Allergy-Associates – Page 52 – 6294 1st Ave N., St Petersburg, FL 33710 (727)345-1900

Allergy vs. lactose intolerance

January 21, 2011 Stephen J. Klemawesch, MD

Dear Dr. K: I’m pretty sure I’m allergic to milk because it always gives me gas and diarrhea, but my allergy test to milk was negative. What gives? In all likelihood you have lactose intolerance due to lactase deficiency. Lactose is the carbohydrate milk sugar which is a disaccharide “two-sugar”. It consists of the monosaccharide glucose bound to the mono-saccharide galactose. Unlike the bovine intestinal track which can absorb disaccharides, the human intestines can only absorb monosaccharides. Lactase is the…

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Probiotics can also help the healthy

January 21, 2011 Stephen J. Klemawesch, MD

Dear Dr. K: You’ve written about using probiotics to help eczema. Is there any value for a completely healthy person to take probiotics? The simple answer to your question is yes. There are many reasons why the answer is yes, as research on human gut flora is one of the hottest fields in academia right now. First, a few simple statistics: The adult human body is composed of about 10-trillion cells, but is colonized by some 100-trillion bacterial cells. There…

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Quick Tips – Sleep Apnea

January 21, 2011 Stephen J. Klemawesch, MD

Researchers in Brazil studied the benefit of oropharyngeal exercises for patients with sleep apnea. The exercises were taught by a sleep pathologist. They consisted of exercises for the soft palate, tongue, and facial muscles. The treated patients reportedly experienced a 50 percent improvement in their sleep disorder.

Quick Tips: Humidity

January 21, 2011 Stephen J. Klemawesch, MD

As the weather cools, decreased need for air-conditioning can lead to increased indoor moisture with the attendant increase in indoor mold. Using a dehumidifier can be very helpful to avoid this problem.

Asthma study shows common airway barrier, adds to bank of asthma knowledge

January 21, 2011 Stephen J. Klemawesch, MD

Last month the lead article in the New England Journal of Medicine was titled “A Large-Scale, Consortium-Based Genome-Wide Association Study of Asthma”, and was from work done by the National Heart and Lung Institute in the U.K. It was a detailed, in-depth study that led to two major findings: First, asthma is genetically heterogenous. This fact accounts for the variability in the illness itself, and also to the variability in response to treatments. That is, when an inhaler that works beautifully…

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Vaso-active amines can cause copy-cat allergy symptoms

January 21, 2011 Stephen J. Klemawesch, MD

The result of certain substances (tyramine and other amines) releasing epinephrine (adrenaline) from nerves in the human body can lead to a variety of symptoms which can mimic allergy. These sometimes frightening symptoms can include: hypertension, sweating, chest fullness, flushing, headache and palpitations. A number of popular foods contain these amines: cheeses (the “riper the worser”), herring, sausage, bologna, salami, pepperoni, wine, sherry, banana, avocado, figs, chocolate and fava beans.

Lyme or lime, rash no fun

January 19, 2011 Stephen J. Klemawesch, MD

Lyme disease from ticks starts with a rash. Phytophotodermatitis is caused by limes of the citrus version. Limes contain psoralen, a chemical that absorbs long-wave ultraviolet light. The light waves excite the electrons in the psoralen to three times their normal energy state. When they release this energy it literally burns the skin and results in a red, itchy rash with blistering. Other foods that contain psoralen include lemons, parsley, celery, carrots, figs, fennel and parsnip. In fact, another term…

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Quick Tips – Vitamin D

January 19, 2011 Stephen J. Klemawesch, MD

A study in Finland demonstrated reduced chance for winter respiratory infections by taking vitamin D supplements. Because of its northern climate, vitamin D levels fall in winter in Finland. Vitamin D is known to help a variety of immune functions in addition to its benefit for bones.

Quick Tips – Ragweed Season

January 19, 2011 Stephen J. Klemawesch, MD

During ragweed season certain foods can exacerbate ragweed allergy. The worst culprits are chamomile and melons.

For sufferers of chronic hives Vitamin D scores again

January 19, 2011 Stephen J. Klemawesch, MD

Researchers at Vanderbilt University have made some interesting findings in their patient population with chronic urticaria. Urticaria is the medical term for hives. It can occur as an acute problem or as a chronic one. Acute hives are usually due to a medicine reaction, insect bite or a food allergy. Chronic hives are more difficult to classify as to cause. Sometimes the cause is readily identifiable, but sometimes it isn’t. What the scientists at Vanderbilt have discovered is that there…

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