Cilantro is a herb commonly used in cooking. In Europe and much of the rest of the world, it is known as coriander. A hairless and relatively short plant, it is used throughout the world — Asia, Latin America and the Indian subcontinent make heavy use of this ingredient in local cuisines. It is even used for medicinal means and can assist with cases of insomnia and anxiety. Unfortunately, a growing number of people will experience adverse reaction to cilantro in the form of full blown cilantro allergies.
Diagnosis of a Link Between Symptoms and Cilantro Allergies
Naturally, as with many others, cilantro allergies are notoriously hard to diagnose. First of all, the person may develop this allergy so, despite no change in lifestyle, they will gain painful or uncomfortable symptoms that they cannot identify. Also, cilantro allergies will often produce a whole variety of different systems depending on the individual. For instance, some people may break out in a skin rash, others may bring up their food in the form of vomit and others still may just get an irritating itching sensation in the mouth and throat. A rare few may have more serious consequences due to cilantro allergies — they may go into anaphylactic shock and require urgent medical intervention. Fortunately, this is quite rare.
The best place to start with identifying an allergy that is suspected to be a food one, is to keep a food diary. This is a record of everything that is eaten plus any abnormal reaction to it. Over time, and with the help of a specialist if necessary, foods sharing common ingredients can be identified. The problem with cilantro allergies is that cilantro or coriander are included in so many different types of foods and cuisines. Nevertheless, a process of trial and error will usually identify the culprit ingredient. Sometimes, a skin prick test by a doctor will be necessary to identify the offending allergen.
Life Goes On with Cilantro Allergies
Like with nuts, cilantro is present in many food types, even those that you would not expect to contain it and think unnecessary to do so. Sufferers of cilantro allergies should check the ingredients of everything that they eat. This means checking the packaging for any food bought. Also, if food is cooked by someone else e.g. at a restaurant, a phone call ahead will be needed. If you suffer extreme reactions brought on by cilantro allergies, you may wish to completely avoid establishments using cilantro as even a trace amount on a clean plate that cannot be seen may be enough to cause a life threatening situation.
