July 8 is World Food Allergy Day, with the aim of raising public awareness of the importance of this pathology, since its high (and increasing) frequency leads health professionals to alert patients about its prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

According to the World Allergy Organization (WFO), 20% of the world's population suffers from some kind of allergic disease, which generally manifests itself in children, although it also occurs during adulthood. In fact, more than 200 foods have been identified as the cause of food allergies. Recently, the WHO warned that by 2050, half of the world's population will suffer from some type of allergy.

The word allergy comes from the Greek, from the Greek words alos and ergos. Alos means other, different, strange. Ergos means reaction. Thus allergy is defined as an exaggerated reaction of the immune system to a substance, called allergen, which is not harmful in itself.

One of the causes of food allergies is intestinal permeability. When this occurs, due to alterations of the intestinal mucosa caused by dysbiosis or inflammation, the cells of the intestine allow macromolecules to pass into the bloodstream, where they are recognized by the cells of the immune system, which generate antibodies against the molecule, giving rise to an allergy to that particular molecule from a food.

Thus, avoiding intestinal dysbiosis that generates a permeable mucosa will help prevent the development of food allergies.

Symptoms may be cutaneous (pruritus, erythema or edema), gastrointestinal (pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or burning and edema of the oral cavity), respiratory (asthma or pruritus and edema of the nasal cavity and throat), ocular (pruritus and edema) or cardiovascular (chest pain, cardiac arrhythmias or hypotension, which may cause loss of consciousness). Allergic reactions usually occur within a few minutes to an hour after ingestion of the causative food. The symptoms that manifest and their severity depend on the amount of allergen ingested and the sensitivity of the patient, and may last for days or weeks.

It is essential to carry out a correct diagnosis not only of the allergy itself, but also of the causes of hyperreactivity of the patient's immune system, since the symptoms of food allergies can range from discomfort to severe, life-threatening reactions, and in addition, it is possible to start with a single allergy and develop allergies to other foods over time.

They should not be confused with food intolerances, which generally only cause digestive symptoms (diarrhea, flatulence, etc.) and are never fatal, although they do greatly reduce the patient's quality of life. That is why it is very important to make a correct diagnosis.

Visit the Spanish Association of Food Allergies website https://www.aepnaa.org/

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