As many as 30% of adults in the United States suffer from allergies. If you’re coughing and sneezing and your watery eyes are affecting your quality of life, the team at Low Testosterone & Weight Loss Center, with a location in Allen, Texas, can help with allergy testing to determine the underlying cause of your symptoms. Call the office today or book an appointment online to schedule your allergy testing.

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What are allergies?

Allergies are a chronic illness that can affect you and your health for a prolonged period of time. You develop allergies when your immune system overreacts to a substance, referred to as an allergen, it considers harmful, but, in most cases, is not. While you can develop an allergy to almost any substance, common allergens include:

  • Dust and pollen
  • Pet dander
  • Food
  • Medication
  • Mold
  • Latex

Identifying the allergen is an important step in managing your allergies.

What are allergy symptoms?

Allergy symptoms vary in type and severity and may depend on what you’re allergic to. Common allergy symptoms include:

  • Itchy, watery eyes
  • Scratchy throat
  • Hives
  • Sneezing
  • Runny nose

With severe allergies, you can also develop anaphylaxis, which is a life-threatening reaction that may affect your breathing or blood pressure, and cause you to go into a state of shock. You should seek immediate medical attention during an anaphylactic reaction.

What is allergy testing?

Allergy testing can help determine the allergen causing your symptoms. The team at Low Testosterone & Weight Loss Center offer allergy testing. To pinpoint what to test for, your specialist may conduct a comprehensive evaluation that includes a review of your medical and family history, and details of your symptoms.

Your allergy testing may include:

Skin allergy testing

With skin allergy testing, your specialist pricks your skin with the protein of the potential allergen and then monitors the skin for a reaction. If you develop a raised, red bump at the site of skin prick, then it’s highly likely that you’re allergic to that specific allergen.

During a skin allergy test, you can be tested for multiple potential allergens. This test is usually conducted at the office so you can get immediate medical care if you have a severe reaction.

Blood test

Your specialist may also conduct a blood test to determine the cause of the allergy. A blood test measures the amount of allergy-causing antibodies in your bloodstream.

Once your allergen has been identified, your specialist at Low Testosterone & Weight Loss Center can provide a treatment plan to help you get relief from your symptoms and manage your chronic illness. Avoiding the allergen is usually the best course of action for managing allergies. However, if you’re allergic to pollen or dust, your specialist may prescribe medication to help manage your immune response to the allergen to reduce symptoms.

Allergies are a chronic health condition that requires ongoing medical care. For allergy testing and management, call Low Testosterone & Weight Loss Center today or book an appointment online.