What are Different Types of Allergy? Everything You Need to Know about Ingested vs. Contact vs. Inhaled Allergies

Do you know your immune system sometimes overreacts to something that is actually not hazardous for you? The overreaction of your immune system to harmless things, including certain foods, pollens and pet dander is known as allergy. Allergy is of different types and the symptoms of allergy based on its type. However, difficulty in breathing, sneezing, coughing, vomiting, nausea and runny nose are common symptoms of allergies. Different types of allergens affect you in different ways. Try to avoid such allergy causing agents (allergens). If you don’t succeed to avoid allergens, use medications to reduce the severity of symptoms.

What are Allergies?

Whenever certain foreign substances invade your body systems, your immune system gets ready to fight against them. However, some of the foreign substances are not harmful but your immune system is unable to identify them as harmless substances. It starts overreacting to those substances and the overreaction appears as an allergic reaction. When your immune system assumes them as pathogens, it always shows reaction on their arrival. Therefore, when you eat, inhale or touch something you’re allergic to, your immune system identifies it as an allergen and overreacts to get rid of it. The reactions of the immune system often appear in the form of sneezing, itching or snuffling. However, in severe cases the allergic reaction can cause swelling in the airways or extremely low blood pressure that can be life-threatening.

Allergens can be of many types including food, medications, pollen and animal belongings. Sometimes allergic reactions totally change your lifestyle as you avoid coming in contact with allergy causing agents but sometimes allergies are not so intense.

Types of Allergies

When your immune system abnormally responds to a common substance in the environment, it is called allergy. The response is usually inflammatory and ranges from harmless to fatal. As allergies are common health problems and children are its easy victim. Researchers believe that the increasing number of allergies are a result of improved hygiene, increased pollution and genetic components. On the basis of allergen type, allergic reactions are categorized in three types, including:

Ingested Allergies: This allergy occurs when you eat an offending allergen.

Contact Allergies: This is a skin allergic reaction that appears when your skin comes in contact with a chemical substance like detergent or hair dye. Its other name is contact dermatitis.

Inhaled Allergies: When you breathe in the air polluted by animal dander or pollution, the inhaled allergy occurs. A large number of people are affected by this type of allergies around the world.

Other common allergies include:

• Pets and other animals.
• Pollen.
• Molds.
• Bee stings.
• Medications.
• Dust mites.
• Foods.
• Contact dermatitis reactions.

Ingested Allergy

When your immune system abnormally reacts to a certain type of food, you start showing symptoms of ingested allergy. Ingested allergies are also caused by intolerance to specific food. This is also known as food hypersensitivity. Food allergies often occur in children rt. Less number of adults get affected by food allergies. The most common foods that cause ingested allergy include:

• Fruits.
• Eggs.
• Cow’s milk.
• Nuts.

Food allergic reactions usually appear in the form of a mild rash. However, the appearance of hives is the most severe reaction. Certain types of foods can cause hives. People who develop allergic reactions instantly usually have higher concentration of food-specific immunoglobulin (IgE) in their bloodstream. Afterwards these immunoglobulin converts into antibodies that get bound to the allergens that might attach with their skin. The mast cells of skin release histamine, which stimulates the production of a specific fluid in your cells causing inflammation, itchiness and redness in your skin. 

However, symptoms may get worsen, such as:

• Quick appearance and disappearance of eyes and lips swelling.
• Difficulty breathing.
• Swelling of the throat or tongue (anaphylaxis).
• Abdominal cramps.
• Diarrhea.
• Vomiting or nausea.

Sometimes the allergic reaction is mild but sometimes it could be  life-threatening. Food allergies in children often cause mild refusal, unstoppable scratching, and irritability.

Contact Allergy

When you get in contact with an allergen, contact allergy occurs. The symptoms of contact allergy often remain confined to the area where you have contacted the allergen. Common allergy causing agents include:

• Chemical substances.
• Polishes.
• Cosmetics.
• Solvents.
• Detergents.
• Soaps.
• Waxes.
• Hair dyes.
• Jewelry.

Some types of naturally occurring allergens are poison oak, ragweed, and poison ivy. Studies suggest contact allergies are not dangerous but if the allergens get into your eyes or mouth the allergy becomes annoying and irritating. Common symptoms of contact allergy appear as your skin’s:

• Scaling.
• Redness.
• Blistering.
• Swelling.
• Itching.

Identifying and avoiding certain irritants can help you avoid contact allergy. However, you can also treat this type of allergy by applying:

• An anti-inflammatory medication to the affected area of skin.
• Ointments and creams to help relieve symptoms.
• Antihistamine lotions to help reduce the severity of symptoms.

In most cases, contact allergies get improved in a few days on their own. But talking to your doctor is better when you experience drainage from the rash accompanied by fever and pain. Red streaks from the rash is also a sign of skin infection rather than allergic response.

Inhaled Allergy

This is the most common type of allergy. Common symptoms are:

• Itchy eyes.
• Sneezing.
• Runny nose.
• Watery eyes.

Symptoms of inhaled allergies usually during certain seasons. Certain allergens such as pollen, dust, mold and grass trigger the symptoms of this type of allergy. For example, every spring session brings a large phone of pollen in the air and the concentration of pollen remains high through the fall. .pollen is the fine powder made up from grass, trees and weeds. The symptoms get triggered when people get in contact with pollen present in air. So this means, during the relevant season it is hard to avoid pollen. However, some types of airborne allergens are prevalent indoors, such as:

• Dust mites.
• Fungi.
• Mild.
• Animal dander.

