Allergy. A small number of people are allergic to pure ethanol, but the bigger culprits behind true allergic responses are base ingredients, including barley, hops, yeast and grapes. Agents that are derived from foods such as egg and seafood are often used to clarify wine, but in such minuscule quantities that many question whether they pose a serious risk. Symptoms of true allergic reactions can include congestion, runny nose, swelling, hives, asthma, and in rare cases, anaphylaxis.

Allergy-like reactions. A person who reacts to alcohol may have classic allergy symptoms, but it may not be a “true” allergy. For example, reactions to sulfites in wine are not considered true allergic responses because the underlying physiological mechanism is different – and yet the sulfite-sensitive may experience asthma and even anaphylaxis. Glycoproteins are suspected of producing either allergy or allergy-like reactions.

Intolerance. Substances commonly found in wine including histamine (more often in reds than whites) can lead to sneezing, flushing, headache, diarrhea, skin itch and shortness of breath. Other amines such as tyramine and tryptamine, may play a role in alcohol intolerance; and salicylate, a chemical found in grapes, yeast, wine, beer and many foods, can lead to hives and eczema.

Asian Flush. Many people of Asian descent experience flushing, rapid heart rate, and reduced blood pressure because of a genetic incapacity to properly metabolizing alcohol. So-called “Asian Flush” is thought to be caused by the deficiency of enzymes called aldehyde dehydrogenases (ALDH).

Migraine. Red and white wines have been implicated in these headaches.

Sources: The Auckland Allergy Clinic and The Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy.

See: Scientist Discovers Big Clue in Wine Reactions

First published in Allergic Living magazine.
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Reprinted from Allergic Living magazine, 2011

The baseball game hadn’t even started when Kishari Sing began to feel that something was seriously wrong. She knew that, like her father, she reacted badly to alcohol; even a small taste of Irish Cream in high school had made her wheeze. Still, in the parking lot outside the San Diego stadium, her college friends tried to convince Sing that she could build up a tolerance to alcohol, and specifically to their drink of choice – a cheap boxed rosé. She drank one glass and remembers little after that.

“It completely whacked me out. I was sick the entire time,” recounts Sing, now a marketing executive in Los Angeles with a well-known blog called The Food Allergy Queen.

“There’s a picture of me at the game, and there’s this row of fraternity guys cheering – but I’m all red and puffy and trying to sleep on someone’s shoulder. I was completely incapacitated.”

Fortunately, the reaction to the cheap vino didn’t progress any further – but it was serious enough to keep Sing away from wine for good. “It made me so ill,” she says. “So it really wasn’t worth it.”

Sing is not alone. In fact, roughly 8 percent of people worldwide suffer from allergic-type responses to wine, and even relatively small amounts of the age-old drink can lead to symptoms including redness, itching, swelling, runny nose, headaches and asthma flare-ups.

Some people have true allergic reactions to wine ingredients – in rare cases to the point of anaphylactic shock.

But a new study out of Denmark may be the first step in turning those avoiders into connoisseurs who can sip hardy cabernets and oaky chardonnays with impunity. Until now, sulfites – which are used as a preservative in many wines and also can occur naturally  – have borne the brunt of the blame for the allergy-related reactions.

Yet only a fraction of people who are sensitive to wine are sensitive to the common preservative. Yeast, tannins and grapes in the vintages are also known to set off allergy symptoms, while histamines and salicylates are linked to intolerance.

Next: A surprising new allergy culprit

In the study, researchers followed 19,349 twins between the ages of 12 and 41. The lowest risk of asthma was found in the group that consumed one to six  “units” of alcohol per week. (One unit of alcohol is equivalent to half a pint of beer or about half a glass of wine.)

Teetotalers take note: those who drank rarely or never had the highest risk of developing asthma; they were 1.4-times as likely to get it. But moderation is key, since heavy drinkers were also at increased risk, at 1.2-times as likely to end up with the respiratory disease.

The results also show that a preference for drinking beer was associated with a higher risk when compared with no preference.