Food Allergies

My daughter just sent this link to a fascinating article on the Mayo Clinic website on food allergies and sensitivities. I had a really itchy mouth and even some numbness after eating hazelnuts last week. It turns out that is because I am allergic to birch tree pollen, which is all around us when we are in the Adirondacks in the spring.

Here is an excerpt from the article.

"Some fresh fruits and vegetables can trigger a mild allergic reaction that causes the mouth to tingle or itch. This is an example of cross-reactivity — proteins in fruits and vegetables cause the reaction because they're similar to those allergy-causing proteins found in certain pollens. For example, if you're allergic to ragweed, you may also react to melons; if you're allergic to birch pollen, you may also react to apples. Most cooked fruits and vegetables generally do not cause cross-reactive oral allergy symptoms.
Common cross-reactivity between pollens and fruits and vegetables:

If you are allergic to:	Birch pollen	Ragweed pollen	Grasses	Mugwort pollen
You may have a reaction to:	Apples Peaches Plums Nectarines Cherries Carrots Celery Hazelnuts Almonds Raw potatoes	Melons (watermelon, cantaloupe and honeydew) Bananas Tomatoes	Melons Kiwis Tomatoes	Carrots Celery Spices

I've also reacted to apples and cherries and attributed it to residual pesticides. All that birch pollen at camp may be the culprit instead. By the way, what the heck is Mugwort?? Of course I looked it up and it is Artemisia vulgaris, a weed I'm not familiar with, at least not by that name.