What are the weirdest allergies?

Someone asked me the other day, “What are the weirdest allergies you’ve ever heard of?” and it made me stop and think. Perhaps weird is the wrong word here, they’re not weird, but they are strange, unexplainable and increasingly misunderstood. Here are just a few of the weirdest ones I’ve come across.

1. Allergy to exercise – Exercise induced anaphylaxis sounds crazy doesn’t it? How can exercise give you an anaphylactic attack? From first hand experience I know that this one is very real, but once again with all allergies, it’s different for every person who is affected. For me, it’s happened after I’ve let my guard down, for whatever reason, eaten something (I’m not entirely sure what) and then done exercise. It’s the act of exercising, getting the heart pumping, which seems to exacerbate the reaction into something far worse than it might have otherwise been. Consequently I carry my EpiPen whenever I work out and NEVER eat ANYTHING for at least two to three hours before exercise unless it’s water, fruit or oat cakes. You can read more about this in “Exercise induced anaphylaxis – scarey!”.
2. Allergy to cold – As winter draws to a close most of us wait with anticipation for the first snow drops and warmer weather that heralds the approach of spring. None more so than those who have cold urticaria, or cold allergy. It’s a very rare condition and symptoms include redness, swelling and hives on the skin caused by outside temperature and that of food and drink consumed. You can read more in an article from the Huffington Post entitled, “Cold Allergy: 9-Year-Old Allergic To Temperatures Under 70 Degrees”.
3. Allergy to sunlight – Most people thrive on daylight and we all know how important natural vitamin D from the sun is for our skin, but for some people the only time they can venture out for some fresh air is when the moon is high in the sky. These people are not vampires or were wolves, they have a very rare allergy to sunlight. It appears that people with solar urticaria make allergic antibodies against various proteins found in their own skin. Sunlight causes these proteins to change structure, allowing the allergic reaction to occur, most commonly causing a red rash and hives. It is possible for a person with solar urticaria to experience anaphylaxis if enough skin is exposed to sunlight. Read this article from the Daily Mail entitled Nasa suit for mother allergic to sun to find out how one woman has gone to quite drastic measures to live with her sunlight allergy.
4. Allergy to sex – It is estimated that around 5% of women have an allergy to seminal fluid; a potentially awkward, embarrassing and very sensitive allergy to have. Symptoms can range from mild discomfort, itching and a rash to full blown anaphylaxis so needs to be treated seriously, however it can often be confused with a yeast or herpes infection. I think it’s also possible that traces of protein from the food a guy eats could well be still present in their semen. It’s possible right?
5. Allergy to smells and fragrances – Allergy to smells and fragrances or ‘multiple chemical sensitivity’ to give it it’s medical term means people react to strong perfumes, airwick fresheners, air freshener sprays etc. and increasingly smells are pumped around shops and supermarkets to make us feel a certain way, and want to buy more stuff. Sufferers call an attack being ‘fragged’, which means they have had an attack after inhaling perfume.
6. Allergy to gadgets – An estimated 3 percent of the population is basically allergic to modern life. Electromagnetic hypersensitivity syndrome is caused by the blizzard of interference produced by microwave ovens, TVs, radios, mobile phone towers, gadgets, games, technology, mobile phones, WiFi, broadband, internet and various other trappings of the 21st century. Most of us couldn’t live without them, but for some the constant migraines caused by exposure to these rays of electromagenetic activity make their lives a misery. Visit the Foods Matter website for a plethora of articles, personal stories and information about research into this terrifying and truly debilitating condition.

Have you come across any other strange allergies? Let me know what they are here, and if you have one of the above allergies you have my sympathy, and I would also love to hear how you cope and adapt your life on an every day basis.