Hives (Urticaria)

When you suddenly develop extreme itchiness together with swelling of your body in patches or lumps, chances are you have hives (or in medical terms, urticaria).

This condition can progress further to swelling of the eyes and face and worse still, go to a very dangerous condition of the patient collapsing within minutes with difficulty in breathing. This is called anaphylaxis or allergic shock.

Fortunately for most patients, they only have transient hives but unfortunately, most do not know the cause.

Generally, most hives are caused by various drug reactions but some are caused by food, in particular seafoods of various kinds, colour additives and eggs.

There is also a kind of hives caused by PHYSICAL means, such as cold, heat or even physical contact. This condition is called Physical Urticaria.

The treatment of urticaria includes the avoidance of the causative factors and the treatment of a superficial fungus which causing the condition.

Lesson: HIVES TREATMENT INCLUDES TREATMENT OF A SUPERFICIAL FUNGAL INFECTION

And my learning continues.

Yellow Yellow Allergic Fellow

One of the most difficult food substance to avoid in food allergy is those connected with yellow color additive (E110: Sunset Yellow and E102: Tartrazine).

These additives have caused untold misery to countless patients of mine. One is a lady from my hometown whose allergy to colour additive manifested as eczema all over her body.

I have learned a lot of what type of food to avoid from my consultation with her:

• Most junk food contains these additives and therefore they are no-no
• Cooking oils are also a major problem as a lot of them contains these addictives (hence the 'golden yellow' look)
• Olive and sunflowerseed oils generally do not contain them
• Most butter and margarines have these additives and therefore pastries and cakes made with these ingredients must be avoided.
• So is local Malaysian coffee (as most are roasted with margarine) and tea as they may contain yellow additives
• Most of the commercial prepared yellow mee (egg noodles) have the E102 and E110 additives

This lady now cooks with lard (to avoid the colour additives) and she goes to a particular restaurant which cooks for her specially using the oil she places at the restaurant for her food. She also told me that the task is difficult but the reward is satisfying as she made a complete recovery even though it took her some time and a number of relapses.

Lesson: E110 AND E102 ARE YELLOW COLOR ADDITIVES AND VERY COMMON FOOD ALLERGENS

My learning continues.