with two allergic
parents, we recommend exclusive breast-feeding for at least six
months. Solid can then be introduced from 6 months but avoid allergenic
foods such as strawberries, peanuts, shellfish, mushroom until
one year of age, then introduced this foods infrequently. Cow’s
milk, which is a primary source of nutrients for most young children,
is unfortunately also one of the most common food allergens. To
reduced the risk of getting cow’s milk allergy, it is best
to rotate your child’s cow milk intake rice milk and oats
milk (found at many supermarkets and pharmacies).
- Chronic sinusitis, most often caused by
allergies, affects nearly 35 million people in the U.S.
- While there are no solid statistics, estimates
from a skin test survey suggest that allergies affect as many
as 40 to 50 million people in the U.S.
- There are 26.1 million cases of Hay Fever
or Allergic Rhinitis (without Asthma) reported annually (1994)
Source: Vital and Health Statistics Series 10, No. 193
- 17.5 million of these cases affect Americans
under age 45 (1994)
Source: Vital and Health Statistics Series 10, No. 193
- Slightly more women have these conditions
than men (1994)
Source: Vital and Health Statistics Series 10, No. 193
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