Knowing If You Are Developing Allergies As An Adult: Tips For You

When you have gone through your entire life without suffering from allergies, you may take for granted that any sniffling or congestion that you may experience at any given time is due to a cold or other illness that you can get rid of. However, what you may not know is that you can develop allergies as an adult that you never had before in your life. In order to be sure that you get to an allergy specialist and get the help and treatment that you need for your allergies, you need to know the signs that you have allergies rather than a viral infection.

Your Sniffling Or Other Cold-Like Symptoms Last An Entire Season

Generally speaking, if you catch a cold or even the flu, your symptoms should only last around a week or two at most. That is because your body and your immune system will attack the virus that has entered your body and fight it off.

As such, if you continue to sniffle, have a runny nose, feel congested, or have an itchy throat for several weeks or even for an entire season of the year, you likely are not dealing with a common cold infection. If this has happened to you, make an appointment with your general practitioner or an allergy specialist to see if you may have developed a seasonal allergy that needs treating.

You Notice Skin Rashes Or Hives On A Frequent Basis

Most people will have an occasional skin rash or skin irritation at some point. However, there is a difference between skin irritation that comes from the skin being too dry or exposed to the elements too much and a skin rash due to allergies.

Oftentimes, a skin rash that develops from an allergy is either through a food allergy or a condition known as contact dermatitis. In the case of a food allergy, a splotchy rash that appears random and out of the blue will appear on the surface of the skin and may be hot to the touch. Contact dermatitis develops when a person directly touches something that they are allergic to. For example, a person with an allergy to cat dander who pets a cat may develop a reaction on their skin where they made contact with the cat.

If you begin to notice that you have such skin rashes or develop hives (swollen patches of skin that are hot to the touch and may itch or be painful), and they recur frequently, then you will want to get medical attention to try to pinpoint the cause. If you can, try to recall what you did and ate before the rashes appeared to see if there was anything that each occurrence had in common.

Now that you know a few of the ways that you may be able to tell that you are developing allergies as an adult, you can be sure to get the medical attention you need if you are experiencing such symptoms.

For an allergy specialist, contact a company such as The Regional Allergy Asthma & Immunology Center, PC.

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