Why is it so important to document a patient's allergy status?

Before we prescribe your herbal medicine or you purchase OTC products,  it is crucial to know all your allergies and biomedical conditions with medications that are being taken, including listing food allergies and sensitivities.

What is food allergy?

Food allergy is an immune system reaction that occurs soon after eating a certain food. The eight major food allergens include;

  • Milk, Egg, Fish, Crustacean shellfish, Tree Nuts, Wheat, Peanuts, and Soybeans

What are the most common signs and symptoms of the food allergy?

  • Hives, itching or eczema, tingling in the mouth

  • Swelling of the lips, face, tongue, and throat or other parts of the body

  • Wheezing, nasal congestion

  • Abdominal pain, diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting

  • Dizziness, lightheadedness, or fainting

  • Anaphylaxis (life-threatening, requiring emergency medical attention)

o    Constriction of the airways, swollen throat that makes it difficult to breathe

o    Shock with a severe drop in blood pressure, rapid pulse, loss of consciousness

Do herbal medicines carry allergens?

Herbs carry the eight major food allergens which may cause adverse drug reactions (ADRs) with immediate allergic reactions. In many cases, an allergic response will happen within two hours of ingestion an herb. Symptoms can range from a mild rash to severe anaphylaxis.

Commonly used Chinese herbs with potential allergens

Gluten :

  • Fu Xiao Mai (Triticum aestivum), Wheat

  • Mai Ya (Hordeum vulgaris), Malt sprouted barley

  • Shen Qu (Massa Fermentata), fermented wheat/malt

Seeds :

  • Bai Jie Zi (Semen Sinapis Albae), Mustard Seed

  • Hu Ma Ren (Semen Sesami Nigrum), Sesame

Crustacean Shellfish & Mollusks

  • Hai PiaoXiao (Endoconcha Sepiae), Cuttlefish tone

  • Mu Li (Concha Ostreae), Oyster

  • Zhen Zhu Mu (Concha Margaritifera), Mother of pearl

Tree Nuts:

  • Bai Guo (Semen Ginkgonis Bilobae), Ginkgo

  • Hu Tao Ren (Semen Juglandis), Walnut

  • Li Zhi He (Semen Litchi Chmensis), Leechee Nut

    Xing Ren (Semen Armeniacae), Apricot

Soy (potentially processed with soya-bean oil):

  • Dan Dou Chi (Semen Sojae Preparatum), Prepared Soybean

References

1.       Anaphylaxis, Symptoms & Causes,  October 2021

2.       Chinese Herbs & Allergens, Labeling With Caution, Shellie Rosen DOM, LAc, February 2018 

3.       Adverse Reactions to Alternative Medicines, 2019

           https://www.allergy.org.au/patients/drug-allergy/adverse-reactions-to-alternative-  

            medicines                            

4.       Z-P Zeng and J-G Jiang, Analysis of the adverse reactions induced by natural product-derived drugs, 2019

           https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2850395/pdf/bph0159-1374.pdf