food allergy armpit

Food allergy may completely cause abnormal symptoms such as itching, redness, sweating, and sudden increase in odor in the armpit. It is neither a primary disease in the armpit nor an incredible niche symptom. The essence is that the systemic inflammatory response caused by allergies is concentrated and amplified in the armpit, a special part of the body.

When I was rotating in the allergy department two years ago, I met a 22-year-old girl who showed off three pounds of spicy crayfish at a dinner party with friends during the summer vacation. She just felt a little itchy on her neck that night and didn't take it seriously. When she got up the next day, she found a sticky red patch on her armpit. At the beginning, the armpit skin was checked, and there was no ulceration or fungal sensation except for redness and swelling. After asking about the medical history, the possibility of food allergy came to mind. I prescribed oral antihistamines and told her not to apply anything blindly when she went back. She only rinsed the armpits with cold water, dried them and put them in a loose T-shirt to dry. Most of the symptoms disappeared that afternoon. Three days later, she was completely healed, and even the odor was gone.

When I first came into contact with this case, I was also confused. I had never heard of food allergies before, so why did I go to my armpits? After reading a lot of literature and talking to colleagues in the dermatology department, I realized that there were two different opinions behind this: one is that most dermatology doctors think that this is a coincidence. People's immunity is low when they are allergic, and their armpits are stuffy and sweaty. This induces intertrigo rash or local flora imbalance, and it has nothing to do with the food allergy itself. ； On the other hand, doctors from the allergy department prefer that this is a direct manifestation of allergies. The skin barrier of the armpits is much thinner than that of the trunk and has rich blood vessels. Inflammatory mediators such as histamine and leukotrienes released in the body during allergies can easily accumulate here, causing blood vessel dilation and tissue edema, and then In addition, the armpits are covered by clothes all year round, the temperature is 1-2°C higher than the body surface, and the humidity is also high. The symptoms are naturally much more obvious than other exposed parts. Some people are even allergic to foods such as mango and pineapple. If they touch their armpits after having juice on their hands, the allergic reaction caused by direct contact will be more severe. Now the two groups have basically reached a consensus: as long as there are no clear armpit triggers such as shaving armpit hair, changing to irritating shower gel, or exercising vigorously for more than three days in a row, sudden armpit discomfort, and the experience of eating unfamiliar foods or suspected allergenic foods in the past 3-24 hours can basically be linked to food allergies.

To be honest, when many people encounter this situation, their first reaction is to mess around. They either rub their armpits with shower gel, spray antiperspirant, or apply talcum powder. Some people directly take out ointment to treat body odor and apply it on their bodies. Instead, they break the already fragile allergic skin barrier, and if secondary infection occurs, they will suffer for several days longer. In fact, it is very simple to deal with. First, stop eating the suspected allergenic food immediately. If the itching is severe or the wheals have begun to form on the body or the lips are numb, just take a pill of loratadine or cetirizine. Don't mess around with the armpits. Rinse with room temperature water, gently press dry with a clean cotton towel, and wear loose cotton clothes to dry. It is more effective than any other folk remedies.

Interestingly, there is still an unconclusive research direction. A team is studying the relationship between food allergies and the components of apocrine sweat gland secretions. They say that when some people are allergic, the structure of the protein secreted by the apocrine sweat glands in the armpits will change, making it easier to be broken down by the bacteria on the skin surface to produce odor, so the odor suddenly worsens.； However, many scholars think this is an over-interpretation. To put it bluntly, it means that you sweat more when you are allergic, and the bacterial flora is active when you are bored for a long time. The natural smell is strong, and it has nothing to do with the composition of the secretions. Anyway, no matter which school is right, clinical observation shows that as long as the allergy disappears, the odor will disappear, and there is no need to worry about whether you suddenly develop body odor.

I also met a 30-year-old male patient. Every time he ate peanuts, his armpits would itch, but nothing else happened. He laughed and said, "My armpits are better than allergen tests." Seriously, don’t take your body’s little signals seriously. If your armpits become itchy, red, or smell worse every time you eat a certain type of food, even if there are no abnormalities elsewhere, it’s best to write them down and take the time to check for allergens to nip them in the bud.