These symptoms are caused by chemicals, and can affect people in different ways. Sometimes it affects the respiratory system, gastrointestinal tract, skin, and/or the cardiovascular system. This means that it can cause allergy symptoms like wheezing, nausea, headache, stomachache, and itchy hives. Of course each person is going to react differently.

Most people who are allergic to eggs react to the proteins in egg whites, this may also mean they react to other chicken proteins, but some are only allergic to the whites, and can handle the protein in the yolk as it is different. So, depending on what you are allergic to, your allergy will manifest at different times. However, most people's egg allergy manifests itself when kids are very young, and most kids outgrow it by the time they're 5 years old. So, this is an allergy that usually does not affect adults. However, there are always exceptions.

One of the things about egg allergies is that if you are allergic to eggs you will likely know right away because egg allergies manifest like most food allergy reactions, within a few minutes or at the most hours of eating the food you are allergic to. Also, the symptoms usually do not affect you for longer than a day.

What does an allergic reaction to eggs look like?

An allergic reaction to eggs may affect any of three body systems, let's take a look at how:

The skin:

When you have an allergic reaction to eggs that manifests through the skin, it usually comes in the form of red, bumpy rashes (hives), eczema, or redness and swelling around the mouth.

The gastrointestinal tract:

If eating eggs manifests itself through gastrointestinal symptoms they will usually come in the form of belly cramps, diarrhea, nausea, or vomiting

The respiratory tract:

When you have your allergic reaction that manifests its symptoms in the respiratory tract it can range from a runny nose, itchy, watery eyes, and sneezing to the triggering of asthma with coughing and wheezing

Most people with egg allergy will have some of all of the above symptoms, and the symptoms do not usually stay within one symptom of the body. A few people have a very strong reaction to eggs called anaphylaxis. This is a severe allergic reaction that causes swelling of the mouth, throat, and airways leading to the lungs, resulting in breathing difficulty. In addition, a person may experience a dangerous drop in blood pressure, which can make someone dizzy or pass out, and may quickly lead to shock. If this is the case, you would want to be extra careful about avoiding eggs.

Obviously egg allergies can be extremely sensitive and dangerous issue, so it is important to know that you have an allergy if you do. So, if you are worried that you have an egg allergy, or just want to be safe talk to your doctor. They will probably refer you to an allergist, but the allergist will be able to help you know if you have an allergy and how to deal with it.

The allergy specialist will ask you questions about your family history, about what kind of reactions you have, if any, and what symptoms manifest themselves, when they start, etc.

If the questions lead the allergist to think you may indeed have an allergy to eggs, they will likely perform an allergy test. The allergy specialist will likely perform a skin test on you. This test involves placing liquid extracts of egg protein on a person's forearm or back, pricking the skin a tiny bit, and waiting to see if a reddish, raised spot forms, indicating an allergic reaction. This is safe because a medical professional will be there to take care of things if you do have a severe reaction to the allergen (the egg protein).

The allergist will want to make sure that you are not on any anti-allergy medications when you take the test or for at least two to three days before, otherwise it will interfere with the results, and you will not get an accurate reading of whether or not you suffer from an allergy, and to what extent.

A doctor may choose a blood test instead of a skin test, where they test the blood to see if it has the antibodies for the allergen they are looking for, in this case eggs. If you have a high count of antibodies for a specific allergen it indicates a possibility of you being allergic.

In some cases, however, positive results of skin and blood tests aren't enough to prove that a person's symptoms are definitely being caused by eggs. So your allergist or doctor may use what's called a food challenge to help diagnose the allergy. This is where you avoid eggs completely for a few weeks, and then under close supervision from a doctor you eat some food that has eggs, so that if you do have symptoms they can be sure that is what is causing them.

So, if you are diagnosed with an egg allergy, what can you do to treat it?

Most people think the way to treat an egg allergy is to simply avoid eggs. However, so many foods have egg products in them, and it is hard to know what is okay, and what is not okay to eat. So, one of the best things to do if you want to treat egg allergies is talk to a registered dietician and have them help you to come up with an eating plan that keeps you safe from eggs, and still gives you all the nutrients you want and need.

If you find through testing that you have a severe egg allergy, your doctor will probably want you to take epinephrine shot, often referred to as an epi-pen, with you in case of an emergency. Epinephrine is easy to take with you in a purse, etc. because it is about the size of a pen, and you can administer it to yourself, your doctor or allergist will show you how. That way, if you eat something with eggs in it unknowingly, and start having a serious allergy reaction, you can right away take something to counteract symptoms like swelling, chest pain, difficulty breathing, etc.

One thing that is important to remember is that giving yourself a shot of epinephrine is not enough, you should always call for emergency help (911) when using epinephrine. If you are seriously allergic to eggs it is super important that people know you are, and that you have injectable epinephrine on hand, in places you frequent most often, such as your friend's houses, your car, your work, or your school. This is really important for egg allergy suffers because eggs are sneaky and can be in just about anything.

It's also a good idea to carry an over-the-counter antihistamine as this can help alleviate allergy symptoms when you have mild reactions.

How to live with an egg allergy

Living with an egg allergy does not have to be as hard as some people think. The following are some great tips for living with an egg allergy:

• Make a habit of reading the label on all foods before consuming them. It is a lot easier than it used to be to know if a food has eggs in it because somewhere on the label it will say something to the effect of "contains egg ingredients," "made using egg ingredients," or "made in a facility that also processes eggs."
• Know that if the ingredient "ovoglobulin" is on the label that you should not eat it as ovoglobulin comes from egg protein.
• Ask questions when eating out at restaurants or at a friend's home.
• Shop for egg-free alternatives to foods that usually contain eggs, such as pasta, they are out there and you may have to try several to find a brand you like, but it will be worth it in the end.
• Look at health food stores, they offer great items without eggs, even if you are not a health nut they can give you more variety in your diet.
• Learn how to substitute egg alternatives in your recipes.