Certain factors can trigger allergic and sensitivity reactions. Stress on your system can set off a reaction where normally you would be fine. Physical trigger factors can include getting too hot or cold, excessive exercise, a viral infection, and allowing blood sugar levels to get too low or too high. Many women find their symptoms only appear, or get worse, at times of hormonal change – at menstruation, at ovulation in mid-cycle, after childbirth. A significant number find they develop symptoms for the first time at the menopause, or after hysterectomy.
Emotional or mental stress can also play a part in setting things off. Overwork, anxiety, bereavement, money worries, depression – all of these can trigger reactions.
The use of certain drugs can also cause onset of allergic disease and sensitivity for the first time. Some people can link the beginning of their problems to a course of antibiotics or, in some women, to use of the contraceptive Pill. An accident or injury may also bring on allergy and sensitivities. In some people, chemical sensitivity follows an episode of overexposure to chemicals – such as accidental contamination, occupational exposure, or exposure to building, DIY or gardening chemicals. Sunlight can trigger symptoms in certain individuals, while others with allergies may also be sensitive to electrical fields or to the lack of sunlight in winter. (For information on photosensitivity.
People with multiple allergies are often also sensitive to the level of ‘overall load’ on their systems. They may have few problems most of the time, but will start to react to things they normally tolerate when they come into contact with other allergens or substances to which they are sensitive. Thus some people find they only suffer from food sensitivity in the summer, when they are reacting to pollens, or in the autumn when the concentration of mould spores is high. Other people discover that they only react to chemicals if they eat a food to which they are sensitive, or if they get a viral infection.
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