FYI: Unlikely allergies

[MoonCat]

The overly-sanitized-world theory makes a lot of sense. People carry antibacterial gel everywhere they go. Look at those crazy TV commercials that show kids about to touch something and suddenly it's covered with germs (it's an animation, but you get the idea). There are situations when you do have to be careful about spreading disease, but we've gotten paranoid.

[LillFilly]

I have an acquaintance who's allergic to chicken; she has to be very careful when ordering vegie soups to ask if they're made with a chicken stock. It's a gamble; the waiter finds out it's chicken free, the waiter says it's chicken free and it isn't, the kitchen doesn't know what's in it at all because it comes pre-made, or she just ends-up picking something else.

[firecat88]

Zyrtec (citirizine), an antihistmine

Huh. I can now say I know someone else who's allergic to an antihistamine. *allergic to Benadryl (diphenhydramine)*

[Gizmo]

A friend has hell when she goes to the hospital with her bad back because she has NSAID allergy. Last time it took about 7 hours on ward before they stopped offering her Ibuprofen!

[AccountingDrone]

A friend has hell when she goes to the hospital with her bad back because she has NSAID allergy. Last time it took about 7 hours on ward before they stopped offering her Ibuprofen!

I am not allergic to codeine or naprosin but they are as effective as an M&M without the chocolate. I got tired of clinic calls [military sick call for dependents where whichever doc grabs your file works your case on that visit.] It seemed they always offered scrips for naprosin or codeine and tylenol [222s in Canada, um tylenol 2 I think in the US. As they are useless for me, I don't bother paying attention to what they are called.] I have been doing painkillers long enough that I can do darvocet with a daiquiri back and be totally sober. <shrug> I inherited my Dad's amazing alcohol tolerance. The most I ever drank over a 4 hour timeframe was 16 shots of tequila as margaritas.

[Cazzi]

I am not allergic to codeine or naprosin but they are as effective as an M&M without the chocolate.

My mum & I have the same problem with codeine, it was a relief when my GP finally prescribed something else for my chronic pain!

After a recent surgery, my mum spoke to a pharmacist about why she didn't want codeine and was told that there's a percentage of the population that can't properly metabolise codeine.

[Jester]

One had the usual suspects: wheat, eggs, milk, soy, nuts, etc. And then a whole bunch of other stuff, too, like various kinds of meat (I didn't know at the time one could be allergic to meat, either.) and a whole ton of different vegetables and fruit. The list of things he could eat was smaller than what he couldn't.

My one friend is allergic to (deep breath): seafood, nuts, coconut, dairy, eggs, and mushrooms. I may have missed something. Look at that list, and tell me what the hell she could eat on a typical daily American diet.

At this point, the only thing I will be surprised at would be an allergy to rice. Basically since rice is just about the most benign food ever. And if someone told me that they were allergic to rice, I would still BELIEVE them. I would just be surprised.

I wouldn't be. I haven't come across it yet, but at this point, it wouldn't surprise me at all.

As someone who is allergic to nothing known, I can never fully understand allergies. It does amaze me what people can be allergic to.

The human body is a weird thing. I have numerous allergies to various pollens, of varying severities, for example, but only one food allergy, and it's very, very minor.

Are allergies really becoming as much more prevalent as they seem to becoming, or is it just that you just didn't hear about it before the internet? Because if they really are becoming so much more common... I have to ask myself why?

I think it's a combination of both increased media availability and more allergies. And I think the reason for the second is our tendency to make things more and more sterile. I could go on about this, but my friend George Carlin did an excellent treatise on the whole thing...

"Where did this sudden fear of germs come from in this country? Have you noticed this? The media constantly running stories about all the latest infections? Salmonella, E-coli, hanta virus, bird flu, and Americans will panic easily so everybody's running around scrubbing this and spraying that and overcooking their food and repeatedly washing their hands, trying to avoid all contact with germs. It's ridiculous and it goes to ridiculous lengths....

Let me tell you a true story about immunization ok. When I was a little boy in New York city in the nineteen-forties, we swam in the Hudson river. And it was filled with raw sewage! OK? We swam in raw sewage, you know, to cool off. And at that time the big fear was polio. Thousands of kids died from polio every year. But you know something? In my neighborhood no one ever got polio. No one! EVER! You know why? Cause WE SWAM IN RAW SEWAGE! It strengthened our immune system, the polio never had a prayer. We were tempered in raw shit!"

You can check out his full (and highly hilarious) rant on the subject here.

I have a friend who's allergic to beer.

NOOOOOOOOOooooooooo!!!!!!

I have an acquaintance who's allergic to chicken; she has to be very careful when ordering vegie soups to ask if they're made with a chicken stock. It's a gamble; the waiter finds out it's chicken free, the waiter says it's chicken free and it isn't, the kitchen doesn't know what's in it at all because it comes pre-made, or she just ends-up picking something else.

