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Mon 23 Jun, 2008 03:02 pm
My problem is something I'm completely unsure of. I know I am allergic to perssimmons (I have no idea how to spell the fruit haha), because each time I eat the fruit I get large bumps on my legs that go away fairly quickly, but I have never experienced this kind of allergic reaction. I am convinced it's a food or drink allergy, but it could be something worse. It appeared Sunday morning. Well, it wasn't visible at first, I was just itchy. I remember it started itching on my arms and chest. Thinking back, I rememberd that on Saturday, I didn't eat anything except a small typical breakfast of nothing out of the ordinary. Then, Saturday night, about 5 am, I had brandy with a lime. I don't which of the two caused this, but when I got home the next morning, and after feeling a little itchy, taking a long bubble bath, I noticed something strange. My stomach was itching like crazy, and there were tiny red spots all over it. Soon, these spots appeared almost everywhere.. speading up to my arms and down to my thighs. My feet and hands had these spots also. Then a little appeared on my chest, and lastly, hours later, they appeared on my calves. And they itched horribly! Well, they are still there.. and a few of them have turned into tiny purple spots underneath the skin. They make me feel like I have goosbumps all over me, and the upper portion of my thighs has begun to feel a little sore, as if bruised, maybe from itching, I don't know. By now, some of the spots have turned into tiny bubbles, and I am still ictching, though I try not to. Does anyone know why this could be? Could a person be allergic to brandy?
Were you around kids? You could have measles or chickenpox too.
No I was just with another person. I've had chicken pox before, so I'm sure that's not iit. I'm not sure about measles though, but I'm sure I have had it sometime years ago when I was a kid,
It appeared only 5 hours after I drank the brandy w/ lime though, so I think that has something to do with it...
Brandy and cognac are distilled wine, some are from fermented fruit like Calvados (apple). What brand of brandy was it? Perhaps the lime rind
was not cleaned of pesticides.
If you still have the rash, I would advise you to seek professional help,
only a physician can determine what it is you're suffering from.
Hm, I know for sure that I'm not allergic to apples.. and I can drink wine with no problems. The lime was just the kind you buy at a store.. we cut it ourselves, so I don't think it can be something on the lime. if I am not allergic to lemon, can I be allergic to lime though? Because I don't really remember actually biting into a lime ever before in my life, so that could be it maybe.
And yes it's still there, but I don't want to go to a doctor.
Does anyone nkow how long a simple food allergy can last?
More of the spots became tiny yellowish bubbles. They are as tiny as a grain of sugar though.
myheartisyours wrote:...
Does anyone nkow how long a simple food allergy can last?
A simple food allergy, if it's a very strong allergy, can kill you. My former boss was quite literally deathly allergic to bananas. We all knew where the epipen was and everything.
But I digress. It doesn't mean you're going to die from this (in fact, if it were that bad, you'd probably already be keeled over).
Man, I'm just a ray of sunshine today, eh? Anyway -- allergies -- they're unpleasant when not fatal but what can happen is that while you're scratching you can get a secondary infection or irritation that can make the itching continue. And that can go on, if untreated and you continue to scratch, for months at a time.
As for your other observations:
- Lemons and limes are not identical. You can certainly be allergic to one and not the other.
- Just because you bought the lime in a grocery store doesn't mean it can't have pesticides on it. Plus there are things like the dye stamped on it (if there is any) or the adhesive residue from the pricing label. The store could have changed those and not only would you not know but probably most of the people working in the store wouldn't know it had happened.
- The brandy could have all sorts of fruits in it (isn't that what brandy is -- fermented fruit?). Just because you can eat apples and drink wine without incident does not mean that brandy is a-okay. It could be peach, blackberry, plum, etc.
- If it's an allergic reaction there are any number of other possibilities. Our environment is chockful of possibles, everything from someone's cologne to the detergent used to clean our clothes or dishes to air freshener to metals to whatever. Retrace your steps as it might be something else from that day. You are probably right, though, that it's traceable to that day as allergies don't take forever to come out.
