Struggling with an itchy mouth? A peach may not be beyond reach.

Allergen Where It Hides Alternate Names Fruits, Vegetables (Oral allergy syndrome or IgE-mediated allergy) flavorings and spices colorings salads (may contain raw fruit or vegetables) spreads yogurts natural rubber latex (latex-fruit syndrome links fruits and vegetables to latex, a serious allergen) flavoring, natural/artificial flavoring color, natural/artificial color Sources: -ImmunoCAP -Canadian Food Inspection Agency

For such a small, fuzzy fruit, it sure can cause more than its share of problems. Also known as the Chinese gooseberry or macaque peach, the kiwi fruit has gone from being an exotic import to becoming a mainstay of the North American diet – and along with its newfound popularity has come an increase [...]

Dr. Antony Ham Pong, an Ottawa allergist and clinical researcher, estimates that up to 10 per cent of the general population has oral allergy syndrome. That means the condition affects more people than milk allergy, peanut allergy or shellfish allergy. OAS is a condition that’s linked to hay fever, which affects a third of the [...]

An OAS reaction usually comes on swiftly and can recede just as quickly. You’re sitting there eating and all of a sudden, your lips (or tongue and palate) begin to swell. There might tingle or itch at the back of your throat, or you might start to sneeze, have the urge to blow your nose [...]

If you have oral allergy syndrome, chances are that you also have seasonal allergies to pollen from trees such as birch and alder, or you’re allergic to ragweed or grass pollens. Roughly one-third of North Americans with pollen-related allergies are thought to be affected. It’s not clear why the other two-thirds of hay fever sufferers [...]

Mother always told you to eat your fruits and vegetables. Sometimes, Mother was wrong. A less severe form of food allergy, called oral allergy syndrome, is a reaction to proteins in common raw fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds. It’s called “oral allergy” syndrome or OAS because its symptoms are usually limited to the lips, mouth, [...]

As a farm girl growing up outside of Port Colborne, Ont. in the late 1960s, summertime was the greatest. I’d run and play in the meadows where our cattle grazed, the grass soft under my bare feet. I recall climbing the apple and pear trees and have great memories of hunting for a new litter [...]

Itchy mouth after fruits, vegetables? Learn all about oral allergy syndrome.

A life with OAS means only cooked or baked fruit. Crisp, raw fruit, how I miss you. Cradling a fresh, succulent peach in my hands, I take in its tantalizing aroma. I rub the fuzz lightly on my lips before taking a big, juice-dripping bite. Delicious. I swallow, and the tingling begins. First on my [...]