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Wine has long been considered a noble drink, strengthening strength and useful in many diseases. But doctors are sounding the alarm: according to statistics, every fourth person experiences more or less pronounced symptoms of an allergy to this drink. The danger of an allergic reaction to wine is that it can be easily confused with a hangover, food or alcohol poisoning, or a cold. Many people do not realize for many years that any kind of wine is contraindicated for them.
Wine allergy symptoms
Even from the minimum dose of the drink, allergy sufferers may experience:
- red spots on the face;
- hives on the skin;
- Strong headache;
- redness of the eyes;
- stomach pain, nausea and vomiting;
- diarrhea;
- tachycardia;
- runny nose and dry cough;
- swelling on the face, arms, legs;
- swelling and swelling of the mucous membrane of the mouth, respiratory tract, larynx.
In severe cases, the patient’s temperature rises, blood pressure decreases, which leads to dizziness or even fainting. If the body is particularly sensitive, Quincke’s edema or anaphylactic shock is possible.
Causes of wine allergy
Speaking of an allergy to wine, doctors mean a whole “bouquet” of allergies to various components that make up the drink. Only 10% of allergic people do not tolerate natural wines, in other cases, painful symptoms appear when additives enter the body: plant extracts, dyes, flavor enhancers and preservatives.
Allergy to natural ingredients of wine
Such an allergy can be conditionally divided into two types:
- allergy to grape juice;
- allergic to other natural ingredients in wine.
Allergy to grape juice
Fermented grape juice contains a lot of useful substances:
- polyphenols that strengthen blood vessels;
- lycopene is a red pigment that breaks down fats;
- anthocyanins are pigments that have a bactericidal effect.
But all these compounds can become allergens. A person with an allergy to polyphenols will have to give up all wine forever.
Lycopene in grapes is found in negligible amounts, and only in red varieties. In nature, red pigment is most found in tomatoes. An allergy sufferer with a negative reaction to tomatoes needs to be careful about red wine, but white varieties with a lycopene allergy will not hurt.
Anthocyanins are compounds that give grapes their pink or purple color. Allergy to red wine is often due to the high content of anthocyanins in it. If you are allergic to anthocyanins, white wines are allowed.
Allergy to Natural Supplements
When buying wine, you must carefully read the information on the label. To improve the taste, some manufacturers add almond extract to their products, which is by no means useful for nut allergies.
Young wine is more allergenic than old wine. An unaged drink may contain:
- wasp venom (when grapes are crushed, wasps often fall under pressure). In aged wine, the poison is neutralized;
- wine bloom (mold).
Accordingly, if you are allergic to mold or wasp stings, it is better to forget about young wine, but aged wine will not cause harm.
One of the most common types of allergies is pollen sensitivity. With this disease, young wines and vermouths are strictly prohibited – drinks that sometimes contain pollen.
When clarifying wine at home, they often use:
- milk;
- egg white;
- isinglass.
People with allergies to these foods should be careful when buying or tasting homemade wines. You need to ask the seller what clarifier he used.
Allergy to artificial wine ingredients
Most often, allergies are caused by cheap wines that are bottled not in bottles, but in tetra-packs. Such drinks do not stand, but are simply restored from concentrates. Accordingly, there are practically no useful substances in them, but preservatives, dyes and flavor enhancers are more than enough, if not for allergies, then for food poisoning.
It is especially dangerous to heat up such wines: cook mulled wine from them or add them to meat dishes. When heated, chemicals form compounds that cause indigestion, nausea, and vomiting.
You can not drink wine in tetra packs and nursing mothers, even if before feeding – 6-8 hours. During this time, ordinary wine will be removed from the body, but not chemical compounds. They can accumulate in milk and cause an allergy attack in infants.
Sometimes dyes are added to quite “respectable” red wines, often Cahors producers sin with this. You need to carefully look at what traces the drink leaves on the walls of the glass: noble “legs” (tears) or clearly defined red streaks.
