Allergies | Myths and Facts About Allergies

Greetings dear friends. How is life treating you? Trusting God you all are doing good? By the special Grace of God, I'm doing good too. Thanks @ahsansharif for organizing this contest on allergies.

Allergies are disorders of the immune system. This often occurs when the body's immune system reacts to substances that are harmless such as certain foods, dust or pollen. Hypersensitive individuals tend to suffer more from allergies.

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What are the most common types. Of allergies?

Though allergies may varies between individuals as well as nations, but the most common allergies across board include the following:

1. Seasonal allergies: A good example is the Hay fever. This is an allergic reaction from exposure to dust, pollen, and other airborne allergens. For we in Nigeria, the is very common during the dry season which is usually between the period of November through March. This season is characterized by excessive dust which is caused by both vehicular and human movements as well as winds.
2. Food allergies: People tend to reach to certain types of food such as milk, peanuts, fish and other diary products after eating. I've got a couple of friends who always avoid peanut cos according to them, it causes breakout on their faces each time they eat it. Others complain of diarrhea each time the consume milk.
3. Insect sting allergies: I fall under this category. I am hypersensitive to insect bites. Once I'm being bitten by am insect, I'll keep scratching the place and sometimes, I get to injure myself in the process. The worst insect is the wasps. I've been beaten several times them. It wasn't really a funny experience for me cos all my face was swollen. My eyes were almost closed as a result of the sting.
4. Skin allergies: Our skin tend to react when it comes in contact with certain substances and chemicals such as dues, latex or nickel. This could result to having blisters on the skin, swellings, redness as well as itching.

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What are the three symptoms of allergies?

Three of the symptoms of allergies including:

1. Congestion and stuffiness: This is a common symptom for those suffering from hay fever. This is often characterized by difficulty in breathing through the nose which is caused as a result of swelling in the nasal passage.
2. Itchy eyes and throat: As a result of irritation and inflammation in the eyes and throat, there's often a discomfort from itchiness.
3. Sneezing and running nose: In reacting to certain allergens, the body releases histamines and other chemicals. The resultant effect is sneezing and a runny nose.

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How to prevent allergies
In other to prevent allergies, one has to take note of the following?

1. Avoid exposure to substances that could cause certain reactions to you.
2. Ensure that your environment is always kept clean.
3. Always wear a mask in dusty environments.
4. Ensure to read labels on food before consuming.
5. Avoid the use of harsh bathing soaps and cream.

Explain the difference between allergies and colds

In as much as allergies and colds share similar symptoms like runny nose, sneezing, congestion and fatigue, they are two different entities. Bellow are some of the difference between alergies and cold

1. While allergies are a result of over reactive immune response to harmless substances, colds are caused by viral infection.
2. Colds can cause fever whereas allergies do not.
3. Allergies can last for as long as one is exposed to the allergens but colds usually last from between seven to ten days.

I'll like my friends @tripple-e @deelyt and @ashley-p to also participate in this contest.