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You may be hearing more and more about food allergies in recent years. That’s no surprise considering an estimated 12 million Americans suffer from these types of allergies, and the number seems to be rising. Because of the prevalence and possible severity of this condition luckily awareness has increased as well.

Some people experience food intolerance instead of a food allergy which can cause confusion, they are different conditions that can cause different reactions.

A food intolerance, sometimes called a food sensitivity, results in a delayed reaction to a food or food additive. A food allergy on the other hand can cause a reaction within minutes of consuming the triggering food. An intolerance occurs because the food isn’t being digested properly due to things like a lack of enzymes, but an allergy is an immune response.

A food allergy is the body’s reaction to a substance that it views as possibly harmful. The immune system works to constantly protect our bodies from these things it deems harmful. The allergen is seen by the body as one of these substances so the immune system goes to work trying to protect the body by releasing protective chemicals. One of the chemicals released is histamine, which can affect the nose, eyes, throat, skin or GI tract.

How do you know if you’re having an allergic reaction? Some of the signs are a tingly feeling in or around the mouth, swelling of the tongue, throat or lips, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, hives or shortness of breath. In more serious cases the reaction can lead to anaphylactic shock which involves several systems in the body and can even lead to death.

Food allergies seem to be more prevalent every day but the majority of allergies are caused by just eight foods — eggs, milk, peanuts, tree nuts, seafood, shellfish, wheat and soy. In the United States these eight are responsible for over ninety percent of food allergies. While allergens may vary to some degree from country to country these eight are generally the most common.

Of course the most effective way to treat allergies is to avoid the allergen. With airborne allergies this is difficult, but you might think it would be easy with a food allergy — that’s not always the case. Processed foods can often contain hidden allergens. To help with this problem the United States has required that companies label foods containing any of the eight common allergens.

This labeling has been very helpful for allergy sufferers but it doesn’t guarantee the food is completely free of the allergen. In some cases there can be cross-contamination. This happens when a plant produces various foods, one of which is one of the big eight. Even though the machines are cleaned traces of the allergen can remain and be passed to the food.

Luckily most labels now have an allergy section where they list what other types of foods are processed in the same facility, but there are other things food allergy sufferers will need to look for as well. Ingredients that contain allergens can be listed under different names, for example casein and whey are forms of milk protein. Those with a dairy allergy will need to avoid these ingredients.

People with allergies will need to be familiar with the signs of a possible allergy reaction. They will also need to know how to treat themselves to prevent or reduce the chances of anaphylactic shock. Treatment usually involves the use of an epinephrine injector, often called an EpiPen.