<p>With little awareness on food allergy, doctors are now seeing more patients suffering from it. Poor lifestyle, especially reliance on outside food among youngsters is the primary reason behind the increasing number of food allergy cases.<br /><br /></p>.<p>There has been at least 15-20 per cent increase in food allergy cases over the last two years, said doctors. Though food allergy is common among all age groups, those in the age-group of 20-30 years remains the most vulnerable. <br /><br />Consuming food with high amount of preservatives or outside food is common among this age-group.<br /><br />With World Health Day around next week and its theme being “food safety”, doctors said little attention is given to food allergies.<br /><br />“Preservatives in food is one of the factors that leads to food allergies among young people. Those in their 20s also rely heavily on outside food so the incidence of allergy cases is more in this age-group. Often, it becomes difficult to diagnose food allergy cases in patients,” said Dr Atul Gogia, Consultant, Internal Medicine, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.<br /><br />The common symptoms in food allergy cases are rashes, skin lesion, itching, abdominal pain and loose motion, among others. If the problems persist over a period of time, it becomes more difficult for doctors to trace the cause of the allergy. <br /><br />In some cases, the manifestation is immediate like severe itching, breathlessness and choking.<br /><br />“People with asthma can suffer from severe form of food allergies, especially if they consume high-risk food items. Peanuts, shellfish, sesame, prawns, mushroom fall in the high-risk category. We have seen several deaths in extreme cases of allergy due to food items in this category,” said Dr K K Aggarwal, Honorary, Secretary General, Indian Medical Association. <br /><br />“It is necessary that people are made aware of the consequences of food allergies,” added the doctor.<br /><br />Medical emergency<br />“Patients suffering from asthma or with a history of food allergies should carry epinephrine injections which can come handy in case of a medical emergency,” said Dr Aggarwal.<br /><br />Though food allergies are common, people often fail to trace the cause as the same food item might not have caused allergy before. <br /><br />So a patient often delays going to a doctor.<br /> <br />“While some people are aware of the allergies from certain food items, others do not realise it as the same food item might not have caused any reaction before. Currently, it is easier to diagnose food allergy cases as tests are available. However, such tests should be conducted in restricted cases and only under the supervision of doctors,” said Dr Suranjit Chatterjee, Senior Consultant, Internal Medicine, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals.</p>
<p>With little awareness on food allergy, doctors are now seeing more patients suffering from it. Poor lifestyle, especially reliance on outside food among youngsters is the primary reason behind the increasing number of food allergy cases.<br /><br /></p>.<p>There has been at least 15-20 per cent increase in food allergy cases over the last two years, said doctors. Though food allergy is common among all age groups, those in the age-group of 20-30 years remains the most vulnerable. <br /><br />Consuming food with high amount of preservatives or outside food is common among this age-group.<br /><br />With World Health Day around next week and its theme being “food safety”, doctors said little attention is given to food allergies.<br /><br />“Preservatives in food is one of the factors that leads to food allergies among young people. Those in their 20s also rely heavily on outside food so the incidence of allergy cases is more in this age-group. Often, it becomes difficult to diagnose food allergy cases in patients,” said Dr Atul Gogia, Consultant, Internal Medicine, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital.<br /><br />The common symptoms in food allergy cases are rashes, skin lesion, itching, abdominal pain and loose motion, among others. If the problems persist over a period of time, it becomes more difficult for doctors to trace the cause of the allergy. <br /><br />In some cases, the manifestation is immediate like severe itching, breathlessness and choking.<br /><br />“People with asthma can suffer from severe form of food allergies, especially if they consume high-risk food items. Peanuts, shellfish, sesame, prawns, mushroom fall in the high-risk category. We have seen several deaths in extreme cases of allergy due to food items in this category,” said Dr K K Aggarwal, Honorary, Secretary General, Indian Medical Association. <br /><br />“It is necessary that people are made aware of the consequences of food allergies,” added the doctor.<br /><br />Medical emergency<br />“Patients suffering from asthma or with a history of food allergies should carry epinephrine injections which can come handy in case of a medical emergency,” said Dr Aggarwal.<br /><br />Though food allergies are common, people often fail to trace the cause as the same food item might not have caused allergy before. <br /><br />So a patient often delays going to a doctor.<br /> <br />“While some people are aware of the allergies from certain food items, others do not realise it as the same food item might not have caused any reaction before. Currently, it is easier to diagnose food allergy cases as tests are available. However, such tests should be conducted in restricted cases and only under the supervision of doctors,” said Dr Suranjit Chatterjee, Senior Consultant, Internal Medicine, Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals.</p>
