Wheat intolerance seems to be an ever-increasing wellness threat these days, but this is mainly because people are becoming more aware of it. The more pressing health concern is wheat allergy, which is one of the more common food allergies in children. The problem with this allergy is that wheat can be found in many foods, including things you’d never think of (like beer and ketchup) and so avoiding wheat – which is the primary treatment for wheat allergy – can be a pain. So how can you tell if you or your child has a wheat allergy?
People often get confused between wheat allergy and celiac disease, but there is a difference between the conditions. When your wellbeing is affected by a wheat allergy, it means your body has generated an allergy-causing antibody to the proteins found in wheat. If you have celiac disease, on the other hand, it means that one particular protein in wheat — gluten — causes an abnormal immune system reaction in your small intestines. Often, you can tell that you or your child has a wheat allergy is symptoms occur within a few minutes to a few hours after eating something containing wheat. So what should you watch out for?
- Swelling, itching or irritation in your mouth or throat
- Hives, itchy rash or swelling in your skin
- Nasal congestion
- Itchy, watery eyes
- Difficulty breathing
- Cramps, nausea or vomiting
- Diarrhoea
- Anaphylaxis
This latter symptom – anaphylaxis – is worth looking at in more detail as it can threaten your life. As well as the other, above-mentioned symptoms of wheat allergy, anaphylaxis may cause:
- Swelling or tightness in your throat
- Chest pain or tightness
- Severe difficulty breathing
- Trouble swallowing
- Pale, blue skin colour
- Dizziness or fainting
- Fast heartbeat
Unfortunately, wheat proteins — and gluten in particular — may be used in a number of prepared foods and sometimes in cosmetics, so identifying the foods that will set you off can be challenging. Wheat foods may include:
- Breads, cakes, muffins and biscuits
- Breakfast cereals
- Pasta and couscous
- Farina
- Semolina
- Spelt
- Crackers
- Beer
- Hydrolyzed vegetable protein
- Soy sauce and condiments, such as ketchup
- Meat products, such as hot dogs or cold cuts
- Dairy products, such as ice cream
- Natural flavourings
- Gelatinised starch and modified food starch
- Vegetable gum
- Liquorice, jelly beans and boiled sweets
- Foods containing other grains, such as barley, oat and rye
The good news is that a wheat allergy may not be something you have to live with forever. Depending on when the wheat allergy first appears, you may, in fact, outgrow it. If your child develops a wheat allergy during infancy or the early toddler years, the odds are that he or she has other food allergies too. This can be a nightmare as parents, as you’re the ones cooking the dinner, but fortunately children usually outgrow wheat allergy between the ages of three and five. Wheat allergy isn’t as common in adolescents and adults.
If you suspect that you or your child is allergic to wheat or another food, it’s important to see your doctor as soon as you can. There are a number of conditions that can cause signs or symptoms associated with wheat allergy, so it’s vital that you get an accurate diagnosis so that you know what you’re dealing with. If it does indeed turn out to be a wheat allergy, and you know you’re prone to having an anaphylactic reaction to wheat or another allergy-causing substance, you need to carry two injectable doses of a drug called epinephrine (adrenaline) with you at all times. Emergency care is essential, even if you have just used an epinephrine shot, as the second dose is a backup in case emergency services aren’t immediately available.
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