About 90 percent of reported food allergies are reactions to the same eight foods, according to the Food Allergy & Anaphylaxis Network, an advocacy organization that provides research and education on allergies. Those foods are: peanuts, tree nuts, milk, eggs, soy, wheat, fish and shellfish. But what about the other 10 percent? Foods like wine, sesame seeds and apples can also cause an allergic reaction -- or can be the root of an intolerance that causes chronic symptoms. In fact, a study released this week found that as many as 7 percent of adults -- that's 8.9 percent of women and 5.2 percent of men -- may have a wine intolerance.
It's important to note the difference between an allergy and an intolerance. "An allergy is an immune system response that can cause severe reactions such as hives, wheezing, swelling, a drop in blood pressure and trouble breathing," says Dr. Scott H. Sicherer, a Professor of Pediatrics at the Jaffe Food Allergy Institute, Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York. "An intolerance is metabolic -- your body has trouble processing a sugar or other compound in a food."
While it's true that any food can cause an allergic or intolerance reaction, some are more well-known than others. We decided to round up some of the foods that allergists see in their patients -- those that aren't nearly as common as peanuts, but still cause trouble for a significant number of people:
