Comment by ReptileMan
4 years ago
what is with all the food allergies lately? Why so many people unlock them.
I doubt that you will find 13 people allergic to sesame in whole of Asia, North Africa and the Mediterranean. And 1.3 million in the US.
4 years ago
what is with all the food allergies lately? Why so many people unlock them.
I doubt that you will find 13 people allergic to sesame in whole of Asia, North Africa and the Mediterranean. And 1.3 million in the US.
The difference is access to testing. Most of the people in the US who "test" positive for an allergen aren't actually allergic to it, but that is often not explained properly.
Simply, allergists have three types of testing: skin test, blood test, actual exposure. If you can eat something without a reaction, it doesn't matter what the skin and blood tests showed (they can be "positive" for other reasons). Skin and blood tests are mostly used to determine severity of an allergy after exposure has already proven to be a problem.
But allergy testing is covered by insurance (and it's VERY profitable), so a ton of allergists will do skin and blood tests on people who don't need it, and now there are independent scam companies doing "allergy" testing by mail for curious people.
Do people actually do random tests and spend the rest of their life blindly believing the results ?
Dealing with allergies is such a PITA and a burden that follows you every day, every single time you´re trying to eat anything. It´s such a mental toll that I see people going for allergy tests usually after they had their first reaction and went through ER, or when there is precedents in the family and they have a pretty decent chance to have common allergies.
Even after getting positive results we had a pretty thorough talk with the doctor about the tests and the actual reaction we saw when we discovered the allergy.
I understand people randomnly buying gluten free stuff as a fad, but they still continue eating gluten in other foods in general. Food allergies and avoiding ingredients is another level of inconvenience altogether.
> Do people actually do random tests and spend the rest of their life blindly believing the results?
Many do, or even don't trust that a negative result is real. There are lots of other conditions and situations that one would think are strict drawbacks that people lean into, in my anecdotal experience. "Gluten allergy" that is not Celiac, for example. There are steps to take, things to research, and communities of fellow suffers to identify with, after all.
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> Do people actually do random tests and spend the rest of their life blindly believing the results ?
Yes, hang out with elementary school parents (mostly moms) and you'll quickly get an earful from those that do. It seems more like anxiety with many of these folks.
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Science is just now starting to figure out what's going on with gut biomes, but it probably has something to do with diet. To roll with your example, look up lactose intolerance in Asia.
Most adult mammals are lactose intolerant. It's not an allergy.
That’s missing the point.
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That’s different - Northern European tolerance to lactose is actually a mutation/adaptation.
There’s probably some processed food or medicine that triggers these severe allergies in babies.
And the allergies can't also be a mutation/adaptation?
Wouldn't some "processed food or medicine that triggers these severe allergies" be a "mutation/adaptation"? I'm confused on the distinction you're trying to make it it's not "Americans are bad haha".
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