Co-influence of respiratory and food allergies
Different forms of allergies affect approximately one-third of the
world’s population in Europe, and the rates are growing. There is a
tendency for several allergic diseases to be present in the same
individual simultaneously [42]. In the epidemiological study,
allergic rhinitis occurred in 46.4%, asthma was in 11.2 %, and
allergic multimorbidity was diagnosed in 9.7% compared with a single
allergic disease in 43.4%. The current study’s findings indicated an
association between food allergies and the presence of at least one
allergic disease [43].
However, isolated allergic rhinitis and asthma are not inherent in food
allergic reactions, but respiratory symptoms may be part of anaphylaxis.
Most asthmatic reactions to inhaled food allergens are described in
occupational settings [44]. In the workplaces, 372 different
potential causative allergens were identified, including seafood, wheat
flour, and hen’s eggs that might lead to asthma. Workers exposed to
inhaled egg allergens developed rhinitis and asthma first and
subsequently other allergic symptoms to the ingested egg. Subjects who
inhaled wheat flour developed asthma with or without wheat ingestion
[44].
Food allergy is frequently underestimated in association with asthma,
but food allergy has been shown to trigger or exacerbate bronchial
obstruction in asthma. There were reported that 34–78% of 82 asthmatic
patients in Taiwan had food-related symptoms. Foods most commonly linked
with their complaints were crab (67.9%), cow’s milk (53.6%), shrimp
(50%), and other food allergens [45]. 1722 children between 0 and
14 years old in Sichuan province, China, were enrolled in this study.
59.7% of children were allergic to at least one allergen, comprising
24.9% to aeroallergen and 38.8% to a food allergen, respectively,
whereas 36.28% of children were allergic to both aeroallergen and food
allergen. Also, there have been revealed that milk, egg, and house dust
mites were the most common allergens. However, an analysis of the
pattern of food allergen and aeroallergen sensitization was invaluable
to the effective diagnosis and treatment of allergic diseases [46].
In the study of 200 patients in Iraq in which skin prick testing was
conducted, it has been found that 46% of allergic rhinitis cases were
caused by foods, including cumin (88.98%), tea (62.96%), pepper
(59.25%), almond (51.85%) and other food allergens [47]. 252
patients with asthma, allergic rhinitis, and combined pathology in north
India participated in the study. The prevalence of food sensitization
based on specific IgE to respective foods was 17% with cereals and
legumes [48]. Among 258 patients in Mexico included in the study,
the most common underlying condition was allergic rhinitis (59 %). The
prevalence of food sensitization (preferably to soybeans) was 40 %
[49].
In the clinical study of a case of a 38-year-old mold-allergic patient,
it has been demonstrated that prior sensitization to mold aeroallergens
might explain severe food reactions to cross-reacting homologs mushroom
proteins. In addition, there was a well-recognized relationship between
sensitization to airborne molds and allergy to mushrooms ingestion
[50]. In another clinical study of a series of six patient cases
with immediate occupational allergy (allergic rhinitis, asthma, and
urticaria) to buckwheat, it has been revealed that patients had
anaphylaxis after ingestion of food that contained buckwheat [51].
So, food allergy and non-enteric atopic diseases often coexist, and they
are interconnected beyond the presence of simple comorbidity [44].