Developing new allergies during pregnancy

Hi,

I appear to be having a reaction after eating peanuts the last few weeks.  Sensation of burning / itching on face and trunk.  It seems to develop a little while after eating and lasts for a few hours.

I am now 19 weeks pregnant. Most likely have celiac and malabsorption issues (but they don't test for it where I live).

I do have allergies, but have not been able clearly identify causes (skin testing 2 years ago resulted in a systemic response, but showed allergy to dust mites, mango, chicken, rice - some sort of fish....) but other than the dust mites (I get severe hayfever regularly) I have not had clear response to eating any of those foods.....  and I get major flushing/itching from time to time, but again not clear from what....

Question:
Is it possible to develop new allergies during pregnancy...
Could this be something on the nuts, or is likely the nuts themselves?
Is this type of response considered serious?  
My diet is already getting limited (no gluten foods) and am concerned, but will try to cut out peanuts if they really seem to be a problems...

Thanks.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,

Pregnancy is a very stressful state for the body because many hormone and other changes are occurring in the body.It is advisable to avoid eating peanuts while you are pregnant. You are advised to avoid peanuts if you, your baby's father, or one of your previous children has had an allergic reaction to something.If you had an allergic raction to any food before pregnancy,then also you are advised to stop eating peanuts during pregnancy.
http://www.babycenter.in/pregnancy/nutrition/foodsafety/peanutsexpert/

Peanut allergy can cause a severe reaction called anaphylactic shock in which the allergic person has such trouble breathing that they die.Also the unborn child come into contact with small traces of peanut. This initial contact sensitises the child so that she later has a severe allergic reaction when she eats peanuts or foods containing peanuts.

Pls don’t eat penuts as well its related products like peanut butter or any food containing hidden peanuts.

Take care and pls do keep us posted if you have any additional queries.

[joann1975]

Congratulations on your pregnancy!

I personally think (i'm not a dr or nurse just had allergies my whole life) that YES you can develop allergies and all kinds of different things during your pregnancy. As stated above your body is very stressed during pregnancy. Please stay away from the peanuts and peanut related stuff for now just to be safe!

Also, for your hayfever before I was pregnant I took all the stuff like Claritin etc. My OB/GYN would only allow me to take one called chlor-trimeton and I buy the generic at wal-mart called chlortab. It is better than anything for me and my husband...the only drawback is it is only a 4hr medicine. But it works great and is safe during pregnancy.

Good Luck & again CONGRATULATIONS!

[Super_sally888]

Thanks everyone for your comments.  Yes, I will completely avoid peanuts from now on.