Relief From Allergies

You Man Not Have Chocolate Allergies At All

June 28th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed

Many people who think they have chocolate allergies, really don’t at all. The reason is because very little commercial chocolate is pure cocoa. There is tons of other stuff in the chocolate you buy from dirt and mold to additives and impurities. Your chocolate allergies may in fact be an allergic reaction to something else in the chocolate.

Let me state up front that if you are a chocolate lover, then you are better off acquiring a taste for the darkest chocolate on the market. Dark chocolate has less sugar and tons of anti-oxidants that are really good for you. Also, be sure to experiment with several different brands of chocolate. You may find that there is one that won’t cause an allergic reaction. In fact, your chocolate allergy may be something else all together.

Additives in Chocolate

People who experience an allergic reaction after eating chocolate may in fact be reacting to an additive in it like soy. The higher quality the chocolate, the fewer additives will be found, so if you consume a cheaper candy bar and get sick, while more expensive chocolate treats cause no reaction, the likelihood is that you had a reaction to one of the additives.

Many People Are Allergic To The Nuts

Many people suffer from nut allergies. Even if the chocolate you eat doesn’t have any nuts in it, it may be prepared in a factory where nuts are used to make other products. Also, soy and corn are also two common ingredients in chocolate, and they also are more common sources of food allergies. Peanuts are the most common allergen followed by tree nuts such as pecans and walnuts, but another common allergen is dairy, and since milk is another main ingredient in the production of chocolate, any perceived chocolate allergies may simply derive from an intolerance to dairy products.

As with any allergic reaction you experience, you should share it with your doctor if he or she doesn’t already know. They can run some tests to determine exactly what it is you are having a reaction to. While true chocolate allergies may be uncommon, any food allergy is serious business. Allergic reactions to food may result in only mild discomfort, such as a cough or a runny nose, and asthma sufferers may suffer attacks. But a more serious attack could lead to anaphylactic shock, which can be deadly.

Now, to be fair and accurate, chocolate allergies do exist. Some people are in fact allergic to only the chocolate and nothing else that may be in there. A good experiment to try if your allergic reactions are mild and not too severe is to buy some pure unsweetened chocolate from a fancy gourmet manufacture. This chocolate should be very pure and clean. Try a little bite (watch out! It’s really bitter) and see if you have an adverse reaction to it. If you do, you probably have chocolate allergies. If not, then change chocolate brands until you find one that agrees with you.