Meat allergies may not be as rare as once thought

We read often about allergies to milk, peanuts and shellfish, but for whatever reason, not so much about allergies to meat. A study just reported at a meeting of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, in New Orleans, suggests they may be more common than believed -- maybe medium rare, the scientists appear to be suggesting.

Here's a summary of the report, in a release from the academy. Conducted by researchers at the University of Virginia, the University of Tennessee and the John James Medical Center in Australia, it looked at 60 cases of recurring cases of unexplained anaphylaxis and found that 25 of those patients had IgE antibodies (the type of antibodies that are responsible for allergies) in their blood that reacted to alpha-gal (or alpha-galactose for long), a carbohydrate in meat.

Here's a story from Reuters. It notes that because the reaction can occur hours after the meat was eaten, the cause can be hard to trace. The article quotes study co-author Dr. Scott Commins of the University of Virginia as saying, "The typical scenario has been if you don't react to food within two hours, then it's not the food. In this case that doesn't seem to be true."

For more about food allergies, visit the website forthe Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network. (Looks like meat allergies aren't listed there -- I couldn't find them, at least -- presumably because they've been considered so rare?)

And here'san earlier paper by Commins and colleagues. It mentions that most mammalian meat contains this sugar, but  primate flesh -- including ours -- does not. (Not that we're advocating going that route to avoid having to give up eating steaks, of course.) 

This same carbohydrate -- called Galactose-α(1,3)Galactose, for extra long -- appears to be one of the reasons that transplanting organs from other species is a problem, by the way. To get around that, scientists have created pigs in which the enzyme responsible for creating alpha-gal has been knocked out of commission. 

Finally,  here's a Washington Post story from last year that features a man who turned out to have a meat allergy.

--Rosie Mestel

Photo Credit: Kirk McKoy / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Chris H]

Interesting, though meat doesn't just harm folks who are allergic - according to the American Dietetic Association, vegetarians are less prone to heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and obesity than meat-eaters are.

And of course eating meat causes massive animal suffering - check out www.Meat.org.

[Beata]

I have an allergy to chicken so you can definitely be allergic to any kind of meat. Nevertheless, I am a vegetarian nowadays so it doesn't bother me. I'm happy as keeping my weight in check even when not eating tiny portions is very easy.

[Kevin]

That's too bad. I couldn't imagine living without eating meat. As an athlete who is currently in training for a triathlon I couldn't be as active as I am without it. Eating meat gives my body all the necessary nutrients to keep me going.

[Food Allergy Queen]

Thanks for putting this out into public awareness, I'm allergic to chicken (among dozens of other things) and most people don't believe that anyone can be allergic to meat! Luckily I can have chicken eggs, and turkey and all other meats. Whew.

Foodallergyqueen.com
Recipes, reviews and resources for managing multiple food allergies

[Kevin]

I have trouble with cow's milk and other dairy products and also beef. I'm glad this issue is getting a little more attention.

[Oz]

Chick-Fil-a was right: eat more chikn.

[jessica]

Kevin:

there are plenty of NFL players and other athletic types that are vegetarian, if not vegan. Tony Gonzalez is one.....FYI

[Nightqueen]

Seriously Kevin, a better understanding of nutrition might help your athletic activities, too.

[Ray]

Perhaps folks are starting to clue up. I started having allergic reactions to red meat somewhere in the late 90's (96-98). Have a steak for dinner and wake up at 3 am in a full blown allergic reaction. Turns out that this is the same time that a study found that feeding rennet to cattle as a supplement in feed showed to increase weight gain. Ok, rennet is the lining from a calf's stomach and therefore is in limited supply (it's used to make cheese too). Enter microbiology. Somewhere around 1996 an enzyme was 'engineered' that simulates the effects of rennet. This 'vegtable rennet' is now used in feeds for any farm raised mammal, as well as an inexpensive ingredient for making cheese. No more red meat, no more cheap cheese for me. Now, all things considered here, is it any surprise that the explosion in obesity is likely coming from our ingestion of this 'vegtable rennet'? For those that are not allergic, the effects are the same. We're mammals too, gaining more weight on the same amount of feed. --Ray