Individuals who end up with unexplained allergy symptoms will find the allergies to citrus products such as lemon oil difficult to identify. It is important to note that many manufacturers and bakers utilize lemon oil and peel as ingredients in various products such as soft drinks, baked goods, skin care products and even furniture polish. Highly sensitive individuals can end up with an allergic reaction by direct exposure or ingesting the lemon oil, flavoring or extract. The flesh and juice of other citrus fruits can also initiate an allergic response as well. Some individuals can suffer from one or more symptoms within a span of two hours after contact.
Allergic contact dermatitis
Individuals who have lemon oil allergy can develop skin irritation after direct contact with the essential oil, household cleaners, bath products and insecticides. Take note that the ingredient can be labelled as a fragrance. Dermatitis will only affect parts of the skin that came in contact with the lemon oil. The symptoms of allergic contact dermatitis include dryness, redness, itchiness and swelling of the skin in patches. The rash can be raised, dry or become blisters filled with fluid that drain. Even though the symptoms subside once exposure to the allergen is stopped, the reactions will occur again once the lemon allergens are absorbed through the skin. Remember that broken skin from scratching or popped-open blisters can become infected. By enrolling in a course on first aid today, you can readily manage the symptoms experienced by the individual.
What are the food allergy symptoms?
An allergic reaction as a response to the ingestion of the lemon allergens is capable of triggering a wide range of health issues. As a common food flavoring, lemon oil can also be hidden in certain beverages and foods such as iced tea mix, candies and pound cake. After the ingestion of these lemon-flavored foods, the individual will experience itchiness in the nose, eyes, lip or mouth just minutes after.
The throat and mouth can also swell, resulting to breathing problems. The inflammation can affect the digestive tract as well as causing pain in the stomach and intestines as well as nausea. Vomiting, cramping and diarrhea can also occur, usually an hour or more after the ingesting of foods that contain lemon oil.
Anaphylactic symptoms
A rare set but life-threatening symptoms of a reaction can abruptly occur at any interval after the ingestion of lemon oil. It is important to note that anaphylaxis will worsen an allergic reaction with cardiovascular and respiratory effects. Remember that these must be considered as life-threatening and would require emergency assistance upon the initial warning sign of anaphylaxis.
Primarily, anaphylaxis will cause an increase in the breathing while the pulse rate becomes erratic. The other symptoms include weakness, dizziness, difficulty speaking, confusion and then loss of consciousness, respiratory or cardiac arrest, coma and eventually death.