What is anaphylaxis? | Allergy symptoms | Lifelab Testing | Blog

What is anaphylaxis?

Last Updated: 7th August 2024 · Written by Kate Young

Anaphylaxis. The word itself can strike fear into those who know what it means, especially if they are suffering from food allergies which have wreaked havoc on their lives. There are many people who have suffered from allergy testing, but they do not always know what to do should they suffer an allergic reaction. However, at Lifelab Testing, we help people to try and improve their lives. See below more of the symptoms that you need to watch out for if you think that you are suffering from anaphylaxis.

What is anaphylaxis?

Anaphylaxis is one of the most extreme and severe allergic reactions, it can often lead to life-threatening situations. The whole of your body is affected and usually within minutes of you consuming a food that you are allergic to. A person suffering from anaphylaxis can also experience symptoms up to hours later, so it is vital that you stay away from problematic foods.

Severe allergic reactions: Symptoms

Although anaphylaxis is one of the most severe reactions, which is often life-threatening, there are other symptoms which present themselves if you eat a food which you are allergic to.

  • Swelling of throat and mouth (lips)
  • Struggling to speak
  • Struggling to breath
  • Severe asthma
  • Pain in the abdomen
  • Nausea
  • Drop in blood pressure

But which foods cause anaphylaxis?

There are some common foods which are often associated with allergies. Food labelling standards and requirements have been incredibly tightened up due to the issues that are being caused by foods. Almost everybody knows someone with an allergy to peanuts, but other foods include fish, eggs. shellfish and dairy products. It is important that you are able to differentiate between milk allergy and lactose intolerance, so please do be careful.

Unfortunately, there are some non-food items which you need to look out for, and these include wasp and bee stings, latex and even penicillin. So please do be careful before jumping into any of these items, and make sure that you do not have an allergy first.

For more information on allergy testing and identifying your allergies, please check out www.lifelabtesting.com. If you have any questions about any of our tests, don’t forget to speak to our customer service advisors who are available via our LiveChat service.

Buy with confidence

We're proud of our team and are established members of the scientific community

UKCA logo
C.E logo
Winner of Derbyshire Business Awards 2019
GDPR Compliant logo
Medilink Midlands logo