# What are you allergic to?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion
**Created:** [May 18, 2005, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465 "2005-05-18T20:10:23Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Stark\_Raven\_Mad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stark_Raven_Mad)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/1 "2005-05-18T20:10:23Z")
Just out of curiousity. I bought me a fragrance today that’s probably my favorite after Jicky (it’s quite eccentrically named The Heart is Deceitful Above All Things), but it turns out I’m allergic to the stuff. I suddenly realized that I’m actually allergic to a many things, including:
[ul]
[li]cats[/li][li]aspirin, or any related NSAID[/li][li]most types of shellfish, though this has been mostly remedied by an Ancient Chinese Concoction[/li][li]peanuts[/li][li]my mom’s hairspray[/li][/ul]
What has everyone else got?
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### Author:  [@Hey\_It\_s\_That\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hey_It_s_That_Guy)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/2 "2005-05-18T20:11:37Z")
Cats, dogs, and just about any other furry animals.
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### Author:  [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/3 "2005-05-18T20:15:12Z")
I used to think I was allergic to mornings. I’d be at work and I’d be fine, and then, right at the stroke of 7:30, I’d start sneezing my head off. My wife asked me to pay attention and see if anything happened at 7:30.
That’s when the air conditioning came on and blew a night’s deposit of dust directly into my face.
I would seem to be allergic to dust, cats, dogs, and perhaps small children.
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### Author:  [@Anne\_Neville](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anne_Neville)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/4 "2005-05-18T20:18:38Z")
[ul]
[li]Dust[/li][li]Grass[/li][li]Cigarette smoke[/li][li]Pot smoke[/li][/ul]
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### Author:  [@UrbanChic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UrbanChic)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/5 "2005-05-18T20:21:11Z")
Life, according to my husband.
Let’s see…
- all fresh or raw fruit, vegetables, herbs, nuts (Oral Allergy Syndrome)
- the active ingredient in Robitussin (I break out in hives on my inner-wrists)
- animal dander
- whatever pollen is higher in count in the spring
- whatever outdoor irritants are higher in count in the summer (I’m not sure if they’re pollens)
- whatever pollen is higher in count in the fall
- house dust
- Ajax cleanser
- fabric softener
- a lot of scents, perfumes and colognes (watery eyes, sneezing, clogged nose)
- smoke
That’s all I can think of off the top of my head. I didn’t list the things to which I’m overly sensitive–they’re not true allergies, I don’t think.
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### Author:  [@GingerOfTheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GingerOfTheNorth)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/6 "2005-05-18T20:29:54Z")
Animals (if it has fur or feathers)
Feather pillows (see above)
Wool
Various scents, I have to be extra careful when trying new products, or getting flowers
Smoke
Marijuana
Nickel
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### Author:  [@GingerOfTheNorth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GingerOfTheNorth)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/7 "2005-05-18T20:31:28Z")
Whoops. Evergreens as well.
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### Author:  [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/8 "2005-05-18T20:39:16Z")
I’ve been tested as being allergic to dust, wood dust, dogs (mildly), and a certain kind of mold (I forget which) that grows pretty much indoors and out.
My husband teases me that I’m allergic to sunlight, because I have the [photic sneeze reflex](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_303.html).
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### Author:  [@PinkMarabou](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PinkMarabou)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/9 "2005-05-18T21:27:58Z")
I’ve been tested and it said cats, dogs, horses, grass, and trees. Obviously it’s not too bad or I would be a very miserable person. In fact, it’s rare when any of those bother me.
What does bother me is band-aids. The adhesive used on band-aids makes the skin under and around swell up into a giant hive and itch. Nothing life threatening though. I think i might have a slight reaction to bee stings, I swell a little more than normal people.
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### Author:  [@Penchan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penchan)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 9:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/10 "2005-05-18T21:35:11Z")
- Most fruit with flesh that matches apples, peaches, kiwi, etc.
- mildly allergic to animals
- pollen, dust - i.e. the outdoors
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### Author:  [@BiblioCat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BiblioCat)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/11 "2005-05-18T21:39:42Z")
> [@Ferret Herder](#):
>
> My husband teases me that I’m allergic to sunlight, because I have the [photic sneeze reflex](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a2_303.html).
😃 My husband has said the same thing. I always sneeze when I go out into the bright sunlight from a darkish place.
True allergies: Pollen, ragweed and grass. Grass bothers me the most in the fall, when it’s germinating itself in preparation for the dormant season. I always go through a bad allergy time in September and October.
I have adverse reactions to certain foods. They’re migraine triggers, and I usually just call them allergies. It’s easier in restaurants to get things prepared without the offending item if I say I’m allergic:
Sourdough bread, shrimp (but no other shellfish), red wine, carrots, avocados (and guacamole), raw peanuts and black olives.
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### Author:  [@Omega\_Glory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omega_Glory)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 9:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/12 "2005-05-18T21:49:25Z")
dogs
trees
dust
milk/yogurt/cheese
corn
potatoes
pork
bananas
oats
rice
grass
whatever’s in tide detergent
None of these are life threatening, and the allergies are managed by doing food rotations (ex: potatoes = no more than one serving every four days) along with weekly allergy shots.
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### Author:  [@Syntropy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Syntropy)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/13 "2005-05-18T21:53:49Z")
bee stings
walnuts
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### Author:  [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/14 "2005-05-18T22:07:44Z")
I had allergies as a kid, but they seem to have gone away (or at least I’ve moved, and have not been allergic to whatever is in the air here).
But after the hives I got as a kid: sulfa drugs. I got put on them as a kid. Oops. They don’t use them that much these days, but I nearly got given sulfa eye drops once. Thank Og the optometrist double-checked with me before giving them to me…imagine EYE HIVES…_shudder__scream_
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### Author:  [@Batsinma\_Belfry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Batsinma_Belfry)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 10:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/15 "2005-05-18T22:08:37Z")
some cats (mine included)
pollen
mold
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### Author:  [@Cowgirl\_Jules](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cowgirl_Jules)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/16 "2005-05-18T22:15:51Z")
walnuts (so I stay away from pecans too)
latex
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### Author:  [@Antigen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Antigen)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/17 "2005-05-18T22:16:30Z")
Birch trees.
Probably other pollen too, but a spring walk through a birch grove makes me sneeze enough to shake my brain into mush.
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### Author:  [@Ghanima](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ghanima)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/18 "2005-05-18T22:22:43Z")
Mozzarella cheese makes me projectile vomit.
Eating large quantities of pineapple makes me break out in hives.
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### Author:  [@Lisa-go-Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lisa-go-Blind)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/19 "2005-05-18T22:36:48Z")
I get allergy shots/take prescription medicine for my allergies to 1) dust, 2) dogs and 3) grass. Perhaps my worst allergy, however, is my skin allergy to nickel, which cause me to break out in hives if i wear any jewelry that’s not sterling silver. Well, not hives exactly - big pus-filled bumps that burn itch like heck for days.
I’m not “allergic” to smoke (you technically can’t be) but it does give me the worst headaches and triggers my allergies. I’m also somewhat lactose intolerant but I don’t consider that an allergy.
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### Author:  [@Queen\_Bruin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Queen_Bruin)
#### Post date: [May 18, 2005, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-allergic-to/304465/20 "2005-05-18T22:46:10Z")
Penicillin and all its relatives.
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