Why Developing Now?

[cammiec]

I'm almost 30 and just recently became anaphylactic.  After having all the testing done and getting my diet rearranged, I realized that I've had food allergies all my life.  But why am I just now becoming so dangerously allergic? And developing new allergies? I developed a severe nut allergy just 6 months after testing negative to it!  Even my grass allergies are extreme now.

[Macabre]

I have been pretty atopic all my life but developed shellfish, sesame and chamomile allergies in my thirties. I was on a proton pump inhibitor at the time--well for shellfish and sesame. It's possible that had something to do with it.

[SweetandSour]

No easy, solid answers from me, but I didn't develop my nut allergies until I was a sophomore in college.  I have no idea if it corrolates, but I started a protein pump inhibitor as well.
 

I'm sorry you have to deal with this.

[cammiec]

What is this mediction you are referring to? A medication can lead to food allergies?

[SilverLining]

Looking back, I still see no signs of any allergies when I was growing up.  Then, around thirty I developed allergies to peanuts and sesame seeds.  And they became anaphylactic.

I blame flea bites.  It doesn't mean they caused them....but I think they did.

MC and S&S, do either of you know of a co-relation between the protein inhibitor and the onset of allergies, or just a coincidence you noticed?

~~~

Cammiec, It actually is common for what people think is just a nuisance allergy to become a life threatening allergy.  If you read articles about people who died from anaphylaxis, quite often the family says, "he always just had minor reactions, we never knew his allergy was serious".

Are the new allergies confirmed both by tests and reaction?  When I first developed my allergies, I was reacting to everything.  A lot of foods and animals.  In my case, I think my allergy cup was full and overflowing.  Because I kept eating what I was allergic to (because I hadn't made the connection) my system got confused and just started reacting to anything.  When I eliminated the two foods I finally stopped reacting to things I'm not actually allergic to.  That took at least a year.

[starlight]

Silver -

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18539189
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/3148702.stm
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0091674903017196

There was another study done about children but I can't find it right now.

[Macabre]

It's a proton pump inhibitor.

And it seems to be a pretty accepted correlation in medical literature--and at least among two of my doctors.

So--Nexium, Prilosec. DS was on one when he was six weeks old--Propulsid. He had really horrible reflux with projectile vomiting (like across the room) several times a day.

[SilverLining]

Thanks.  I think it's important to distinguish between legitimate science and crazy ideas (like mine).

[CMdeux]

I have had food allergies all of my life-- but didn't develop anaphylaxis to foods until I was in my late 30's-- after my DD had been anaphylactic to foods for almost five years.

I was not on any medications at the time.  But I'd already experienced anaphylaxis to other allergens, had asthma, and lifelong eczema...  so clearly I'm not most people.  My food allergens up until then had not been ones associated with anaphylaxis in adults, and I don't have living parents to ask more probing questions of regarding my infancy, so I have only family oral history to judge from, but I was evidently VERY allergic to milk as a baby, and to egg as well.

[cammiec]

I took omeprazole daily for a while, but I don't believe it caused my allergies. I know now that the allergies were causing the reflux though. I have had keratosis pilaris on my arms for the majority of my life, not sure if that is any connection to food allergies. (Anyone know how to clear it up? Lol)

I have been tested AND had major reactions. I've only been full blown anaphylactic twice though. The second time I ate about 5 cashews (processed on tree but equipment.) Tested positive for pistachios, not cashews. Just 6 months before I tested negative to pistachios.

I hope I've addressed everyone's responses. Thank you so much for all of the input. It makes it a little less scary knowing that I'm not the only one.

[Macabre]

I just want to note a difference between correlation and causation.

And of course, it may have nothing to do with your developing food allergies. Or my developing food allergies. And we might believe it did or we might believe it didn't--it doesn't really matter what we believe. We frankly won't ever know what threw the switch--especially if a person is already pretty atopic.  But it does inform my choices going forward, yk?? 

If a person has a history of atopy, these days developing a food allergy can be part of the whole picture--the allergic march.  Unfortunately.

Regardless, I'm happy you found our community!  I hope you find it a helpful and supportive place.

[Janelle205]

My severe food allergies started developing probably around 7 or 8 years ago.  I'm 30 now.  Before that, I just had OAS, though an OAS reaction did send me to the hospital in high school. (Where the doctor asked me if I had been punched in the face.)

For me, it seems to be part of my allergic development.  Environmental allergies and asthma were diagnosed when I was 7, but given what we know about my medical history, they were probably around far before that.  I have pretty severe asthma (uncontrolled on daily prednisone), nasty environmental allergies, and eczema.  From what I have heard from others though, my eczema is mild - I only get it on my feet right now.  I do take a pretty high dose of a PPI, but I didn't start until after the food allergies developed.

My brother is pretty much the opposite.  He had pretty severe eczema, multiple food allergies, and asthma as a baby.  He is pretty eczema free now, and has no food allergies (he is 19).  He does have environmental allergies.  He still has asthma, but doesn't even need a daily controller med any more, just a rescue inhaler very occasionally.

[Jeff20]

I didn't start developing mine until I was in my twenties and it got real bad in my late twenties.  It sucks, but atleast I got to have plenty of fun food while I was young.

[Weezer]

This is really interesting as I'm going through the same thing - it started this year and I'm too I'm my 30's and it's started now too like a switch turning on in my body!

Where any of you on long term strong antihistamines? Since about the age of 26 I was on super strong antihistamines - I switched to a milder form developed tinnitus while on citrizine but during this switch my peanut, treenuts and now Rosaceae group are coming through. I had to switch to benedryl as the tinnitus was too much.

I just don't understand how in the uk not one medical professional pointed towards a food allergy.