Apples are among the most common food allergens. It affects both adults and children and is one of the most common. Allergy to apples often occurs with allergies to tree pollen and fruits of trees of similar origin. Among them are peach, hazelnut and birch. The basic form of fighting food allergy is the elimination of the sensitizing factor.
Allergy symptoms
During the flowering period of the apple tree, an allergy to flower pollen may occur, but most often the body’s reaction occurs after eating an apple. In a few cases, it happens that the reaction does not occur after eating a processed apple – in jam, baked in a cake. However, these are few cases.
The most common allergy symptom is a rash, tearing and redness of the eyes, runny nose, and sneezing. These symptoms can occur after external contact with the apple. In case of eating the fruit, stomach problems may occur – vomiting, diarrhea and abdominal pain. In this case, you should take care to provide fluids so that the body does not become dehydrated.
Among the symptoms of allergies there is swelling of the oral mucosa. A rash may appear around the mouth. Tingling and swelling may be felt on the tongue, gums and lips.
Apple varieties most allergenic
— Granny Smith
— jona gold
— Golden Delicious
— Cox Orange
— Braeburn
Less allergenic apple varieties
— Gloster
— Jamba
— Boskoop
— Macoun
— Arbors
— Elise
— Santana
Treatment of allergies
The basic form of fighting food allergy is an elimination diet, i.e. removing from the menu the product that causes allergic symptoms. Therefore, you should avoid eating apples and any products that may contain these fruits – jams, fruit juices, apple pie, cookies, jellies, compote.
In the event of uncertainty as to the presence of an allergy to apples, allergy tests are recommended, which will allow to precisely determine the allergen.
The reluctance of the child
If the child does not want to eat apples despite our insistent requests and methods, do not force him. It often happens that a child’s reluctance to eat a given fruit may be a sign of an allergy, especially when its typical symptoms are not present. The child may signal the discomfort felt in the digestive tract that occurs after eating the fruit.
Disappearance of allergies
Food allergies often go away in adulthood. It occurs mainly in children when the immune system is not fully developed. Therefore, it is recommended to introduce fresh apples into the child’s diet only around the age of one year. If your child already has other food allergies, you should wait a bit before introducing fresh fruit and introduce them only after the first birthday.
What to replace apples with?
Apples can be replaced with other fruits that do not cause allergies. Among them are blueberries, blueberries, currants, gooseberries, pears, plums, apricots. It is worth looking for other fruits that will enrich the diet of our child.