Chance of allergy from lone star tick?

Yeah the alpha gel within the tick saliva that causes a red meat allergy, also called "alpha-gal syndrome (AGS)."

I just did a search on google with keywords "alpha gel tick saliva"

Interesting article came up with the title "Likelihood of tick bite to cause red meat allergy could be higher than previously thought"

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2019-02/uonc-lot022219.php

Eurekalert.org said...

Our original hypothesis was that humans developed the allergy after being exposed to alpha-gal through a tick that had fed on a deer, dog or other small mammal that has alpha-gal," said Dr. Scott Commins, associate professor of medicine and pediatrics at UNC School of Medicine. "This new data suggests that ticks can induce this immune response without requiring the mammal blood meal, which likely means the risk of each bite potentially leading to the allergy is higher than we anticipated.

So basically they thought ticks had to first feed on a deer or dog to have this alpha gel before biting a human and causing the meat allergy, nope, they don't have to. So bottom line is there's a pretty high chance!

https://www.livescience.com/62844-tick-bite-meat-allergy-heart-health.html

Another article I found suggesting...

LiveScience.com said...
People with a rare red meat allergy may have a higher risk of heart disease. Plaque buildup in alpha-gal-sensitive patients' arteries tended to have a more unstable structure, meaning the patients had a higher risk for heart attacks and strokes. (Heart attacks and strokes can occur when a bit of the plaque breaks off and causes a blockage in a blood vessel.)

So definitely not something you should take lightly, wow, I didn't know this until I did more searching surrounding the allergy.

Here's the symptoms to look for after eating red meat

Hives or skin rash
Nausea, stomach cramps, indigestion, vomiting, diarrhea
Stuffy/runny nose
Sneezing
Headaches
Asthma
Anaphylaxis, a severe potentially deadly allergic reaction that restricts breathing

What sucks is, I developed an allergy/intolerance to wheat/gluten myself, anything that has this protein... I get an increase of inflammation, joint pain, headaches, and fatigue. While I also developed an intolerance to dairy and that has gotten better with time, and now I'm basically no longer intolerant to dairy, the gluten allergy/intolerance never went away for me. And it's very much possible this gluten allergy might have developed into Celiac Disease after reading a study suggesting that simple virus like ReoVirus can cause Celiac Disease. Considering how many pathogens that are in ticks, I don't take a risk of eating gluten anymore.

I also read this

https://acaai.org/allergies/types/food-allergies/types-food-allergy/meat-allergy

ACAAI.org said...
A bite from the Lone Star tick can cause people to develop an allergy to red meat, including beef and pork. ... A meat allergy can develop any time in life. If you are allergic to one type of meat, it is possible you also are allergic to other meats, as well as to poultry, such as chicken, turkey and duck.

https://wexnermedical.osu.edu/blog/tick-that-causes-meat-allergy-is-spreading

WexnerMedical.osu.edu said...
According to current research, the alpha-gal allergy may not go away once it's triggered by a lone star tick bite.

Post Edited (Charlie55) : 6/2/2019 4:45:02 AM (GMT-6)

Yes, I read those articles, but I want to know how scared I should be next time I eat meat, lol. I also can't find how long it takes to develop that allergy after the tick bite. Seems like not much is known about this.

Very odd about your reaction to venison! Seems like there could be a connection.

I can't handle gluten either anymore. Or sugar. I do best off all carbs. Feeling very restricted as it is.

Thank you for responding and researching with me!