She'd be better off asking if it's vegetarian. Because any kitchen worth a damn will know or find out if a soup has a vegetarian or meat-based stock. Asking if it's chicken-free, they won't get the seriousness of it as much. Just saying.

[Gilhelmi]

As I understand it (because I paid attention in Biology class), a person can be allergic to just about anything natural or man-made (even rocks, like those in your yard).

Latex is synthetic, yet I know many medical professionals allergic to it.
Tomatoes are natural, but one of the most common allergies.
I even heard about one person allergic to metal (aluminum I think). Not deadly allergic, but would break out in a rash if touching something made of it for a while. (it was on TLC or Discovery, or something along those lines).

Anything and everything can be a potential allergen.

[purple]

My most frustrating allergy is vanilla. I love to bake so I don't miss out but it means when we have a baking day at work ( when I worked at McDonald's we would bring in baked goods on what we knew would be insane nights) I could only eat what I brought in.

[XCashier]

Are allergies really becoming as much more prevalent as they seem to becoming...What are we doing/ingesting/exposing ourselves to that's triggering all of the exaggerated immune system response?

There's a theory that the immune system is designed to, among other things, attack parasites; and that, since we've eliminated most parasites from modern society, this is resulting in the immune system becoming hyperactive and responding to proteins that really shouldn't count as allergens.

I read that it's due to insulating the kidlings from just about everything. Nobody gets to play in the dirt anymore, a developing immune system doesn't have anything to exercise itself with and so gets twitchy with common stuff.

The allergy problem probably has many causes. Both of the above are good theories; I would also suggest the genetic modification of much of the food supply as a culprit. I wouldn't doubt pollution has a role in it, too. Ah, modern living, don't you love it?

[ComputerNecromancer]

Among the things I am histamine-allergic to (ie, true allergy, ie, the OMZOG I CAN DIE) .... is chicken.

Also lettuce. Yes, plain old iceberg lettuce. The stuff that's almost nothing but chlorophyll and water and fibre.

Not only am I allergic to them, but they're sufficiently common allergies that the allergen test kit includes them!

I had a friend who was allergic to lettuce. One time at a restaurant, he'd ordered some sort of hot sandwich (burger, chicken, something like that).

When it arrived, it had lettuce and the hot patty/chicken breast/whatever was sitting on it, driving lettuce "stuff" into both the bread and the patty.

He'd told them "no lettuce" and that he was allergic to it when he ordered. So he repeated that and told them they'd have to remake it from scratch as both the neat and the bread were now contaminated.

After a bit they brought back the "new" sandwich. Shortly thereafter he was on his way to the hospital because all they'd done was pull the lettuce, wait a bit and bring it back.

He sued and won. and got a fair bit of money, not that that made up for the trip to the hospital and all the other "fun".

That was back in the early 80s, I think. I suspect it was one of the cases that got across to restaurants that when someone says they are allergic, you *don't* play games, you treat it as real and serious.

[ComputerNecromancer]

Latex is synthetic, yet I know many medical professionals allergic to it.

Actually, latex is natural. It's from the sap of the rubber tree. Synthetic rubber is different and isn't used for condoms, gloves, etc. Other synthetics can be (most popular are vinyl, and "nitrile".

I even heard about one person allergic to metal (aluminum I think). Not deadly allergic, but would break out in a rash if touching something made of it for a while. (it was on TLC or Discovery, or something along those lines).

Nickel is a *very* common allergy.

[NecessaryCatharsis]

My great grandma was allergic to silver. She would paint the inside of her sisters thimbles with clear lacquer so she could use them when they would sew together.

[Moogles]

I'm allergic to all meats (annoying as hell), anything in the cabbage family, am lactose intolerant, and need a low protein diet. My daughter has the same food allergies plus a mild peanut allergy.

I'm severely allergic to the outdoors. If it polinates it will me me sneeze. Some trees make my eyes swell shut. Wool and most laundry detergent makes me break out in hives.

Best part? Anti-histamine allergy. Claritin, Aerius, Benadryl you name it. Bam hospital trip. Gravol made me seize and stopped my heart when I was 2. That doesn't even scratch the surfaces of the drug allergies, but that's a whole new ball game.

Also: I tarnish silver almost instantly and can precipitate copper out of water

[XCashier]

I even heard about one person allergic to metal (aluminum I think). Not deadly allergic, but would break out in a rash if touching something made of it for a while.

My son has a similar allergy. The snaps on his jeans, the back of the snap irritates his skin. Every time he gets new jeans or denim shorts, I have to iron iron-on patches over the back of the snap. So far, it's worked very well.