Gum allergy

About 3 weeks ago I began having severe shortness of breath. I have a history of exercise induced asthma and thought that maybe I just needed to increase the use of my albuterol. Unfortunately, I didn't have any refills that weren't expired. I usually don't have any asthma problems, just when I was in high school athletics. I toughed it out for 5 days and decided I needed to see my doctor. She was out of town so I saw someone else and he told me that I needed to see someone else if my problem doesn't go away after taking albuterol. Well, it didn't. I decided to go to the ER because I needed to know what was the deal. They told me I had acute bronchitis, with very little coughing. After 2 weeks, I could breathe again. BUT, last night I chewed some Orbit clean mint gum and have had the same shortness of breath since. Has anyone even heard of being allergic to chewing gum? I figured that something about this gum triggered an allergic reaction.

[Dr. Kokil Mathur]

Hi
Thanks for writing to the forum!
Yes, it is possible to be allergic to chewing gum. You can be allergic to the latex used, to the flavoring agent and to the sweeteners. However it could also be a coincidental finding. The only way to be sure is to get an allergy test done for the ingredients of the chewing gum.
Hope this helps. Please let me know if there is any thing else and do keep me posted. Take care!

[MAC12142]

I went through a similar situation and misdiagnosed to have asthma "growing" after a stress test. Then I had knee surgery and the true culprit showed to be a DVT in my left leg. Deep vein thrombosis (spelling may be off) was shooting emboli to my lungs causing the difficulty breathing. After hospital stay and meds doing much better but I would never had thought this was the Dx. It coincided with too many other things - perhaps your gum too. Have it checked out.

[FurballsMom]

I think being allergic or sensitive to chewing gum is a lot more common than people realize.  I'm sensitive to everything in the stuff, particularly the latex.  I get sick to my stomach if I chew it myself.  I am also affected by the pungent smell it gives off when someone else chews gum around me.  Sometimes the smell itself will make me a little short of breath.  It always makes me get a headache and feel dizzy and nauseous.

A friend of mine is affected in a similar manner to chewing gum.  I know that it makes her sick to her stomach, too.  I'm not sure about whether she is affected by the smell of the stuff or not.

[DCinBC]

I am a 51 year old male and I am also allergic to gum, mostly Mint gum.  Last year I told my doctor that I had trouble (short of breath) singing in church and at my singing lessons (I always did chew gum before church and before my lessons).  The problem would come and go. The doctor offered me an inhalant, which I refused.  Then I got tested for asthma (negative) and for allergies and nothing helped.  I did not want medications.  My wife noticed that every time I started chewing gum I would sneeze.  She suggested I stop chewing mint gum for a while.  I am a different person now.  I went back to the allergist and asked to be tested for mint and we got a positive.  The doctor’s comment was “first time in five years that I get a positive to mint.”  Well..., he may not ever found another case of mint allergy because it is not in his “default” test repertoire, and people don’t even suspect it to request it.   I started chewing non-mint gum but the improvement was not 100%, even with non-mint gum.  Now I do not chew gum at all and I am doing much better.

DCinBC

[anamoly]

Hello I am allergic to Gum not all gum though, I even chewed this gum from extra that had an allergy warning, whic I saw after my asthma came on and I started to sneeze.... LOL

[heyislanddog]

I am allergic to gum since I have been allergic to latex all my life. Another important thing to know is the fact that many other foods cross over with latex allergy and not just paint, medical gloves or gum. The Mayo Clinic website has a list of the foods. Soy is one of them and it is in inumerable food products including breads, cereals, etc..
It is very important when you are dining out to be sure the restaurant does not use latex anywhere in the kitchen. They may say they will remove their gloves but, the cross contamination from the powder can kill also from anaphylactic shock. The older you get the worse the allergy gets. I am 56 and my allergy is a lot worse than it used to be. Now, instead of just rapid heartbeat, my mouth and throat swell and once the inside lining of my mouth peeled off. It can be very scary not being able to breath. I always carry Benadryl and you are supposed to carry an Epi Pen if you have severe allergys (allergies). I know someone who died when exposed to a cat. She forgot and left her antihistamine at home. A latex allergy isn't anything to take lightly. I've also heard of a Dr. who had it, didn't know bananas crossed over with latex proteins, and died in her sleep after consuming a banana prior to bedtime . Sometimes the reaction can be delayed as much as 6 hours. Everyone reacts differently.

[gma5]

Yes, you can be alllergic to gum!  Two of my children are allergic to the gum base-and gums are used as preservatives in many processed foods (especially frozen ones).  The allergist can order tests for you.  My kids are allergic to xantham, guar, acacia, caraya.... Avoid any food with "gum" in the label and see if your symptoms improve.