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Lifestyle and home remedies
By Mayo Clinic staffOne of the keys to preventing an allergic reaction is knowing how to avoid the food that causes your symptoms. Follow these steps:
- Never assume a food doesn't contain peanuts. Peanuts may be in foods that you never thought contained them. Always read labels on manufactured foods to make sure they don't contain peanuts or peanut products. Manufactured foods are required to clearly state whether foods contain any peanuts and if they were produced in factories that also process peanuts. Even if you think you know what's in a food, check the label. Ingredients sometimes change.
- Don't ignore a label that says a food was produced in a factory that processes peanuts. Most people with a peanut allergy need to avoid all products that could contain even trace amounts of peanuts.
- When in doubt, say no thanks. At restaurants and social gatherings, you're always taking a risk that you might accidently eat peanuts. Many people don't understand the seriousness of an allergic food reaction and may not realize that a tiny amount of a food can cause a severe reaction in some people. If you have any suspicion at all that a food may contain something you're allergic to, steer clear.
References
- Nowak-Wegrzyn A, et al. Adverse reactions to foods. Medical Clinics of North America. 2006;90:97.
- Skripak JM. Educational clinical case series: Peanut and tree nut allergy in childhood. Pediatric Allergy and Immunology. 2008;19:368.
- Atkins D. Food allergy: Diagnosis and management. Primary Care Clinics in Office Practice. 2008;35:119.
- Food allergy: An overview. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/topics/foodAllergy/PDF/foodallergy.pdf. Accessed Jan. 20, 2009.
- Li JT. (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. March 9, 2010.
- Ben-Shoshan M, et al. Is the prevalence of peanut allergy increasing? A 5-year follow-up study in children in Montreal. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology 2009;123:783.
- Ko J, et al. Use of complementary and alternative medicine by food-allergic patients. Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. 2006;97:365.
- Li X. Traditional Chinese herbal remedies for asthma and food allergy. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology. 2007;120:25.
- Peanuts. Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network. http://www.foodallergy.org/page/peanuts. Accessed Feb. 24, 2010.
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