Common Allergies and Their Symptoms and Pathologies

Nearly every person in the world is allergic to something - allergies are caused by your body's immune system being oversensitized to a common substance or irritant.  For most of us, this can be something like pollen or mold spores.  Common allergies and symptoms include hay fever (with scratchy, runny eyes), or more severe cases where people get so congested from inhaling pollen and the like that they need medical intervention.

Other common allergies and symptoms include an allergy to cat dander; this is the saliva that your cat leaves behind when it licks its fur to clean things.  Some are sensitized to it, and others aren't.  More serious allergies include allergic reactions to drugs - most notably drugs like cyclosporine and penicillin, both of which will cause a rash.

In General, Allergic Reactions Follow One Of Three Pathologies

The most common pathology is congestion in the sinuses or bronchial tubes.  Common symptoms of this kind of allergy include sniffling, sneezing, congestion, and sinus headaches, and there are plenty of medicines out there designed to combat these symptoms.  The most common (and for most people, the most effective) are the drugs found in Claritin.  Claritin is unique in that the drug manufacturer took it to generic over the counter strength almost immediately rather than waiting for the patents to expire, because it was so effective that there was a growing black market in Claritin pills!  Extreme cases of this pathology include people who get chest congestion and bronchial asthma.

The next most common pathology is a skin rash - this can be as mild as breaking out in spots to the painful agony of hives.  Interestingly enough, the same reaction is responsible - your body reacts to histamine compounds, which trigger the immune system to go into full gear to fight off an invader.  In much the same way that, say, carpet bombing can get rid of a fly, your body's immunoresponse system over-reacts and causes you pain and injury.

The third pathology for common allergies and symptoms is one most people don't associate with allergens - it's a trigger on the intestinal tract, which can cause gassiness, bloating, and diarrhea; it can also cause an upset stomach.  Technically, this sort of allergy comes not from an immune system/histamine response, but a part of your intestinal flora that can't really handle what you just ate.  Extreme cases of this type of allergy are actual syndromes and diseases, like Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Crohn's Disease.  Examples of this type of allergy include a gluten allergy, or an MSG allergy, or an allergy to shellfish in its minor forms.

What Should You do To Minimize Your Allergic Responses?

First, contact an allergenist if you have severe allergies.  They'll put you through a battery of tests to find out what triggers your immune responses.  Then, carefully eliminate triggering items.  If you have a house with central air, be sure to get the vents cleaned every year just before spring.  Experiment with what remedies do and do not work for you, and keep a list so that when you're sneezing and miserable, you'll be able to call upon what you learned before your brain was full of mucous.