Cross-allergy

Cross-allergy is an additional property of a common allergy. The fact is that many allergens have their "doubles": if one allergen causes allergic reactions in a person, then it is quite possible that its "double" or even a group of "doubles" will provoke them.

The essence of the relationship between these allergens is the similarity of the structure, namely, the set of amino acids that they both consist of. For example, if a person has a persistent allergy to dust, then one day he may be very surprised when, after eating shrimp, he develops an allergic reaction similar to that caused by house dust. And the whole point is that the body, due to the similarity of the organization of dust and shrimp cells, simply confused them. The difficulty of such situations is that it is not always known who the “double” allergen is in the pathogen that is already familiar to you.

The most common interactions between pathogens have already been calculated, and special tables of cross-reactions have been compiled (see below).

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Cross-allergy: table

As already mentioned above, there are many types of cross-allergic reactions. Let us list the main, most common ones.

There is an allergy to	Cross-allergic reactions should be expected
Pollen:	Pollen, leaves, stems of plants:	Plant foods:	Medicinal plants:
Birches	Hazel, alder, apple trees	Birch sap, apples, cherries, plums, peaches, hazelnuts, carrots, celery, potatoes, kiwi	Birch leaf (buds), alder cones
Cereal grasses	Food grains (oats, wheat, barley, etc.), sorrel	All cereal grasses
Wormwood	Dahlia, chamomile, dandelion, sunflower	Citrus fruits, chicory, sunflower seeds (oil, halva), honey	Wormwood, chamomile, calendula, succession, elecampane, coltsfoot
Swan		Beets, spinach
Ambrosia	Sunflower, dandelion	Sunflower seeds (oil, halva), melon, bananas

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Cross food allergy

If a patient has an allergy to plants or fungal spores, allergic reactions to certain types of food products are quite justified. A common mistake patients make is that they often fail to connect allergens that are so far apart due to ignorance.

Pollen or contact allergy	Foods to Avoid
Pollen of birch, alder, hazel	Hazelnuts, almonds, cherries, apricots, peaches, kiwis, celery, potatoes
Wormwood pollen	Celery, potatoes, fennel, dill, red pepper, coriander, cumin, chamomile, drinks containing wormwood (vermouth, balsams)
Sunflower pollen	Sunflower oil, halva, mayonnaise, mustard
Ragweed pollen	Melon, banana
Grass pollen (rye, etc.)	Tomatoes, melons, peanuts
Aromatic herbs	Spices, celery
Latex	Pineapple, avocado, banana, chestnut, papaya, fig, spinach, potato, tomato
Pollen of weeds, meadow grasses	Honey

Food product	Foods and non-food antigens that cause cross-allergic reactions
Cow's milk	Goat milk, products containing cow's milk proteins, beef, veal and meat products from them, cow's wool, enzyme preparations based on the pancreas of cattle
Kefir (kefir yeast)	Mold fungi, mold cheeses (Roquefort, Brie, Dor Blue, etc.), yeast dough, kvass, penicillin antibiotics, mushrooms
Fish	River and sea fish, seafood (crabs, shrimp, caviar, langoustes, lobsters, mussels, etc.), fish food (daphnia)
Chicken egg	Chicken meat and broth, quail eggs and meat, duck meat, sauces, creams, mayonnaise with chicken egg components, pillow feathers, medications (interferon, lysozyme, bifiliz, some vaccines)
Carrot	Parsley, celery, b-carotene, vitamin A
Strawberry	Raspberry, blackberry, currant, lingonberry
Apples	Pear, quince, peach, plum, birch pollen, alder, wormwood
Potato	Eggplants, tomatoes, green and red peppers, paprika, tobacco
Nuts (hazelnuts, etc.)	Nuts of other varieties, kiwi, mango, rice flour, buckwheat, oatmeal), sesame, poppy, birch pollen, hazelnut
Peanut	Soybeans, bananas, stone fruits (plums, peaches, etc.), green peas, tomatoes, latex
Bananas	Wheat gluten, kiwi, melon, avocado, latex, psyllium pollen
Citrus	Grapefruit, lemon, orange, tangerine
Beet	Spinach, sugar beet
Legumes	Peanuts, soybeans, peas, beans, lentils, mango, alfalfa
Plum	Almonds, apricots, cherries, nectarines, peaches, wild cherries, cherries, prunes, apples
Kiwi	Banana, avocado, nuts, flour (rice, buckwheat, oatmeal), sesame, latex, birch pollen, cereal grasses

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Cross-allergy to antibiotics and other drugs

Name of the drug	A group of drugs that cause cross-allergic reactions
Penicillin	All natural Penicillins, semi-synthetic and durant Penicillins, Cephalosporins. Meat of birds and animals that were fed with compound feeds containing antibiotics
Levomycetin	Derivatives of the Levomycetin group, Synthomycin, their antiseptic solutions
Sulfonamides	Novocaine, Trimecaine, Dicaine, Anestezin, Procaine, Paraaminobenzobenzene, Novocaine-amide, Biseptol, Almagel-A, Solutan, PASK, Hypothiazide, Furosemide, Triampur, Butamide, Bukarban, Orabet, etc.
Streptomycin	Streptomycin group and aminoglycosides
Tetracycline	Rondomycin, Metacycline, Morphocycline, Glycocycline, Oletetrin, Olemorphocycline, Oleandomycin. Meat of birds and animals fed with compound feeds with admixtures of a/b
Amidopyrine	Analgin, Butadion, Reopyrin, complex mixtures that include the named drugs
Pipolfen	Phenothiazine drugs (Aminazine, Propazine, Frenolon, Etaperazine, Teralen, Neuleptin, Sonapax, etc.)
Aminophylline (Eufillin, Diafillin)	Ethylenediamine derivatives (Suprastin, Ethambutol)
Barbital	Barbiturate group, Theophedrine, Valocordin, Pentalgin, Antasman
Iodine	Cardiotrast, Iodlipol, Bilitrast, Bilignost, Sayodin, Triombrine, Propyliodone, Myodil, Iopanoic acid, Lugol's solution, Antistrumin, radioactive iodine, etc.
Piperazine	Stugeron, Cinnarizin
Furacillin	Furadonin, Furazolidone, Furagin, their antiseptic solutions
Dermasolone	Enteroseptol, Mexaza, 5-NOC, Intestopan, Prednisolone
Vitamin B1	Cocarboxylase, complex preparations containing Thiamine