Allergy to carbon dioxide
Carbonic acid causes swelling of the hands or feet, less often of the mucous membrane of the mouth, which causes the lips to swell, as if they were pumped with silicone. People who are allergic to carbon dioxide have such symptoms when drinking artificially carbonated champagne. Moreover, many of the allergy sufferers drink high-quality natural carbonated champagne without harm to themselves. There are no restrictions on the use of ordinary wines.
Allergy to sulfites
In order to prevent wild yeast or other microorganisms from getting into a barrel of wine, it is fumigated with sulfur (the method was known in ancient Rome). When burned, a poisonous gas is formed – sulfur dioxide. A small amount of this substance is initially found in wine (as a fermentation product). A liter of natural wine made without preservatives contains 10–20 mg of sulfur dioxide. Wine that does not contain sulfites does not exist.
But sulfites are effective preservatives that prevent re-fermentation and deterioration of the taste of wine. Therefore, manufacturers add sulfur compounds to the drink.
3 additives are allowed in winemaking:
- sulfur dioxide (E220);
- potassium hydrosulfite (E228);
- potassium pyrosulfite (E224).
The most popular of these is sulfur dioxide. The additive is also used in the manufacture of dried fruits and sausages. According to statistics, no more than 0,4-1% of people in the world suffer from allergies to negligible doses of sulfur dioxide; any wine is contraindicated for them.
For other allergy sufferers, negative reactions occur due to too much sulfite in the drink. It is believed that the maximum safe dose of sulfur compounds in wine is 300 mg per liter.
According to EU standards, the maximum allowable doses of sulfur dioxide in wines are (per liter):
- in sweet – 400 mg;
- in dry white and pink – 200 mg;
- in red dry – up to 150.
In people with hypersensitivity, sulfur dioxide causes headaches, indigestion, nausea, and vomiting. But for many allergy sufferers who react painfully to sweet wines, red dry ones are suitable. In any case, it is better to buy those drinks where the content of sulfites does not exceed 300 mg per liter.
allergy to pesticides
To preserve the grape harvest, some farmers use strong pesticides. Residual pesticides can be found in wine. If you are allergic to pesticides, it is better to give preference to quality drinks from well-known manufacturers. In general, there are no pesticides in organic, biodynamic and natural wines.
How to distinguish wine allergy from other conditions
A face that turns red after several glasses of wine is not yet a sign of an allergy. This is how those who break it down too quickly and excrete it too slowly react to any alcohol. If redness is a normal reaction to any kind of alcohol, then there is no reason to worry.
But you should be wary if, usually, when drinking alcohol, the color of the cheeks does not change, and after a glass of wine, a feverish blush appeared. Allergy to wine on the face is manifested by redness, spots or hives (a rash that looks like a nettle burn).
An allergy differs from a hangover in that its symptoms do not begin to be felt the next morning, but immediately or within 5 hours after drinking the drink. An allergy should be suspected if:
- the feeling of intoxication comes unusually quickly;
- hands, feet, face swell;
- pressure drops sharply;
- suddenly, a healthy person has symptoms of a cold: runny nose, sore throat, cough (due to irritation or swelling of the mucous membrane).
It should be borne in mind that the alcohol contained in the drink dilates blood vessels and accelerates the absorption of various substances into the blood, including allergens. Therefore, if a person with an allergy to cheese eats a slice and drinks champagne, the manifestations of the symptoms of the disease will increase significantly.
What to do if you have an allergic reaction to wine
If an allergic person has a severe swelling of the mucous membrane of the larynx and respiratory tract, he began to cough, choke, lose consciousness, it is necessary to call an ambulance. Before the doctors arrive, you can use an inhaler with an antihistamine.
With nausea, you should vomit, take a laxative. If the skin is covered with urticaria, it is necessary to take an antihistamine (Suprastin, Dimedrol). With swelling on the face, in addition to antihistamines, lotions from grated raw potatoes help. Medicinal teas with nettle or string are good for purifying the blood.
Those who suspect that they are allergic to wine should in no case take antihistamine tablets before drinking alcohol: this will only worsen the condition. Only a doctor can accurately determine whether the patient has an allergy, and if so, to which particular ingredients of the wine.
Attention! Self-medication can be dangerous, consult your doctor.