Allergy Help

[Joker]

Dh woke in the middle of the night with half of his tongue very swollen. He wasn't having trouble breathing and refused to go to the ER. We went to the doctor this morning though and he is on medication and has an Epipen.

 

None of us have food allergies but I am assuming that's what this is. We had dinner somewhere new at 6:30pm and he woke at 4am with the swelling. Is it common to take hours to show up or is it likely something else? Dh didn't ask the NP any of these questions and she didn't offer anything up other than she thinks it was an allergic reaction.

 

Also, how likely do you think it would be that I could get a list of ingredients from the place we ate? Someone is supposed to call me back but it didn't sound promising when I talked with them. I'm worried about him being exposed to whatever it is again and it being worse. At least, that's what I've always heard.

 

If it matters he ate mahi tacos but we eat fish, and especially mahi, often. So, I'm guessing it might have been something in the seasoning or sauce. I have no idea really where to begin with this.

[Loowit]

That is scary.  Sorry you are having to deal with this.

 

There can be delayed reactions with allergies, although often it is within a few minutes to a few hours.  You might also have to consider cross-contamination issues in the kitchen.  My DS has to avoid anything that could possibly be cross contaminated with peanuts.  Not a helpful thought I am sure, when you are trying to track down a potential allergen.  I think that the best place to start is to get tested by an allergist.  If you have a few suspected food they will add those to the standard mix, in my experience.  Also, like the PP said, a food diary can be very helpful.  It helped us to track down several foods that DS is intolerant to, but are not considered a true allergy such as Red 40 and oats.

 

A resource you can look into if you are interested is FARE (Food Allergy Research & Education) at foodallergy.org.  They have some useful information including on diagnosing and testing for food allergies.

 

I hope you are able to figure it out soon.

[Dana]

Agreeing with FARE for resources.

 

It's really scary at first, but in time, you'll adjust.

Allergies can begin at any time in life, so having no issues with fish in the past doesn't mean that that wasn't the cause.

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[stripe]

I would try to get an idea of what he ate, and any testing could certainly include the fish so that you would know about that, one way or the other. It is possible to get tested for a bunch of stuff, but it'd be easier if there was a shorter list of "suspects." Having an EpiPen is important and would address a serious allergic reaction, but I would also count on a thorough evaluation by an allergist to try to avoid this. It must have been scary, and I'm glad he is okay.

 

And I would patiently explain that you need to know what was in the fish for health reasons. They really should assist you.

 

Food allergies are just freaky. I don't understand them at all. They come from food that is eaten regularly AND food that's eaten rarely, and can arrive late in life, and can also go away!