Allergies to seafood, which includes fish and shellfish, are common in children and usually persist into adulthood. Children may have allergic reactions to fish and shellfish from consuming, handling and inhaling vapors from cooking or preparing them. Symptoms of seafood allergies can range from a mild, tingling sensation in the mouth to a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction.
Prevalence
About 0.6 percent of children in the United States are allergic to seafood, according to Dr. Roshni Kandyil in his review on shellfish allergies in children, appearing in the August 2009 issue of the journal "Pediatric Allergy and Immunology." Most children do not outgrow allergies to fish or shellfish. The most commonly reported shellfish allergies are shrimp, crab, lobster, clam, oyster and mussel. Common types of fish that may cause allergies are cod, haddock, herring, sprat, salmon and other scaly and bony fish, notes the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.
Symptoms
Typical symptoms of fish and shellfish allergies in children include hives; itching and swelling of the lips, face, tongue and throat; watery, itchy eyes; stomach pain; diarrhea, nausea or vomiting; wheezing, difficulty breathing, and dizziness or fainting, according to MayoClinic.com and Dr. Kandyil's "Pediatric Allergy and Immunology" article. Severe allergies to fish and shellfish can lead to anaphylaxis, a life-threatening reaction that involves multiple systems of the body.
Cross-reaction
It is common to have allergic reactions to multiple types of fish and shellfish. According to the article "Food Allergy: a Practice Parameter" published by the American Academy of Allergy Asthma & Immunology, a person diagnosed with crab allergy will most likely have a reaction to other types of crustaceans. Cross-reactions are also common with the molluscan shellfish and with bony fishes. However, people allergic to shellfish are not necessarily allergic to vertebrate fish.
Prevention/Solution
According to MayoClinic.com, it is important to completely avoid seafood when there is a diagnosis of allergy because of the danger of anaphylaxis. Furthermore, breathing the vapors from cooking or preparing seafood can trigger an allergic reaction in some people. MayoClinic.com also advises people with seafood allergies to be on alert when eating out at restaurants that serve seafood in its menu as cross-contamination can occur.
Treatment
Treatment for seafood allergies includes antihistamines to reduce itchiness, rashes and swelling, notes MayoClinic.com. Physicians may also advise patients with seafood allergies, and especially those at risk of severe reactions, to carry an injectable epinephrine at all times. An epinephrine contains adrenaline that quickly opens the airways in an anaphylactic episode.
