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lip swelling
In the past month and a half, sometimes when my fiance eats pizza, his lips swell up to about 3 times their normal size a few hours afterwards. It starts in one corner on one lip and slowly travels all the way around until everything is completely swollen. He says that it feels kind of numb. We get Benadryl and he takes 2, but it doesn't seem to help at all. It's just his lips. He's never had any problems like this in the past and we're not getting pizza from new places or anything. I know he needs to see a doctor about it, that's not what I'm asking. I'm just really interested in how this could have happened. Does anybody have any ideas about what could be causing this? Are they putting some kind of new ingredient or spice in pizza now? Could he have developed an allergy to something at age 21? Has anything like this happened to anyone before? Thanks.
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I don't have an answer to this question but the exact same thing is happening to me right now! I know this post is old and I you have had some success in finding the problem. Have you? I have talked to doctors but not a specialist yet. The doctors have no idea what is going on. Please let me know if you know what is causing this!
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Ok yes it could be an allergy, they develop at all ages. The procedure to test for allergies is basically going to an allergist and he / she places needles with common / possible allergens and looks for a reaction. This is pretty much painless and depending on the severity of the allergy he can either avoid it or if it is to an extremely common product i.e. nuts he could be given an EPI-Pen which is Adrenalin and if he consummes what he is allergic to and has a severe reaction he gives himself the shot. There are many things that he could be allergic to which could be in both pizza and cheeseburgers, i.e. garlic it is in most pizzas as well as in ketchup. Also there are allergies to wheat, glucose ect... If this is happening more frequently he should try to avoid known sources of the swelling and get an appointment with an allergist as soon as he can.
Hope this helps.
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If it's just some swelling, I don't even think you need to go to a doctor, they can't do much anyway. If he ever notices his throat swelling up or has difficulty breathing, then that's different, he should see a doctor to get a prescription for emergency medications that will stop that sort of thing. But I think allergists just make you go through expensive tests that don't tell you anything, it's annoying.
The only really good way to tell what he's allergic to is to try stuff. Try different pizza toppings, different pizza places, if he only reacts to certain locations ask them what's different about their pizza. Order pizza without sauce. I know it sounds annoying and sort of expensive, but it's a lot cheaper than the doctors. Pizza spices haven't changed much in 50 years, and different chains use very different combinations, so the allergy is something he's developed and you should work to nail it down.
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Since foods with tomatoes are common, I would assume this would happen at other times if that ingredient was the cause. With most allergic reactions it takes a few times of exposure to the allergen to have noticiable symptoms. Allergies are funny things, they show up and go away in some people at random ages. More than likely each exposure will create a greater reaction. Since it is his "lips" that swell this is a potentially dangerous situation because it could lead to air way swelling with other exposures.(Which is life threatening)
OTC doses of benadryl will only work to a degree, and at some point will not help anymore. He would need a stronger medicine like epinephrine to reverse the reaction. I know of some people that are allergic to MSG which is a flavor enhancer, that is commonly used in chinese food, but I am not sure if it is added to pizza ingredients.
It is a law that all additives and ingredients must be listed on food labels. If you can, go to the place where you purchased a pizza that he reacted to and ask for copies of the product lables. Then make an appointment with an allergist.
The allergist will be able to test for common allergies. Often they use a device that has several small needles on it that are infiltrated with common allergens. These needles are then pricked into the skin, and if the person is allergic to the substance the skin will react.
I believe since your bf has a potentially life threatening allergy it would be in his best interest to investigate so he can avoid the potenital for future complications.
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Does it happen with any other foods? He could be allergic to tomato-based products.
Allergies can develop suddenly at any age... my dad developed a shellfish allergy when he was in his early 20s, and it's gone now.
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he probably has allergies to pizza or somehting in it. He should have it checked out. Good luck!
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