Can Allergies Cause Muscle Aches

Joint Pain: Youre Not Alone

In a recent national survey, nearly one out of every three adults in the US reported having joint pain within the last 30 days. In this survey, deep pain was the most common complaint, followed by shoulder and hip pain

Joints connect your bones together, providing your body with support as you move. Joint pain can impact just about any part of your body, including the ankles, feet and hands. While joint pain can occur at any age, it becomes increasingly common as a person ages.

Damage to your joints caused by injury or disease cannot only interfere with movement, but can also be a common cause of pain. Some of the most common conditions leading to painful joints include rheumatoid arthritis, bursitis, osteoarthritis, gout, strains, sprains and other injuries, such as in sports.

As with back pain, joint pain can vary greatly in terms of severity in the amount of time that it lasts. For example, joint pain that resolves within a few weeks is referred to as acute. However, many people suffer from chronic joint pain, or pain that lingers for weeks or months at a time.

Other common causes of joint pain include:

• Osteoarthritis
• Autoimmune diseases, including lupus and rheumatoid arthritis
• Seasonal allergies

Possible Links Between Seasonal Allergies And Neck Pain

Some individuals experience neck pain at the same time their allergies flare up. If youre one of these people, some possible explanations include:

• Changes in Weather May Induce both Neck Pain & Seasonal Allergies: When allergic reactions are triggered, your body is taken over by a general state of inflammation. While its the allergies that cause the inflammation, it can also increase joint pain in people whore more sensitive to seasonal changes. Inflammation also causes fatigue and stress, which can worsen your pain if you have underlying neck problems.
• Tense Muscles Can Cause Neck Pain: Allergy symptoms such as constant wheezing, coughing and sneezing combined with the lack of sleep can lead to increased muscle tension in your neck, which can cause pain.
• The sphenoid sinuses becoming congested:There are four pairs of air-filled cavities in your head are known as sinuses. The deepest of these, known as the sphenoid sinuses, are located in the middle of the skull. Allergic reactions can lead to congestion in the sphenoid sinuses, causing them to enlarge and press against the occipital bone in the back of your head. This can lead to neck pressure and pain.

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Can Allergies Cause Joint And Muscle Pain

Allergies

Allergic reactions are common occurrences in our lives, and in most instances, their effects and severity differ from one person to another depending on the immunity and other underlying factors.

Allergies often manifest a wide range of symptoms, some of which are more obvious while others may not be so apparent.

For instance, rarely do people associate joint pain, muscle aches, and fatigue with allergies.

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Can Allergies Cause Muscle Ache

Allergic reactions are a common occurrence and in most cases, their severity and effects differ from one person to the other. All this has to do with immunity and other underlying factors. Allergic triggers are all around, from the food we eat to the air we breathe and the environment around us. The manifestation of allergic reactions will also differ from one person to the other. Some allergic reactions or their symptoms include rashes, itching, sneezing, swelling, fatigue, tearing eyes sinusitis, and stuffy nose, just to name a few. Before going too far, an allergic reaction is basically as a result of the bodys immune system responding to a foreign substance that is introduced into the body. Some of the general symptoms of allergies may include headaches, fatigue, wheezing, cough, and sneezing, running nose, shortness of breath, rashes, vomiting, headaches, nausea, and fever according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology.

Some people will also have stomach discomforts as an allergic reaction to certain types of foods. However, most people have no idea on what triggers their allergies. As a matter of fact, some dont even know they have allergies at all. Most of those with particular knowledge of their allergies probably have prescriptions from their physicians to counter and suppress the symptoms of the reaction when the triggers pay a visit.

Things You Should Know Aboutallergy

• 09 Jul, 2020

Allergies can cause all kinds ofunpleasant, distracting symptoms, from digestive upsets and headachesto respiratory trouble and runny eyes. However, you may also haveexperienced another few hallmark symptoms of allergy problems:fatigue, drowsiness, and mental sluggishness.

If you have had noticeable troublegathering your thoughts, maintaining your alertness, or even stayingawake during the day, you need to understand how your allergies maycreate or aggravate your tiredness. Take heed of the following fourkey points about allergy-related fatigue.

1. Allergens Cause BiochemicallyBased Fatigue

An allergic reaction occurs when yourimmune system goes into battle by mistake, attacking a harmlesssubstance as if it were a virus or other germ. It does this byinstructing mast cells to produce antibodies for release into thebloodstream. These antibodies belong to a category known asimmunoglobulin E.

In addition to immunoglobulin E, theimmune system releases a substance called histamine. When both ofthese substances produce an inflammatory reaction in the body, youmay experience a sense of tiredness alongside other, more obviousallergic symptoms.

2. Allergic Sinusitis Can CauseBrain Fog

Individuals who feel dazed and unableto think well often describe their problem as brain fog. While brainfog may occur in association with many health problems, most notablyfibromyalgia, it can also occur as a side effect of a conditioncalled allergic sinusitis.

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Managing Your Seasonal Allergies

One of the most important things someone suffering from allergies can do is to identify the triggers. While some people seem to blame one trigger, it is possible that there are actually multiple triggers. It is not uncommon for those who suffer from spring allergies to show symptoms throughout the year. Some ways to avoid triggers include:

• Shower after being outdoors.
• Monitor pollen and mold counts, which are available on TV or in the news.
• Stay inside during peak pollen counts, which is the middle of the day of the afternoon.
• Wear a filter mask when working outdoors.
• Take preventive medication.

