Tick bite leads to red meat allergy

The Ugly Truth Behind Tick Bites

As Spring and Summer approach, many of us will be spending much more time in the beauty of the outdoors. However, in all of that beauty lie harrowing things such as tick bites. The majority of the time, we don't realize a tick has bitten or attached to us until it's already locked in. Once the little bloodsucker is attached, the potential for transfer of disease is very high. What's worse is that the type of tick that bites you will also factor into the aftermath you encounter. Most people are aware that ticks carry Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, but the other high-risk side effect of a tick bite may be the worst, and is actually an allergy. Alpha Gal Syndrome is an allergy developed from tick bites that causes humans to be allergic to red meat (beef, pork, lamb).

What Is Alpha Gal Syndrome?

Alpha Gal Syndrome is an allergy to red meat, usually noticed within two to six hours after consuming something with the alpha gal molecule. Symptoms range from mild to life-threatening and include hives, itching, wheezing, shortness of breath, stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, and, most importantly, swelling of the lips, face, throat, and eyelids. Unfortunately, the only cure known at this time is to avoid red meat. In the United States, the allergy is most commonly developed from Lone Star tick bites. Any foods containing sugar filtered through bone marrow can cause a reaction, and this is more common in everyday foods than we realize. Drug fillers like carrageenan and certain blood pressure medicines are also reactive to the allergy.

Difficulties Of Living With Alpha Gal

While avoiding red meat might sound like something easy to achieve, this is a common example of something you don't realize is difficult until you're living with it. During my time at the Boonville VFW, I met a Navy veteran and overall tough guy who developed Alpha Gal while I was still working there. Scott would come in for a drink and tell me about the awful lessons he was learning from his allergy. Sometimes, we would witness the side effects in real time, and needless to say, it was scary. Going out to eat became incredibly difficult for Scott, even though he was avoiding red meat. When you go to a restaurant, if they don't actively prevent cross-contamination (which most restaurants do not), then there's a good chance they're cooking whatever you're eating on the same cooking mechanism that they cook red meat. If your food is in proximity to that meat, there's a good chance you'll have an allergic reaction. Even though you ordered fish, it was probably cooked on the same cooktop as the steak that was ordered before you. Deep fryer grease that contains lard will cause a reaction, and the majority of your restaurants use lard. Lucky for alpha gal folks, there are apps out there like Fig to make it easier to eat out and avoid these reactions.