Contact allergy to food.
Contact allergies to foods, spices, and food additives can occur to individuals in the workplace or at home. Seven different reaction types have been described. These include irritant contact dermatitis, allergic contact dermatitis, contact urticaria, protein contact dermatitis, phototoxic contact dermatitis, photo-allergic contact dermatitis, and systemic contact dermatitis. The causes of each of these are reviewed and an approach to the diagnosis and management of contact allergy to foods, spices, and food additives is formulated.
Ronald O Perelman Department of Dermatology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA. skinofny@aol.com
Ronald R
RR
Brancaccio
Marcy S
MS
Alvarez
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D002648:Child; D017449:Dermatitis, Allergic Contact / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000209:etiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D005260:Female; D005503:Food Additives / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005512:Food Hypersensitivity / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009519:New York City / Q000453:epidemiology; D010328:Patch Tests; D011322:Primary Prevention; D011379:Prognosis; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D017678:Sex Distribution
D005503:Food Additives