How do allergies happen?

Spring may have officially started over a month ago, but we know it's only barely starting to feel like spring these past few weeks. For the unfortunate, hypersensitive amongst us, however, there's a new season settling in: allergy season.

There are several different kinds of allergies, from food to skin, there's an allergy for that. Let's have a closer look at how a few of these allergies form and what you can do about it.

What causes allergies?

The science of allergies is still in progress because the cause is not certain.

It is thought that allergies develop when you are exposed to allergens with a weakened immune system (during viral infections or pregnancy).

Although allergies aren't exactly a genetic trait, it also seems to be more likely that you'll have allergies if either or both of your parents did. This doesn't always necessarily lead to inheritance of the same, specific allergen.

Are different allergic reactions more common in different stages of life?

The allergic march, also known as the atopic march, describes the natural progression of an allergy throughout life. It can start with gastrointestinal issues from milk or egg proteins as an infant. These may be markers for eczema, which generally begins to appear in childhood, school-age years. Symptoms of asthma, such as wheezing, are most common during later childhood or adolescence years. Rhinitis, which includes typical allergy symptoms sucha as runny or stuffy nose, post-nasal drip, sneezing, appears to affect teenagers and adults.

Courtesy: World Allergy Organization

Seasonal allergies: pollen

Commonly known as hay fever, pollen allergies are one of the most common allergies because it occurs every season except winter. When trees, flowers, weeds, and grass release pollen grains in the air, it often enters human noses and throats, triggering a seasonal allergic rhinitis.

What can you do to treat it?

The Weather Network has a pollen count for some Canadian cities, so limit your time outdoors on days when it's swirling airborne pollen out. Besides closing all of your windows and becoming a hermit, you can also wash your clothes and shower more often, to clean the pollen out. Consider over-the-counter allergy nasal sprays and decongestants or a neti pot to rinse sinuses and flush out mucus and allergens.

Food allergies

Most food allergies are triggered by proteins found in seafood, peanuts, eggs, milk, and wheat. Your immune system accidentally recognizes the food as something harmful and releases immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies to neutralize the allergen.

Every time after this experience, when you eat that particular food, the IgE antibodies will sense it and signal the immune system to release chemicals into your bloodstream that will cause allergy symptoms. It can range from itchy eyes, dry throat, rashes and hives, to nausea, diarrhea, and even anaphylactic shock (serious allergic reaction that can lead to death). 

A food intolerance is different from a true food allergy. In food allergies, even the smallest amount of the food will trigger a reaction. Some food intolerances are caused by lack of enzymes to digest food. Lack of lactase, for example, reduces the ability to break dose lactose, this leads to bloating, excess gas, diarrhea, and cramping.

What can you do to treat a food allergy?

Firstly, be careful not just with what is on your your plate, but how the food was prepared. Traces of ingredients or food additives can cause a reaction as well as the environment it was cooked in.

For some cases, such as peanut allergies, research is beginning to show that feeding miniscule amounts every day of the allergen every day can help build tolerance. We are talking about parts per million, here. Whether it's one drop of milk in a glass of water each day (and increasing the number of drops), or slowly adding peanut flour, oral immunotherapy may be an option for building immunity over the long term.

Pet allergies

Many people believe that pet allergies stem from the fur and hair that animals shed. Ready to have your mind blown? It's not the hair that's causing you to sneeze, it's the saliva.

The allergens are found in animals' saliva, which contains proteins that cause irritation. When animals lick themselves, this sticks to their hair, and sheds, causing the myth that the hair itself is causing the sniffles. Allergens are also found in its skin cells, urine, and sweat– all of which ends up on its fur coat.

Saliva can stick to furniture, carpets, clothes, and proteins of it can also become airborne when dried.

What can I do about pet allergies?

If a fish, reptile, or naked mole rat won't fill the canine- or feline- shaped hole in your heart, then at least make sure you're getting a breed of dog that slobbers less. Avoid bulldogs and Saint Bernards. Try not to let your dogs or cats lick you if you're allergic and clean their slobbered toys in hot, soapy water every week.

Do you have allergies? How do you treat it? Let us know in the comments below!