Pratik Patel hoped his seasonal allergies would subside after his recent move from Georgia to Chicago, where concrete is more prevalent than fields of pollen-releasing plants. No such luck.
Moving just made Patel’s allergies worse.
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“It was affecting my work — the itchy and runny eyes, especially,” he said. “Over-the-counter medications weren’t helping.”
He decided to undergo a skin-prick allergy test, a procedure he had put off.
The test told Patel was not just allergic to pollen and cats, as he suspected, but also to a host of plants, dust and mold. His allergist, Dr. Sindhura Bandi at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, prescribed a combination of medications, including eye drops and a nasal spray.
Patel also learned how to minimize his allergies by altering his environment.
“I’ll be changing my sheets and vacuuming more often,” he said. “When I buy a house, it will have hardwood floors and no carpet.” When he has children, “no cats” will be the family rule.
Patel is typical of many patients, said Dr. David Stukus, co-author of the “Allergy Myths … Revealed,” a report he presented to the annual meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology in November in Maryland. He assumed he had to “live with” his symptoms and was not sure if testing would help.
Blame patients. Blame physicians. Blame the Internet. But this much is true: Misconceptions about allergies are as common as ragweed in a Midwestern autumn.
“We hear them everyday, and it’s often our own fault,” said Stukus, assistant professor of pediatrics at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. “Most doctors keep up with current research, read the journals and attend annual meetings. But some don’t. So some patients get outdated information from their own doctors.”
Patients also find incorrect information on the Internet, pass it on and it takes on a life of its own.
“The Internet is a huge, unregulated source of information, true and untrue,” said Stukus. “Put a word into a search engine and you have an answer. But it may not be correct.”
Many patients buy into myths because they give them much-wanted answers, said Stukus.
“I call it the ‘one in a million syndrome,'” he said. “Someone out there has a correct diagnosis and a real allergy, then everyone who reads it on the Internet thinks they have that allergy too.”
Credible sources for allergy information, said Stukus, are the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology and websites for some medical facilities, like mayoclinic.com. For parents, Stukus recommends kidswithfoodallergies.com.
“If your source of information is trying to sell you something, beware,” he said. “Some manufacturers want you to believe you have an allergy you don’t have.”
Instead of endangering your health with a self-diagnosis, see a board-certified allergist, said Stukus.
Common allergy myths, according to the report, include:
*”I’m allergic to penicillin.” One in 10 adults says he is allergic to penicillin, said Stukus, but this allergy is rare. “This prevents you from taking penicillin when you need it or from being given penicillin when you’re in the hospital because your chart says you have this allergy,” he said. “Then you’re given an alternate that costs more or may not be as effective.”
This misdiagnosis often occurs because common side effects of penicillin, such as skin rashes, are misread as allergies. Fortunately, said Stukus, allergists have a simple test that determines if you really are allergic to penicillin.
*”I’m allergic to gluten.” “A patient feels better when he quits eating foods with gluten because it’s part of his overall healthy diet and lifestyle change,” said Stukus. “So he self-diagnoses himself as being allergic to gluten.” As the current anti-gluten campaign snowballs, gluten is blamed for everything from acne to autism. The truth, said Stukus, is gluten allergies are rare.
*”I’m allergic to pets but I can live with a hypoallergenic dog or cat.” There is no such thing. Allergens are released from saliva and from sweat and anal glands, not hair. So a pet who sheds less than others still triggers allergies. There is big money behind this myth, though. At least one major pet food manufacturer encourages people to buy “allergy-free pets.” Online breeders tout their “scientifically proven hypoallergenic” dogs and cats. If you suspect pet allergies, see an allergist before you adopt a pet, said Stukus.
*”I’m allergic to shellfish so I can’t have a CT scan.” Yes, shellfish has iodine and yes, radiologists often use iodinated contrasts in CT scans. But shellfish allergies are not due to iodine. And, iodine is not an allergen. In fact, it is ever-present in most people’s diets and is in table salt. Yet, some radiologists perpetuate this myth by routinely asking their patients if they have shellfish allergies, said Stukus.
*”Kids should not eat allergenic foods before they’re 1 year old.” This myth was fueled by the rise in allergies in the last few decades, said Stukus. In fact, research shows early introduction of allergenic foods may increase kids’ tolerance of them. Current recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics tell parents to introduce solid foods after ages 4 to 6 months.
*”Blood tests will identify my food allergies.” These tests tell you which foods trigger “sensitization,” said Stukus, not allergies, and they often give patients false positives. The best way to determine an allergy to a food is to eat it. True food allergies are rare and are usually triggered by cow’s milk, eggs, soy, wheat, peanuts, tree nuts or fish. The tendency to have a food allergy runs in families, said Stukus, but specific food triggers vary within families.
Self-diagnosis of food allergies is common, said Stukus, and often leads to unnecessary elimination of foods.
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“It affects the whole family because the parents don’t keep that food in the house if they think one of the kids is allergic to it,” said Stukus.
*”I need to see an allergist for my eczema.” Some people are born with eczema. Allergies do not cause it, but allergies to irritants such as detergents and fragrances can affect eczema.
*”I cannot have vaccines because I’m allergic to eggs.” Yes, hens’ eggs are used to grow some vaccines for flu, rabies and MMR (measles/mumps/rubella). But such tiny amounts of eggs reach the vaccines, the shots are approved for people with egg allergies. This myth took on new life during the H1N1 flu outbreak, said Stukus, but additional studies have confirmed the vaccines’ safety. If in doubt, an egg-free flu vaccine is available.
*”I’m allergic to artificial food dyes.” These do not cause allergies. The jury is still out about the link between food dyes and behavioral changes in children, but most of these studies have been limited, said Stukus.
*”I’m allergic to the mold in this building.” “Mold can cause allergic symptoms,” said Stukus. “In large doses, it is toxic. But even though mold may be present where you live or work, it is extremely difficult to link it to the cause of your allergies.” Mold has become the scapegoat of the decade, said Stukus, as patients wrongly blame it for problems including seizure disorders, memory loss, sexual dysfunction and fibromyalgia. “The truth is, mold is ubiquitous in our environment, inside and out,” he said.
If you have not seen an allergist in years, heads up: Allergies can diminish or amplify over time. Many people develop greater tolerances for milk, eggs or wheat, while intolerance of shellfish and peanuts is lifelong. Puberty, pregnancy, menopause and some medications (especially antidepressants) can alter allergies.