About 50 million Americans struggle with allergies. They are most likely to develop in infancy and childhood and can grow to affect your child’s daily life at school and at home. Symptoms can range from mild to severe and can come from many different sources.
Rolandine Vaughan, PA-C, MPAS and her team at Virtually Urgent Healthcare want you to know what the most common allergies are in kids and what to look out for if your child is having an allergic reaction.
Allergic reactions and their symptoms
Allergic reactions happen when your body reacts to a foreign substance in your body. Even if this substance can be considered normal, your body sees it as an attack and tries to defend itself.
When you have an allergic reaction, there can be a variety of symptoms. However, the following are considered the most common:
- Hives or skin rashes
- Itching and swelling of the tongue or throat
- Vomiting or diarrhea
- Wheezing or having difficulty breathing
- Sudden drops in blood pressure
Even common cold symptoms like sneezing, watery eyes, and a runny nose can actually be signs of an allergic reaction.
Allergy varieties
Different types of allergies can have similar symptoms, so there could be more than one kind your child is dealing with. Though there are many specific kinds of allergies, most of the common ones found in children fall into just a few main categories.
Food allergies
It’s estimated that about 1 in 13 children have some type of food allergy. There are many foods that can trigger allergies, but the following foods make up about 90% of them:
- Milk
- Eggs
- Soy
- Wheat
- Fish
- Shellfish
- Peanuts
- Tree nuts
Finding the allergen in your child’s diet can be tough, so always make sure to check food labels and their ingredients list to help nail down the culprit.
Pet allergies
Many children can be allergic to common household pets like cats and dogs. Pet allergies are actually more than just being allergic to the animal itself. This type of allergy can be triggered by the animal’s skin cells, urine, and fur.
If you’ve noticed your child coughs or wheezes a lot around animals, they may be having an allergic reaction.
Outdoor allergies
Most people can relate to having allergic reactions to different kinds of pollen in the air. They can cause watery eyes and sneezing in you and your child. But there’s more that your child may be allergic to in the great outdoors. They can also be allergic to different types of insect stings like the ones from mosquitoes and bees.
Kids tend to be more prone to develop these types of allergies, and their symptoms can change as they grow older. Keep note of what your child eats or what kinds of animals or environments they are exposed to if you suspect they are allergic to something.
Next steps
If you think your child may be having a non-life-threatening allergic reaction and can’t wait to make an appointment with their regular provider, you can rely on our team at Virtually Urgent Healthcare to receive medical help quickly.
You can call our office at 678-960-8953 or use our online booking tool to make a telehealth appointment with us today.