Chocolate/Cocoa allergy?

Hi everyone.  I have been having trouble over the past year with hoarseness, swollen feeling in my throat and phlegm especially in the morning, in my throat.  Yesterday morning, after consuming quite a lot of cocoa-based food the night before, I found myself going to hospital in an ambulance as I just couldnt seem to draw breath!  It was very frightening and I wonder now if I could have a chocolate allergy?  The doctor seemed reluctant to admit that I did but it could be possible, I guess.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,

True chocolate or cocoa allergy is rare. More commonly, reactions to chocolate are the result of a food intolerance or allergy to an ingredient in chocolate. People may be allergic to one or more food additives used in some chocolate products.When such an allergy occurs,it may cause hives,swelling,itching,hoarseness of voice and difficulty in breathing and life threatening anaphylaxis.Chocolate contains milk,wheat/gluten,corn and corn syrup,nuts and various additives.If you are allergic to any one of them,you can show an allergic reaction to all the foods that contains the allergen even in minute quantities.

If you had an anaphylactic reaction to cocoa based foods can be found by allergy testing.Skin tests are used for this purpose. This test involves pricking, scratching or injecting food extracts into the patient’s skin. The skin will react with redness and swelling for those extracts capable of eliciting an allergic reaction when consumed.Other tests used are blood tests like RAST and food challenge tests.

You need to consult an allergist for confirming whether your difficulty in breathing was due to food allergy or other pathological conditions.

Hope it helps.Take care and pls do keep us posted on how you are doing.

[ketla]

I am allergic to pure chocolate. The purer, the worse my allergy. I cannot  even smell heated and/or liquid chocolates (i.e. hot fudge, chocolate toppings) without anaphylaxis. I can tolerate the smell of such things as m&ms, unless smelling them on the breath of someone who's eaten them. Even eating three M&Ms causes my throat to swell till I resemble a bullfrog.

Since true chocolate allergy seems extremely rare, I was wondering if anyone knew of medical papers on the subject....or might be interested in documenting mine. LOL. =)

[no2u]

Having no previous food allergies and after eating chocolate daily for 48 years with no problems, I just had a similar anaphylactic shock incident after eating a handful of a newly-opened bag of Hershey's Semi-Sweet Milk Chocolate Chips.  Rushed to the ER and spent 3 days in the hospital.  I'll need to do some more experiments to determine if I've reached a lifetime chocolate intake limit or if it's specific to this new bag.