[jbug]

Is it possible to become allergic to something after not being allergic to it for years?

I ask because I have discovered that I am allergic to peanuts and cranberries. I get hives almost immediately after eating both. As a child I could eat them but now as an adult I can't. Why is this?

Jan

[Rhapsody]

Yes it is possible and happens all the time... the body and its chemical make up changes as we age.

[shezbut]

Yep Jan,

Rhapsody got it right. Allergies do come and go throughout our lives.

[Perna]

Yes, it's an immune system thing. My girlfriend loved pistachios and suddenly got an allergy; fortunately I had a million chewable benadryl in my purse and that made her feel better. She says she tried again in a few months but still had it. It wasn't quite life threatening but very scary. There's different degrees and systems that can be affected, airways, sinuses and nasal passages, skin and digestive.

[watchthestarsfall]

Prolonged exposure to something can cause an allergy to form. It's kinda ironic because you can occasionally get rid of an allergy by maintaining exposure to something.

Ex: I am now allergic to dust, but I never was before. I never dust so I guess I was exposed to the mites and stuff for a long time and now I'm allergic.
Ex 2: I used to be allergic (waaaay back as a kid) to Nickel in jewelry..but I just wore a crappy necklace for a week or something and got over it. Now only earrings bother me and only after wearing them for a full day.

[Rhapsody]

Just a FYI -

As I have aged (43 soon) I have become allergic to Nickle, the Sun and now have a low tolerance for more than 1 cup of Milk per day.

The answer to your question is YES! I developed lactose intolerance at around the age 50 and continue to develop allergies, especially now to certain fragrances (even those in laundry detergents). Products I could use years ago I can no longer tolerate. There are a lot of people allergic to peanuts. Just remember, peanuts are legumes and grow underground. Real nuts grow on trees. You might not be allergic to real nuts like almonds, so you can substitute those but proceed with caution. Cranberry juice has a lot of additives and it is possible it may be one of those you are allergic to, e.g., high fructose corn syrup or even the pesticide used in growing cranberries. You might want to try organic cranberry juice but again proceed with caution.

[Umbral_Seraph]

Keep in mind that eggs, shellfish and gluten are common adult allergies (not necessarily from Celiacs). FYI lactose intolerance is not an allergy; you just don't have the enzyme to break down lactose anymore.

[Perna]

Yes, lactose sensitivity is just not making enough lactase in your small intestine to digest the lactose in milk. That can be helped with simple lactase pills you can get at the grocery or drug store or by buying lactose-free milk and other dairy products that bother you.

Contact dermatitis (nickel and other metals) isn't a true allergy either, and can improve over time with changes in one's blood chemistry. One isn't really "allergic" to poison ivy and plants like that, everyone is (eventually, depending on exposure) because it's literally poison. Allergies are when your immune system decides something that is "normal" is not and attacks. Your immune system has to be "malfunctioning" for it to be an allergy.

[Gabi925]

I don't know if here exists such a thing, but in Europe a vaccine from the allergic person's blood is made and I know someone who cured such a problem.

[Rhapsody]

An Allergy Cure would be GREAT! - but sadly I think all they have here in the USA when nothing else works is a Monthly Shot.

[Perna]

I think there are some vaccines but they don't last too long yet:

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/53456.php

[watchthestarsfall]

Originally Posted by Perna

Yes, lactose sensitivity is just not making enough lactase in your small intestine to digest the lactose in milk. That can be helped with simple lactase pills you can get at the grocery or drug store or by buying lactose-free milk and other dairy products that bother you.

Contact dermatitis (nickel and other metals) isn't a true allergy either, and can improve over time with changes in one's blood chemistry. One isn't really "allergic" to poison ivy and plants like that, everyone is (eventually, depending on exposure) because it's literally poison. Allergies are when your immune system decides something that is "normal" is not and attacks. Your immune system has to be "malfunctioning" for it to be an allergy.

Contact dermatitis and poison ivy are allergic reactions, they might not be the same type as, say, peanut allergies, but they are still hypersensitivity reactions of the immune system. In these reactions you need exposure first and then the 2nd time you're exposed you develop the reaction.

And some people aren't allergic to poison ivy, just as some people aren't allergic to the blood thinner mosquitos use to suck our blood...lucky people.

[jbug]

Thanks for all the replies I have learned so much about allergies. I have a lot of allergies much to the dismay of my doctor.

Any way when I was younger and went away to summer camp every year I came home with poison ivy and every year it required a dose of steroids to get rid of it and a bunch of antiallergy medication. I was told after the last case that the next time I get it that it could kill me or at least land me in the hospital. Needless to stay I stay out of the woods around my parents house.

Jan