Hair allergy

The reasons for the emergence of allergies are a huge number: medicines, pollen of flowers, household dust, spores of fungi, animal hair, etc. Allergy to animal hair occupies a leading position in the epidemiological structure of this disease.

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Why there is an allergy to the coat?

According to statistics, 15% of the total population of the planet Earth suffers from such a disease as an allergy to the wool of domestic and wild animals. However, this fact does not stop people, and they continue to contact animals at home, at a party, at the zoo, etc.

The onset of an allergic reaction often develops over about two years, but sometimes allergic to wool arises in the form of sudden attacks.

Most often the disease appears from contact with animals such as dogs and cats, even if they almost do not have hair. Dogs, whose woolen coat is constantly updated, are also "walking" allergens.

Allergy to wool appears, mainly because of the release of specific proteins by specific cutaneous glands. Also, proteins are often found in urine, wool, saliva of animals. These allergens are extremely small, so they are easily picked up by air and carried on it for long distances. Saliva and urine of living creatures, containing the dandruff of their "owners", dries up, and the skin particles are in the air and can be swallowed by any person. This suggests that for the appearance of allergies do not need close contact with the animal. A person who has an allergen in his body becomes a carrier of the disease when, during a cough or sneeze, along with his saliva, particles of animal hair or skin are released from the body.

How is the allergy to wool?

An allergy to wool has its symptoms. These include nasal congestion, sneezing, runny nose, lacrimation, temporary asthmatic attack. This type of allergy can torment a person for several hours to several months. The patient must be under the watchful eye of the doctor all this time.

The allergy to wool symptoms manifests as follows: 

• Tear, eyelid edema, conjunctivitis of allergic etiology; 
• Severe itching, flushing of the skin; 
• Rashes in the form of a small rash; 
• Atopic dermatitis; 
• Neurodermatitis, eczema; 
• Hives (extensive rashes in the form of blisters); 
• Rhinitis of allergic etiology, persistent watery discharge from the nose, sneezing; 
• Attacks of dry cough without cold symptoms; 
• Shortness of breath until the attacks of suffocation and development of bronchial asthma.

Since the allergy to wool is caused mainly by domestic animals - cats and dogs, you should consider these two subspecies of allergy separately.

Allergy to cat hair

In itself, cat hair is not an allergen, an allergic reaction causes secretory skin protein and cat saliva. Allergens are called Felis domesticus allergen 1 or Fel d 1, located in the sebaceous glands, and Fel d 4, secreted by saliva. These allergens are part of the allotment of the entire "cat" group - from pet to lion, tiger, leopard and panther. Animals of the cat family constantly monitor the purity of their wool and lick almost hourly. Wherever there sits, lies, cat or cat walks, allergens remain. Since Felis domesticus is constantly in the smallest scales of the skin of the animal, it falls in huge quantities on carpeting, bedding, soft toys. It should be noted that cats produce significantly more allergens than cats. In addition, the family of felines is the carrier of not only Felis domesticus allergen, but also other types of allergens, excreted in urine. In short, wherever a cat or cat lives, allergens literally hover in the air, and contribute to their spread the abundance of furniture, upholstered in cloth, carpets and household dust.

Allergy to cat hair is manifested by typical symptoms characteristic of allergic reactions. However, in the signs of allergy to cat hair there is a feature - the first appears pruritus and nasal congestion, which are often confused with manifestations of colds.

Typical signs of allergy to cats: 

• Swelling of the face; 
• Itching all over the body; 
• Hyperemia of the skin, itching; 
• Strong tear; 
• Difficulty breathing due to stuffy nasopharynx; 
• Constant sneezing, itching in the nose; 
• Hoarseness of voice, feeling of perspiration in the throat; 
• Cough - frequent and dry; 
• Urticaria up to the swelling of Quincke; 
• Provoking an asthmatic attack.

Myth is the belief that there are hypoallergenic cats, and the so-called "bare" cats - the sphinxes are not at all capable of causing allergies. This is far from the case, since both Fel d 1 and Fel d 4 are aggressive allergens remain on the skin and in the saliva of the animals. No nursery of the world is able to breed an unchallenged and non-linguistic breed. The isolation of Felis domesticus is a genetically determined property of all members of the feline family. Moreover, even if you remove a cat from the territory where an allergic person lives, the manifestations and symptoms of an allergic reaction can remain for several months. This is because the allergens hold tightly to the particles of the furniture fabric, hide in carpets, bedspreads and curtains.

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Allergy to dog hair

Dogs stand in second place after the cat family by provocation of allergic reactions. Dogs of hypoallergenic breeds, as well as breeds of cats, do not exist. Moreover, short-haired dogs are even more aggressive in the sense of allergy than long-haired dogs, since the main allergen Can F1 is found in the skin of the dog. In addition to it, allergies can be caused by tiny mites that constantly live in dog hair. Actually the wool of dogs is only a carrier of a huge amount of allergens - Can F1. Even with systematic careful cleaning of the room, allergens can hide soft furniture, carpets, curtains, toys and retain their vitality up to several months.

Typical allergy symptoms in dogs: 

• Dry cough, hoarseness of voice; 
• Redness of the eyes, tear; 
• Continuous sneezing (from 5 to 10 times in a row); 
• Difficulty in breathing due to nasopharyngeal obstruction; 
• Skin itching is less common than with allergies to cats.

Skin manifestations of allergy to the hair of dogs are mostly when saliva hits the human skin. It is known that dogs are usually affectionate and tend to "kiss" the owner. Any place of the human body, where the saliva enters, becomes an accumulation of allergens. Especially violently react to canine allergens people suffering from asthma. They can quickly develop asthma and angioedema.

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How is the allergy to hair treated?

If the allergy to wool is light in nature and not accompanied by severe symptoms, then antihistamines, nasal sprays, may well be handled. If the form of the disease is severe, then the intervention of a specialist, taking corticosteroids, is required. The state of the body with allergies, accompanied by asthmatic attacks, can be alleviated with the help of antiasthmatics.

Reduce the frequency of allergic attacks on animal hair can be by strengthening the body's immune system. In this situation, the patient needs to undergo a course of hyposensitization - a procedure that helps reduce the hypersensitivity of the body to allergens released by animals.

The allergy to wool in this case is treated as follows: under the skin of the patient, allergen is administered in small portions. The body immediately begins to develop antibodies aimed at fighting the "stranger". The next time, when again there is a contact with the secretions of the animal and the allergic reaction begins to develop, a person will bear the disease much easier. Depending on how severe the form of the disease is at the moment, hyposensitization can continue for several months. After some time, the amount of the drug administered can be reduced to one dose per month.

Allergic to animal hair is quite possible to minimize. To do this, you must follow certain rules:

• not start a pet;
• wash your pet every day;
• places of his frequent stay wash with bleach;
• every day to do in the apartment wet cleaning;
• several times a week to knock out mats and mattresses, on which the pet walks;
• at least once a week to clean the litter of the animal.

These measures will help to avoid such an unpleasant ailment, as an allergy to the animal's fur.