Allergic reactions can come on fast and caused quite a bit of pain in grade, and in the most severe of cases, even death. Allergic reactions occur when a persons who are sensitive to an allergen and experience uncomfortable symptoms. Common allergens that trigger symptoms are dogs, cats, bee stings, dust, dust mites, trees, weeds, molds, and foods, such as nuts, strawberries, and shellfish, which usually start to occur within seconds of exposure and can cause mild to moderate reactions such as, skin rashes, hives, itching, sneezing, or watery eyes.

More moderate to severe allergic reactions include difficulty breathing, swelling of tongue, wheezing, nausea/vomiting, abdominal pain, chest pain or tightness, and unconsciousness. Acute anaphylactic allergic reactions happen suddenly and progress rapidly. Treatment must be administered within fifteen minutes or death could occur from anaphylactic shock.

Some allergic reactions actually take hours to manifest and come about, but the vast majority happen almost instantly. I recall as a kid that I was allergic to grass, trees and ragweed and when I was outside the allergies came on immediately and with a vengeance. Allergic reactions tend to be more severe when exposure to allergen is repeated on different occasions, and each time it requires smaller and smaller amounts of the allergen to cause symptoms.

In most cases of environmental and pet allergies, simply taking an antihistamine such as Benadryl, and/or a decongestant will relieve symptoms, and some people also may also require immunotherapy and asthma treatment in addition to other medications as well. Substances like shellfish, poison ivy, peanuts, and bee stings should be avoided whenever possible, because more severe reactions usually result when exposure occurs.

I can recall hearing stories people who broke out in hives and rashes because they ate peanuts that they unknowingly were allergic too. I even had a friend growing up that was allergic to chocolate. I believe that it was the cocoa that he specifically had a problem with.

Some adults and children who have experienced severe allergic reactions in the past, must carry an Epi-Pen in case of accidental exposure. The Epi-Pen contains epinephrine and comes in a pre-filled syringe ready for emergency administration. You simply pop off the And in sham it into an arm or a leg. The Epi-Pen can be administered right through clothing so there is no need to waste valuable time trying to remove clothing. It is very similar to the morphine that is used by military medics that treat the wounded on the battlefield.

It is a shame the important to closely monitor anyone that is experiencing allergic reactions. If symptoms do not subside within five minutes and they continue to worsen even after administration of an Epi-Pen, emergency care should immediately be administered. Visit the National Library of Health and National Institutes of Health at www.nlm.nih.gov for more information on allergic reactions any other health related questions that you may have.

Allergic reactions are quite common and are very much a treatable malady but you must remember that it is important that people know what to do in the event one occurs in themselves or in someone elseit could be a matter of life or death. The more you know, the better of you are.