Allergy to Natural Honeys and Camomile Tea

Abstract

Precipitation of food allergy reactions is well known in some patients with pollinosis when they consume natural food, such as honey or camomile tea. We present 9 patients with hay fever, with or without asthma, who experienced systemic allergic reactions after ingestion of natural honeys from two local areas (Andujar and Granada) and/or camomile tea. Pollen analysis showed a high level in sunflower pollen (23.6% of pollen grains) in the honey from Andujar but not in that from Granada. The diagnosis of food and respiratory allergy was based on history, skin prick tests and specific IgE activity against pollen from Compositae. Conjunctival challenge with camomile extract also gave positive results. The above allergological tests and the inhibition studies carried out, suggest that pollen of Compositae may be responsible for allergic reactions to certain natural foods and that the reactions are mediated by an IgE-related mechanism.

Immunosuppressive Effect of Honey on the Induction of Allergen-Specific Humoral Antibody Response in Mice

“…It is reported that honey allergy is rare in patients sensitive to pollens who are challenged with honey [27], which may have a correlation with our findings. However, it is reported that the oral intake of hon ey could cause allergic reactions in human beings due to the presence o f pollen and insect allergens as revealed by the skin prick test, RAST inhibition and immunospot methods [27,28]. This may be due to the digested fragments of honey allergens entering the bloodstream and inducing allergenic response while the putative immunosuppressant may get inactivated during the process of digestion.…”

Allergies au miel et aux produits de la ruche

“…L'allergie alimentaire au miel a été décrite sous la forme de cas isolés ou de quelques séries [4,7,9,10,12,[14][15][16] :…”

“…Les symptômes de l'allergie au miel sont variés : urticaire généralisée [4,23], urticaire et angio-oedème [23], urticaire et rhinite [23], angio-oedème isolé [23], symptômes digestifs à type de douleurs abdominales et/ou de diarrhées [2,23], asthme [2], anaphylaxie aiguë [2,3,9,10,32]. Chez 23 patients étudiés par Bauer et al [2], la répartition des symptômes était la suivante : syndrome d'allergie orale (52 %), symptômes digestifs (17 %), urticaire de contact ou angio-oedème (9 %), asthme (30 %), urticaire généralisée (9 %), anaphylaxie (17 %).…”

“…-Florido-Lopez et al [9] ont étudié neuf patients atteints de pollinose avec ou sans asthme qui avaient développé des réactions allergiques systémiques après l'ingestion de miel. Ils avaient également des symptômes d'allergie après ingestion de tisane de camomille, plante de la famille des Composées ; -Bauer et al [2] ont étudié les sérums de 23 allergiques au miel et de dix allergiques aux venins d'abeilles.…”

Acute, Short-Lasting Rhinitis due to Camomile-Scented Toilet Paper in Patients Allergic to Compositae

“…Reactions to camomile in hypersensitive subjects have a wide range of clinical presentation, e.g. oral allergic syndrome [3], asthma and rhinitis [4], and even fatal anaphylactic reactions [5]. The incidence and risk of type I allergy to camomile is thought to be underestimated [6].…”