Cashew Allergy Symptoms

Cashew nuts are one of the favorite snack time, dried fruit nuts that are available all the year round in your local stores. Cashews are kidney-shaped seeds that are attached to the cashew apple in the bottom. Cashews are known for their low-fat content than most of the nuts. They contain 75% of unsaturated fatty acids. The major type of these unsaturated fatty acids are oleic acid. The oleic acid helps in keeping healthy cardiovascular health. In diabetics, it is shown to have reduced the high triglyceride levels. They are also a great source of proteins and fibers. Cashews contain potassium, vitamin B and folate. They are also known to have satisfactory amounts of magnesium, phosphorous, selenium and copper.

You can see there are many health benefits of cashews, but do you know, these nuts can cause life-threatening cashew allergic reactions. Cashew allergy reactions are adverse reactions of the body's immune system to cashews or even foods that contain cashews. Cashew allergy symptoms are seen when the immune system produces immunoglobulin E, that is, IgE antibody, and histamine. These are produced in reaction to the allergen, that is, cashew. The cashew allergy symptoms may range from severe anaphylactic reaction to asthma. Cashews are very popular and many people are fond of eating cashews. Cashew allergy symptoms can be mild or severe and fatal. Let us go into the details of cashew allergy symptoms.

Mild Cashew Allergy Symptoms
The victim of cashew allergy reaction may suffer from an upset stomach. This is a very common symptom that is mostly seen as a mild case of nausea. It may also be accompanied with vomiting and diarrhea. If you experience a long period of vomiting and diarrhea, consult the doctor immediately to prevent dehydration.

Allergy on skin is another mild cashew allergy reaction. The skin rash is pink in color and hot to touch. It maybe itchy and slightly swollen. In case of severe cashew allergy on skin, you may observe hives or eczema. Itching may not always be due to cashew allergy rash. You may feel itchy in the eyes, roof of the mouth and throat. Consult a doctor immediately, when you feel itchy in these areas of the face.

Hives is also one of the mild allergy symptoms seen after consumption of cashews. One will experience itching and tingling in and around the mouth, almost immediately after eating the allergen. The skin will break out into raised, red, itchy welts with swelling under the skin (angioedema). This swelling along with hives takes at least two days to resolve.

Severe Cashew Allergy Symptoms
One of the severe cashew allergy reactions is difficulty in breathing. You may experience difficulty in breathing due to swelling in the airway. Or sometimes, you may experience wheezing and an asthma like attack. It may also lead to a panic attack and difficulty in breathing experienced along with any of the above mild cashew allergy symptoms. Any of these severe cashew allergy symptoms needs medical attention right away.

In case of cashew allergy rash, you may observe swelling. Swelling on other parts of the body are not as dangerous as on the face and throat. Severe cashew allergy reactions may lead to severe and immediate swelling of the face and throat. The most dangerous and fatal cashew allergy reaction is anaphylaxis. There is extreme swelling in the face and throat, and the entire body exhibits allergic reactions. The blood pressure may drop leading to anaphylactic reaction. It can be a fatal reaction, if not treated immediately.

Cashew Allergy in Children
A recent study has shown cashew allergy in children have more serious consequences in children than adults. Cashew allergy in children was proven to exhibit eight times more severe symptoms of wheezing and 14 times more potentially severe cardiovascular symptoms like heartbeat disturbances and drop in blood pressure. Studies have shown cashew allergy in children to be more severe than peanut allergy in children. Also, the risk of children going into an anaphylactic shock is more which may result in death in just a few minutes, if not given provided with immediate medical.

The above cashew allergy symptoms show that you should not take the cashew allergy reactions lightly. You should be aware of allergy symptoms of cashew nuts, especially if you have kids as you never know when the nut can trigger an allergic response. Today, many chocolates, energy bars, desserts and other food products contain cashews. Therefore, it is not possible to monitor every food intake. If you are aware of the cashew allergy symptoms, then slightest hint of a cashew allergy reaction can be very useful in saving someone's life.