Wonder if you have an allergy?
Allergies are abnormal immune responses to foreign substances (foods, chemicals, medicines, insect stings, pet hair, pollen etc)

Symptoms - What's an allergy and what's not:
Symptoms usually present with one or more classical symptoms affecting the...

SKIN: Itchy blotchy rash (hives/ urticaria), swelling (angioedema), flaring of eczema
NOSE: Sneezing, runny nose, blocked nose, hay fever
LUNGS: Wheeze, worsening asthma
STOMACH: Vomiting, diarrhoea (sometimes with blood)
BLOOD VESSELS: Fainting

Other symptoms are not due to an allergy...
BRAIN: Hyperactivity, fits/ epilepsy, abnormal behaviour, headaches/ migrane
HEART: Palpatations, chest pain

Timing of reaction:
Allergic reactions usually come on within minutes of eating the food or medicine or being bitten (immediate hypersensitivity): or in some cases within a few hours (eczema and asthma flares) (delayed hypersensitivity). Reactions that start days or weeks later are usually due to something else.

What to do if you have a reaction:
1. If possible AVOID further contact with the trigger. For example if the reaction occurs stroking a dog, move away from the dog and wash the patients face and hands with water. In food allergies, the patients may vomit which is nature's way of getting rid of  any food.

2. If there are NO breathing problems (tight throat, cough, wheeze, difficulty breathing) or faintess the reaction will usually respond to a dose of antihistamine.

3. If the patient is wheezy and they have an inhaler, give them some puffs of their blue inhaler (salbutamol).

4. If the patient is short of breath - call an ambulance and if available give the adrenaline auto-injector.

5. If the patient is faint, lie them down with their legs raised, call an ambulance and if available give the adrenaline auto-injector.

6. If you are unsure of what caused the reaction or you want more information to help prevent repeated reactions SEE YOUR GP, who may refer you on to a paediatrician or an allergy specialist.