Milk Ranked Among The Top Eight Offenders For Food Allergies
By Alisa Fleming, Thu Dec 8th

Cow's milk contains over 25 different molecules, which have thepotential to elicit an allergic reaction. No wonder milk isrepeatedly ranked among the top eight offenders for foodallergies! In fact, many doctors, scientists, and healthspecialists recommend going dairy free as an initial test when afood is suspected.

What Exactly is a Milk Allergy?

Although they are often muddled together in conversation, milkallergies and lactose intolerance are quite different. A foodallergy is identified as an abnormal and heightened response ofthe immune system to certain components (most notably proteins)within a food. In milk, the two leading offenders arethe milk proteins known as casein and whey. Casein is the curdthat forms when milk is left to sour. Whey is the watery partthat is left after the curd is removed. A food intolerance iswhen you develop symptoms after eating a food that your bodycan't cope with effectively, but it does not involve an immuneresponse.

Some scientists believe that there is only one type of "truefood allergy" while others report studies of two, three, andeven four variations of food allergies. For simplicity sake wewill just note the two most commonly sited categories:immediate hypersensitivity reaction and delayed hypersensitivityreaction. In immediate hypersensitivity situations symptoms maybegin to appear within minutes of ingesting the offending food.Like the way your friend's Aunt Martha blows up like a balloonthe second she takes a bite of that chocolate bar laced withpeanuts. Delayed hypersensitivity reactions have received littleattention until recently, so not too much is known about them asof yet. It is believed that these types of reactions elicit adifferent response from the immune system than the immediatehypersensitivity. With delayed hypersensitivity, symptoms havean onset time of 6 to 24 hours after eating an offending food,tend to reach their peak at about 48 hours, and graduallysubside over 72-96 hours. For both immediate and delayedreactions, symptoms may be very mild, and even go unnoticed(i.e. rash or eczema), or they may be quite severe (i.e. AuntMartha).

How Common are Milk Allergies?

It was previously thought that milk allergies occurred only ininfants, and that the problem subsided prior to adulthood.Unfortunately, for many of us this just isn't so. The numbersare all over the board, but it is estimated that anywhere from 2to 7.5% of infants have an to cow's milk. Studies showthat approximately 60% of infants allergic to cow's milk will"outgrow" the by the age of 4, 80% by the age of 6.Bonus for those people, but

this leaves up to 4.5 million peoplein the U.S. alone with a potential milk allergy. This is morethan "just a few" people by our estimates. To complicate thingsfurther, it seems that it is possible for adults to develop amilk with no childhood history of allergies. Anotherinteresting fact, symptoms associated with milk have thepotential to morph over time. One study followed a group of milkallergic children and found that at the beginning of the studymost of the children had primarily gastrointestinal symptoms(vomiting, diarrhea), but by the end of the study, many hadswitched over to respiratory symptoms such as wheezing.

What are the Symptoms of Milk Allergies?

Similar to other food allergies, the majority of milk allergysymptoms can be lumped into three "reaction" categories:

Skin: Itchy, Red Rash; Eczema; Hives; "Shiners" or Black Eyes;Aphthous Ulcers (canker sores) Swelling of the Lips, Mouth,Tongue, Face, or Throat.

Digestive: Abdominal Pain; Abdominal Cramps; Abdominal Bloating;Diarrhea; Gas; Nausea; Vomiting.

Respiratory: Runny Nose / Congestion; Sneezing; Watery Eyes;Itchy Eyes; Coughing; Wheezing; Shortness of Breath; Recurrent"colds"; Sinusitis.

To the pleasant surprise of many "psychological" sufferers,current research has uncovered a fourth category of symptoms,known as Behavioral. Many doctors now believe that foodallergies, including dairy, could be a direct cause of fatigue,migraine headaches, hyperactivity (ADHD), irritability,night-waking, anxiety, and sore muscles and joints

As noted above, these symptoms may be mild or severe and lifethreatening; they could appear immediately or over a period ofseveral days; and they may vary in response based on mild,moderate, and large quantities of milk intake.

How Do I Know if I Have a Milk Allergy?

There are many different types of clinical testsavailable, all with varying levels of effectiveness, but manydoctors are moving towards elimination diets. An eliminationdiet can easily identify a negative effect to a food, whether itis an allergy, intolerance, or a pure mystery, regardless ofwhat the individual test results say. Doctors and patients areoften pleased with this method as it is simple, free, highlyeffective, and tailored to the individual.

Can Milk Allergies Be Treated?

As with most allergies, avoiding the offending substance is thetop recommended treatment.

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