You might have heard people joke, when offered freshly cut vegetables, that they have a veggie allergy and would much prefer chocolate cake! Shockingly enough, allergic reactions to fruits and vegetables is quite real and becoming increasingly more common. The Dairy Reporter states that more and more people are becoming allergic to fruit or vegetables.
Fortunately, for the most part, the allergies to fruits and vegetables are confined to the mouth rather than the systemic reactions, which often lead to intense itching, difficulty breathing, lightheadedness, or even complete collapse. Fruit or vegetable food allergy usually cause oral allergy syndrome, or itching and swelling in one’s mouth. If the forbidden fruit or vegetable is ingested, sometimes there is a release of histamines from the digestive tract which leads to such symptoms as vomiting and intestinal cramping. Those with produce allergies often have suffered from hay fever, asthma, or eczema as well.
Allergy specialists say that produce allergies are increasing significantly. It appears that children are experiencing this at a much higher rate than adults. Some studies have shown that children who haven’t been exposed to a variety of potential allergens early in life, when they can build up tolerance, experience a higher rate of allergy related problems later on. How serious can this problem be? Some experts feel that in the future, produce allergies might pose a more widespread problem than peanut allergies.
When canned or otherwise heated in the kitchen, much of the problematic produce loses its allergenic properties. For example, you may be able to eat all the applesauce you want, but have difficulties when you eat a fresh apple. There can be a decrease of the allergic response when the fruit or vegetable is processed or cooked. Canning or otherwise heating problematic produce can result in the breakdown of their allergenic proteins.
The recommended way of dealing with such produce allergies is to track what you consume each day in a little notebook so you’ll be able to pinpoint the problematic items. If you can recognize the troublemakers, it shouldn’t be hard to eliminate them from your diet, providing they’re not too numerous. You should consider seeing an allergist if you show signs of an allergic reaction when you eat the majority of fruits and vegetables, regardless of them being processed or not.