- Allergies can develop as we age. Even safe foods can become unsafe.
- The rash could be something other than an allergy. Not just a childhood disease but possibly something like eczema.
- The only way you'll know for sure is to visit a doctor, and if it's more than an allergy it would be a good thing to check on.
That doesn't sound like a food allergy to me. The yellow pustules sounds more like some kind of childhood disease...or dermatitus. Honestly if you still have it I would think you may want to see a doctor. It is more than likely contagious and could have complications.
Food allergy rashes generally go pretty quickly. My boys were allergic to milk and peanuts (mildly) and would get very faint rashes mainly around their mouth areas. It would clear up within a day.
Sounds like hives, but it could be anything so get it checked out by a dr. It could also be contact dermatitis (new clothes, soaps, deordorants, etc.), an allergic reaction to something you ate or drank, a virus, or any number of other things. You don't have to make a dr's appt to get qualified medical information. Most dr's office groups will answer a question over the phone, including whether or not your situation requires immediate, eventual, or no attention beyond keeping an eye on it. Most emergency rooms also have a medical information line. They'll be able to suggest proper treatment.
One thing, however. Get medical assistance immediately if you start to experience shortness of breath.
My wife's allergic to oak, which gives her trouble with wine and spirits.
It's not a skin rash though, more the anaphylatic wheezing issue.
Reactions such as these are oftentimes treated with over-the-counter antihistamines, but I would recommend myheartisyours check with a doc before self-medicating.
http://www.webmd.com/allergies/guide/hives-urticaria-angioedema
@myheartisyours,
I exactly experienced the same very itchy rashes on my neck and stomach with tiny red spots. It happened when I started drinking brandy for the last three days because of the holidays.
You just confirmed my problem.
A year ago I started itching on my leg. There was a rash.
It spread all over my body (Thankfully not to my man parts)
I couldn't sleep.
I'd wake scratching until I bled.
My wife suggested that it might me the Brandy.
Like you, I got the yellow fluid seeping from my skin that created a crust
that was disgusting. We'd have to vacuum the bed every morning to take away the dead skin. We'd wash the sheets every other day to get rid of the blood stains.
I went to many doctors and specialist. They thought I might have a cancer somewhere that caused my body to attack itself.
They gave me tons of blood tests, a CT scan and a PET scan.
After all the tests, they are clueless to what is causing it.
The only thing that helped temporarily was a steroid shot.
Like I said, my wife suggested it might be the Brandy.
I'm passed the point where my steroid shot would wear out, but since I stopped drinking Brandy, it has not returned.
I hope this is the end of it
Mike
@myheartisyours,
I could send you a few pictures to see if this is what your skin looked like
Mike
@MTSMITH87,
I think the Brandy is highly suspect! Every time I have Brandy I sneeze once or twice. I drink what I believe to be a high quality Brandy: St. Remy VSOP. Today I decided to try another "test"; I placed the bottle under my nose and sniffed. Immediately my upper lip began to feel numb and my face began to swell. This does not happen with wine although sometimes my cheeks will get really pink. I am allergic to oak, this I know from a anaphylactic episode years ago that was the result of sitting on a newly cut log. It was cold weather and I was wearing corduroy slacks. My man was cutting up wood for our wood stove. I sat down on a good size log as it was the perfect size for sitting. Soon my buttocks "bloomed"; swelling and turning red and itching horribly. The sap wicked into my pants. Shortly my throat began to feel really tight. I then decided to go to an allergist and got a shot. For weeks the welts appeared and disappeared all over my body as the sap was in my bloodstream. This lasted for weeks. I will also mention I have to eat gluten-free and I am very mold sensitive.
@myheartisyours,
Yes, that is entirely possible! Are you gluten sensitive? Did you change laundry products or personal care products like lotion, soap or other? Did your first place of your rash come into contact with another person? If so did that person have on any cologne? So many things to consider and who wants to drink something possibly lethal to rule out the Brandy?
@Wessie,
This was all 6 months ago. They've not been back since, so they are either dead or got better.
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