LATEX AND FOOD ALLERGIES: THE PROTEIN CONNECTION

I came across this information and it is important that anyone that has severe NRLA should also be aware of foods that have similar proteins. They can also bring on a severe reaction.

People with latex allergy/sensitivity often have cross-reactions to certain
foods. The immune system may react to these foods as if they contained latex
because of the similarity in their protein structure to the protein structure
of natural rubber latex.
These 'cross-reactive' foods and their degree of association include:
High Association
Moderate Association
Low or Undetermined
Banana
Apple
Pear - Peach
Avocado
Carrot
Cherry - Pineapple
Kiwi
Celery
Strawberry - Grape
Chestnut
Tomato
Hazelnut - Walnut
Papaya
Fig - Peanut
Potato
Rye - Wheat
Melon
Apricot - Nectarine
Fruit - Plum
Passion Soybean - Milk
Permission to use and adapt the material for this packet given to Cathy
Tallen, BMH by Vanderbilt University Medical Center, 11/01
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TECHNICAL BULLETIN #10
Courtesy of Latex Allergy Links

ALLERGENIC CROSS-REACTIVITY OF LATEX AND FOODS

A compilation from the literature
Allergic reactions to natural rubber latex comprise both delayed and
immediate (IgE-mediated) hypersensitivities, producing clinical symptoms
ranging
from contact urticaria and bronchial asthma to anaphylactic shock. Natural
rubber prepared from the milky sap (latex) of the tree Hevea brasiliensis is a
common component of numerous home products and medical supplies, including
surgical gloves and catheters. While delayed hypersensitivity reactions to
latex-containing products are often traced to additives and stabilizers
employed
for their production, immediate reactions are closely associated with
endogenous protein components of the natural rubber latex materials.
Recently, coincident IgE-mediated allergies to latex and multiple fruits or
vegetables have been documented. In vivo and in vitro investigations of
clinical specificity have produced complex patterns of allergenic
cross-reactivity (suggesting shared or common antigenic components) among
botanically-unrelated allergens such as latex and foods. While the details of
the clinical
association of latex and food allergies await further study, documentation of
food allergies known to coexist with latex sensitivities may be useful for
identifying the risks of latex exposure for some patients.
Listed below are the allergens reported to be associated (clinically or
immunochemically) with natural rubber latex.
Degree of Association or Prevalence:

High
(3)
Moderate
(8)
Low or undetermined
(21)
Banana
Apple
Pear
Mango
Avocado
Carrot
Peach
Rye
Chestnut
Celery
Plum
Wheat
Papaya
Cherry
Grasses
Kiwi
Pineapple
Ragweed
Potato
Strawberry
Mugwort
Tomato
Fig
Hazelnut
Melons
Grape
Walnut
Apricot
Soybean
Passion Fruit
Peanut
Nectarine


Simultaneous occurrence of allergies to certain pollens and foods described
above have also been documented in reports independent of those focusing on
natural rubber latex. Significant levels of allergenic cross-reactivity have
been demonstrated for the allergen groups listed below:

Mugwort with Carrot, Celery, Apple, Peanut and Kiwi
Birch with Apple, Pear, Peach, Cherry and Hazelnut
Grasses with Potato
Ragweed with Banana and Melons

January 5, 2000


Reproduced here with permission from _Greer Laboratories, Inc._
(http://www.greerlabs.com/)