Itchy ears that develop from eating bananas might be more common than you think. While bananas are not a common allergic food, certain allergy conditions might cause itching to develop in your ears and other parts of your head. If you develop other symptoms, along with your ears itching, you need to talk with your allergist to determine the exact cause. Avoid eating bananas until you can be seen by your doctor or allergist.
Bananas and Hay Fever
If you've been diagnosed with hay fever, also called seasonal allergies, you might experience itching in your ears after eating bananas. Certain pollen allergies, such as ragweed, and latex allergies might trigger a minor allergic reaction from eating raw bananas. The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia explains that the immune system might mistake the proteins in the banana as pollen from the latex or ragweed plant. This commonly causes itching to occur in your mouth, throat and lips, but can cause itching in your ears, eyes and nose in some cases. This condition rarely leads to severe allergic reactions.
Treatment for Food Pollen Syndrome
If you're diagnosed with food pollen syndrome, also called oral allergy syndrome, your doctor might recommend that you avoid consuming bananas during hay fever season -- the spring and summer months. Sometimes cooking the banana will modify the protein structure enough so that the immune system doesn't react when you eat the banana. Oprah.com says a new allergy treatment, called sublingual immunotherapy, might help cure certain food pollen syndrome symptoms. This therapy exposes your body to small amounts of pollen to desensitize the body.
General Food Allergy
Itching ears along with other symptoms might be a sign of a food allergy to bananas. A genuine food allergy will cause various bodily chemicals to attack the proteins in the banana. Histamine is primarily a chemical released in soft tissues that causes blood vessels to dilate and mucous membranes to produce more mucus. This commonly causes inflammation and swelling in the throat, inner ear and lungs. Increased blood flow and mucus production throughout the head can cause your ears to itch.
Considerations
If you have a food allergy to bananas, you will need to eliminate them from your diet to prevent complications. An allergic reaction to bananas can cause other symptoms to develop along with itching ears, such as hives, skin irritation, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, shortness of breath, chest pain, lightheadedness and stomach pain. More serious reactions can severely hinder breathing and lead to potentially fatal anaphylactic shock.
