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You've blamed your flushed skin and runny nose on bad shellfish, seasonal allergies, or too much jalapeno in your quesadilla. But the real culprit may be lurking in your wine glass, finds a new German study.
Researchers at Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz sent out questionnaires to thousands of people living in a wine-producing region of western Germany. Of the roughly 950 people who completed the questionnaire, 225 drinkers--or almost 25 percent of the group--reported some mild signs of alcohol intolerance, says study author Heinz Decker, Ph.D. The most common symptoms included flushed or itchy skin, a runny nose, diarrhea, and a rapid heartbeat, Decker explains.
Wine contains proteins from grapes, bacteria, and yeast, as well as sulfites and other organic compounds, Decker says. Any one of those may cause an allergic-like reaction, and may also be found in your favorite beer, the study explains. A specific type of protein allergen called "LTP" is found in the skins of grapes, which makes red wine more likely than other types of booze to cause a reaction, Decker adds. Meanwhile, white wine is fermented without the grape skins. (Going hiking? Drink the 5 Best Portable Wines on your next outdoor adventure.)
So are you allergic to alcohol? If you experience any of the symptoms mentioned above, as well as vomiting, shortness of breath, or swelling of the lips, mouth, or throat, the answer could be yes. You may also be suffering from alcohol intolerance, which produces symptoms similar to an allergic reaction. The ethanol in your favorite drink may cause blood vessels to expand, which makes absorption of irritating agents a lot more likely, Decker says.
But relax, you don't have to give up booze any time soon--as long as your symptoms are mild, Decker says. If red wine triggers one or several of the symptoms of alcohol intolerance, try switching to white. The same goes for beer and liquor: If you don't react well to one type, try another, Decker advises. But if your symptoms are severe--like if you have problems breathing or you become seriously ill--leave your liquor on the shelf and notify your doctor ASAP, he says. (In the clear? Then tip back your favorite brews--and lose up to 32 pounds in the process! Discover the gut-shrinking secret in Drink This, Not That!).
More Links:
- What Your Drink Order Says About You
- Cheap Beers We Love
- The Men's Health Allergy Center
- 4 Strange Reasons You Drink Too Much
- Sign up for the Men's Health Daily Dose newsletter for must-have tips in your inbox every single day!
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First time I see an article about this! Great call. I experience allergies/alcohol intolerance almost every time I drink. I have tried white wine, and wine without sulfates but they still give me a reaction. I cannot differentiate what it may about the wine that irritates me. The only difference I see in my reaction to alcohol is whether I drink on a full stomach or not - I will always get a reaction on an empty stomach, but not always on a full stomach.
I experience symptoms of flushed, blotchy, flaming face, pulsating in certain areas of my face. Pain in the back of my lower head and neck [and extreme weakness of the bladder and heaviness of the head]. These symptoms can last anywhere from 2 minutes to half an hour, depending on the amount I drink.
I don't remember the last time i drank...I avoid it all cost since the symptoms are not only embarrassing, but painful.
Same for me, Rebecca! I've tried red wine, white, rose, sulfites, no sulfites...I still get "cold" symptoms: stuffy and runny nose (not sure why both), itchy spots on my face...it's very frustrating. Some have suggested finding wines that contain no histamines. Not sure how to narrow it down to that, but I'm still looking. Unfortunately, regular alcohol (vodka, rum, etc.) and also beer sometimes have the same effect on me, so it's not just wine. Boo.Hiss.
My wife is the exact same way, but to a lessor degree. She breaks out in red patches (mainly on her neck and chest) as soon as she starts drinking. But thankfully, it doesn't cause her any discomfort. My family enjoys a drink or two if you know what I mean ;)
I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't drink wine. Ugh.
Wine and coffee .... two things I can't do without.
Why not be allergic to wine, you can be allergic to almost anything. My husband is allergic to the bell pepper family, I'm allergic to grass. Proved it to my friends when we were on a picnic and I had to stop and wash down my ankles. That little area between the bottom of the pants and the top of the socks was red and swollen. Not a big deal but it was great in the 60's as an excuse not to smoke and you got lots and lots of sympathy.
I had no idea I was allergic to whine
...then I married a jewish girl
oy vey
LOL.... those effects are what I sought for when drinking wine and beer.... so I'm supposed to drink those and feel just like I only drank water?? Then I would have just drunk water....
An allergy implies some sort of immune response. Ethanol is too small a molecule to cause an immune response on its own, so I wonder if it is truly an allergy versus just intolerance. If a person were to drink pure ethanol (dilated with water to make it drinkable) and still had a swelling in the throat, then this could indeed be an allergic response. But nausea/vomiting: not an allergy, just an intolerance. Ethanol opens the arteries, so sure, it will cause flushing...but still not an allergy.
Overall this was a poor study and its conclusions exceeded the data. I wonder if this article was mainly written so they could slip those two advertisements in ( )'s into the article.
I don't think I am allergic to wine, the stuff just tastes like sh#!@.
Silly article. We have known about this for many years. Thirty years ago I called wine " a headache in
a bottle". It has Histamines and Tyramine in it. For me instantly caused flushing and soon a headache.
A friend and I noted when we drank red wine with dinner we always ended up in a mad fight. So we quit
drinking it. Seemed to do something to our personalities too. Made us more aggressive and mean spirited.
That sucks. It has the opposite effect on me ... it's a very calming buzz. It has facilitated many great dinner conversations in my experience.
I drank three glasses of wine and I did not get a calming buzz. I got very drunk for about 1/2 hour and had a painful headache for the next 24 hours. No upset stomach, though. Not doing that again.
I don't know, maybe wine is like weed for some people. I know a lot of people that can get high and act perfectly fine. If I smoke the stuff, It feels like I'm going to die. The last time I did, I seriously went to bed thinking my friends were going to find me cold the next morning ... my heart was beating so fast it was almost like I couldn't feel a pulse (just one continuous beat). Never touched the stuff again.
Different strokes for different folks.
I know wine affects me. If I drink a couple bottles at a time and it has a weird affect on me.
For me, it's the sulfur content. I've always been allergic to sulfa and sulfites, the sort found in wine. No sulfite added wine still contains naturally-occuring sulfur. Easy enough to avoid, I just don't drink it. BTW, I had two brief, but successful trips into one of the guyser basins at Yellowstone NP. That third time--I took a Benedryl and ran back to the parking lot, and out of the steam. Yellowstone is a big park, there's more to see other than the "hot" stuff, so I'll stick to bird watching. I'm through tempting fate, I will be avoiding any and all hot springs and other active volcanic spots.
I found out I was allergic to grapes (and plums) in my 20's after having a severe reaction to wine. Have spent many years looking for and trying non-grape wines. The best in my opinion is Sweet Pea which is made from apples. Also, Thomasello vinyards makes a great blackberry wine (good in the summer with a salad dinner) as well as cherry, blueberry and cranberry. The last three are GREAT as a sangria. Mix one bottle of wine with one one can frozen lemonade or limeade and a can of club soda.