Hay fever and asthma are also included in the allergic reactions  but the two are totally different from each other. Asthma causes swelling and constriction in bronchi. That’s why it is known as a chronic inflammatory disorder while hay fever can trigger it if you have both conditions at a time. But hay fever is not asthma itself. There are several more factors that can trigger asthma symptoms, including:

• Cold air.
• Certain stressful or emotional situations.
• Certain drugs.
• A respiratory infection.

Other types of allergens like fuels, diesel fumes, smoke, and dust mites.

How Long Can Allergies Last?

As long as you’re exposed to allergens, your allergic response would continue. Some allergic reactions start to appear as soon as you get contact with allergen but some start showing symptoms hours or days later. As soon as you leave the place and don’t get contact with allergens your symptoms disappear after a few hours. However, some types of allergies like poison ivy rashes may last for one to two months.

Risk Factors

Having a biological parent with allergies and being affected with eczema or asthma are the factors that increase the risk of allergic reaction development in your body.

Diagnosis and Tests Skin tests and blood tests are usually done to diagnose the allergies of different types. Your healthcare professional usually asks you about your symptoms and the type of allergens you are exposed to, this information may help them to determine which type of allergy you are suffering from. 

In addition, your doctor can also recommend some breathing tests, a patch test or food and drug challenge test. But they decide it on the basis of your suspected allergy type. For example, a patch test helps them to identify a skin reaction that may happen a few days later.

Management and Treatment

The best way to prevent allergies is to avoid things you’re allergic to. If your allergies are anaphylaxis, you should strictly avoid the allergens. 

However, in some cases avoiding allergens is not easy. Therefore, your healthcare professional usually recommends you take certain medications to reduce the symptoms. They can also suggest some treatment options on a regular basis. These steps can help reduce the severity of symptoms or risk of an allergic reaction. Healthcare professionals usually prescribe:

• Steroid nasal sprays.
• Omalizumab injections.
• Antihistamine.
• Leukotriene modifiers.
• Allergy headshots.
• Siblingua immunotherapy.
• Oral immunotherapy.

In addition, healthcare providers may prescribe epinephrine auto-injectors to those who had severe allergies.

When to See a Healthcare Professional?

If you’re experiencing the symptoms of allergies and want to get treated, go to your healthcare professional. They will guide you about the type and cause of allergic reactions. This information may help both of you to choose the best treatment option to treat your allergy or reduce the symptoms. Primary healthcare providers usually refer such cases to dermatologists for certain tests and diagnosis. However, you can calm emergency medical assistance, if you experience:

• Tightness or pain in chest.
• Feeling, dizzy, faint or weak.
• Swelling on your throat, tongue, lips or mouth.
• Difficulty breathing.
• Feeling impending doom or dread.
• Tingling in hands, feet or lips.
• Hives all over your body.

Prognosis/ Outlook

What kind of allergy you have depends on what kind of allergens you’re exposed to. Experiencing symptoms of pet or seasonal allergies usually cause irritation or itching that is not life-threatening. While food and drug allergies can cause serious allergic reactions that may prove fatal for you. Therefore, doctors initially suggest taking epinephrine injection no matter what type of allergy you have. This shows all allergies do not need medications but the  severe one should be treated on an immediate basis. 

Preventive Measures

 Allergies and their symptoms should be treated carefully without wasting time. The most effective tips for having a relief are jotted below:

• A cold wash or eye drops make for itchy eyes or relieve rash.
• Fragrance-free or hypoallergenic ointments or creams to help calm itchy rashes.
• Saline rinses or oral decongestants for nasal symptoms.
• Taking a bath and putting in clean clothes to help remove allergens from your body surface.

However, in some situations, it is impossible for you to avoid contact with allergens. In these situations you should:

• Vacuum your carpets, rugs and other surfaces of the house to remove allergens such as dust, pet dander and pollen.
• Change the filters on your HVAC system after a specific duration.
• Not allow your pet to lick you.
• Avoid touching pets if you’re allergic to them.
• Change your clothes after playing with your pet.
• Don’t allow pets to be with you in your bedroom, touch your kids toys or sit on your couch.
• Keep your windows closed during pollen production season.
• Use high efficiency particulate air filters to remove allergens from your home and work place.

People having food allergy, should consume allergen free foods, avoid eating in  restaurants, and check food labels carefully.

Conclusion

Millions of people around the world experience different types of allergy symptoms. It is a reality that many of you try to not to get in contact with the allergens in the pollen season or other times of the year but all in vain. Because you may get the allergy infection from your friend, colleague or neighbor’s over affectionate pet. 

Allergic reactions usually appear in the form of sneezing, coughing, itching, redness and inflammation in skin or throat. Similarly food and drug allergies cause life-threatening symptoms. The only way to save yourself from allergy symptoms is to avoid touching and making contact with allergens including pollen, detergents, cosmetic products or pet dander.

In severe cases, you may need medical assistance. Your healthcare professional must be a dermatologist. They may help you identify and diagnose the cause of allergy. They will ask you for some blood tests and skin tests. The results of tests help choose the best medications or treatment option for your symptoms of allergy. This means most forms of allergies are manageable.