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Symptoms of cross-allergy

The symptoms of cross-allergy are similar to those of a regular allergy: allergic rhinitis, lacrimation, itching and burning of the skin, swelling of the mucous membranes, bronchial asthma, urticaria, dermatitis, Quincke's edema. All these symptoms are often caused by house dust, pollen, animal dander, food products and, as strange as it may sound, even sunlight and cold.

A unique property of cross-allergy is a gradual increase in the number of allergens-stimulants that cause identical symptoms in the patient. In order for their number not to reach incredible proportions, it is important to diagnose allergic reactions at the very beginning and begin their complex treatment.

Cross-allergy diagnostics

The most reliable way to diagnose cross-allergy today is molecular diagnostics. Using special equipment, specialists identify a reaction not to a product, plant, etc., but to a specific protein that is part of them and determines the "cross-reactivity" of twins.

In Ukraine today, a thorough anamnesis is used to diagnose cross-allergic reactions and specific immunodiagnostics are carried out to identify cross-sensitization.

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Treatment of cross-allergy

Treatment of cross-allergy differs little from the complex of measures for eliminating normal allergies; the difference lies in finding the main allergen that triggers cross-allergic reactions.

In the treatment of this type of disease, antihistamines are the main ones. The second and third generation of these drugs have the best effect: claritin, cetrin, erius, zertek and others like them. Their advantage is that they do not affect the central nervous system and do not have side effects, like first-generation antihistamines (no drowsiness, dry mouth, constipation, urinary retention). Basically, it takes a week to eliminate allergic reactions, complex cases suggest taking the drug for several months.

Ceritisin (Zyrtec, Parlazin) is a coated tablet (10 mg), as well as a solution - oral drops (10 mg per ml). Adults and children over six years old take one tablet once a day (20 drops), children 2-6 years old - 5 mg per day or 10 drops, children 1-2 years old - 2.5 mg (5 drops) twice a day. Zyrtec is taken from 6 months at 2.5 mg twice a day.

Mild forms of the disease allow the use of derivatives of cromoglicic acid. It is contained in eye drops, nasal sprays and aerosols.

Very often, glucocorticoids are used to treat cross-allergic reactions. These can be tablets or injection solutions. Their use, firstly, relieves exacerbations of the disease, and secondly, is a good supportive therapy to treat the disease in the future. Medicines in this group are very powerful and potent, so they must be prescribed by the attending physician, who will establish the necessary dosages, which should not be exceeded under any circumstances. In case of cross-allergy, corticosteroids are used only during special exacerbations and for a short time, since serious side effects can occur from their long-term use.

In complex treatment, the above-mentioned agents are supplemented with leukotriene receptor antagonists and sorbents.

The effectiveness of medications can be significantly enhanced by the use of SIT – specific immunotherapy. Its essence is that the patient is given a therapeutic dose of an allergen (allergy vaccine), which increases over time. This leads to the patient's sensitivity to repeated exposure to the allergen decreasing.

In this way, the patient’s body develops immunity to the causative agent of allergic reactions.

Prevention of cross-allergy

What preventive measures to take to avoid cross-allergy depend on the primary pathogen. If a person's allergy is caused by pollen, then when the plants that are allergic to him are in bloom, you need to avoid the places where they grow - most likely, these will be all kinds of parks and squares. Wearing sunglasses and gauze bandages will protect the mucous membranes, thorough daily personal hygiene, as well as wet cleaning in the house will help reduce the number of possible contacts with allergens. Taking antihistamines is also a sure way to prevent cross-allergy. If you have a food allergy, your daily diet should be carefully thought out - all possible allergenic products should be excluded. At the same time, cosmetics and care products can only be used if they are labeled "hypoallergenic". If an insect bite causes you allergic reactions, you should not consume honey or other bee products, and it is also better to refrain from eating seafood such as shrimp, mussels, lobsters, oysters, and crab meat.

Often, cross-allergy is caused by raw foods. Under the influence of temperature during cooking, the protein allergen that causes allergic reactions is usually destroyed. Therefore, you can try to eat cooked foods, perhaps in this form they will not provoke allergies in you. But it is best to consult a doctor in advance so as not to cause any complications.

In order to take the most rational and, most importantly, effective preventive measures, it is necessary to undergo an examination and consultation with an experienced allergist. Only he will be able to calculate all the groups of allergens, taking into account the properties and characteristics of cross-allergic reactions.

Cross-allergy is a fairly common phenomenon. When an immunologist identifies the primary allergen and the chain of products that cause cross-allergic reactions, treatment gives a noticeable and fairly quick effect.