Food allergies are an unpleasant and dangerous immune system reaction after a certain food is eaten. Food hypersensitivity is another name for food allergies. Some allergies experienced in childhood may resolve in adulthood (G., 2016). When particles of certain types of food enter our bodies, and they are called antigens. When your body is sensitive to that particle, it is mistaken by the harmless element for a dangerous invader, according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. The particles then becomes what we call an allergen. Allergens cause your body to produce Immunoglobulin E antibodies. Antibodies identify and destroy dangerous invaders. Unfortunately, the Immunoglobulin E antibodies release histamine and other chemicals that can create an allergic reaction (CNN, 2016). Food allergies are triggered by many different foods, there are different kinds of symptoms, and the chemicals that are involved in different food allergies. …show more content…
The best thing you can do is avoid your trigger foods. There are 8 foods that cause about 90% of all food reactions. First there is milk, which occurs mostly in children. Eggs also cause reactions to some people along with peanuts and tree nuts like: walnuts, almonds, pine nuts, Brazil nuts, and pecans. Fish and shellfish occur mostly in adults. Most people have reactions to foods like these, but they are usually food sensitivities. They are not caused by the immune system (WebMD, 2016). More than 50 million Americans are allergic to some kind of food. Food allergies are estimated to affect 4% to 6% of children and 4% of adults. They are most common in babies and children, but can occur at any age. You can also develop an allergy to foods you may have not eaten in years (ACAAI, 2014). With food allergies, just like any sickness, there are symptoms that