You can take other precautions as well, such as bathing and shampooing your hair each day to completely remove the pollen from your hair and skin. You should also wash your bedding in hot soapy water at least once a week.

You may need to wear sunglasses outdoors to protect your eyes from pollen. Those with severe allergies might find that a facemask is helpful during times when daily pollen counts are very high. It is also important to avoid line drying your bedding or clothes outdoors if the local pollen counts are high, as pollen can settle on these items.

Genetic Conditions Affecting Muscles

Muscular dystrophies: these are inherited diseases which affect muscles. They are rare disorders but the best known and most common is Duchenne muscular dystrophy. This occurs in children and leads to gradual loss of muscle power from toddler-hood.

Some rare muscular dystrophies: these can present in adulthood and include Charcot-Marie-Tooth syndrome and the facioscapulohumeral dystrophies. They also cause gradual loss of power and function in muscles. Those who have these conditions may become wheelchair-bound.

Sarcoidosis: this is a rare disease in which clumps of cells form in skin, lungs and soft tissues, including muscles. The condition usually goes away after a few years.

Amyloidosis involves deposits of an ‘unhelpful’ abnormal protein called amyloid throughout the body, including muscles and kidneys.

Other rare causes: direct damage to muscles can occur in rare inherited metabolic conditions. Examples include:

• Glycogen storage diseases .
• Even rarer, mitochondrial diseases which occur when the energy systems inside muscle cells don’t work properly.

Myotonic dystrophy: this is a rare genetic muscle disorder in which muscles become extremely tired. Myotonic dystrophies are passed down through families and they tend to occur earlier and become worse as they move through the generations.

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How You Can Tell The Difference Between Cold And Seasonal Allergy Symptoms

With both allergies and colds, its typical to have congestion or a runny nose, and to sneeze often. You may also feel tired and drowsy. But there are several other symptoms that dont often overlap between allergies and a cold. Here are some of the telltale differences between cold symptoms and allergy symptoms.

When To Seek Help From Your Doctors

If you suffer from allergies and neck pain at the same time, seek care for both ailments. Do not just treat your allergies, hoping that your neck pain will automatically go away. Similarly, do not assume that treatment for your neck pain will improve your allergies. The two problems might be unrelated.

See a general practitioner or an immunologist if:

• Your allergies persist after treatment with over-the-counter medications
• Your allergies interfere with your daily life, such as driving safely or work

Neck pain requires a visit to a pain specialist who can diagnose the underlying problem and offer you the best treatment.

See a pain specialist if:

• Neck pain does not improve with over-the-counter medications
• You have trouble turning your head while driving
• A doctor has diagnosed you with neck problems in the past

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Talk With A Doctor Or Clinician To Create A Personalized Treatment Plan

If you arent sure if its a cold or allergies, or if your symptoms are severe or long-lasting, its best to connect with a care provider to get an official diagnosis and treatment plan.

If your allergy symptoms are left untreated, you could become more prone to getting sinus infections or other upper respiratory infections, or may lead to poor asthma control.

Also, a common cold can turn severe. So, if your cold has had you laid up longer than a day or two, get in touch with your doctor.

You have a couple options:

Make an appointment for face-to-face care from a primary care doctor or clinician. Whether you choose a video visit or in-person appointment, your doctor will listen to your symptoms, answer questions and work with you to create a tailored treatment plan including connecting you with an allergist or an otolaryngologist if needed.

Start a virtual visit anytime, anyplace through Virtuwell. With Virtuwell, no appointment is necessary and treatment is available 24/7. Getting started is easy. Well ask you a few questions, and youll get your diagnosis and treatment plan from a board-certified nurse practitioner. Each visit is just $59 or less, depending on your insurance.

Why Is Neck Pain So Prevalent

According to the NCBI, roughly 20% of Americans experience neck pain at some point in their lifetime. Your neck contains the top most part of your cervical spine, which is a finely tuned instrument comprised of multiple components that work in combination to produce precise movements. If any of these components suffer injuries or wear out, its likely to lead to pain and stiffness.

In older people, neck pain is most commonly caused by worn joints or arthritis. Young people, on the other hand, can experience neck pain due to injuries or excessive strain. The most prevalent causes of neck pain include:

• Pinched nerve
• Disc degeneration

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Food Allergies Vs Food Intolerances

In food allergies, blood tests show an immune system response. In extreme cases, people go into anaphylactic shock if they eat a tiny amount of a food they are allergic to.

In food intolerances, food sensitivities, etc, nothing shows up on blood tests and other lab tests. Something is obviously going on here, even if the tests don’t show it you can call it food intolerance, or food sensitivity if you prefer.

Is it all in your head? Consider this: Someone who has been avoiding dairy, and having less pain, suddenly gets an attack of severe pain. They find out that something they ate contained small amounts of dairy. They didn’t know it had dairy when they ate it, and it caused them pain. It was not in their head.

Myth: Food allergy is the same as food intolerance. Fact: A food intolerance is non-allergic by definition – Science-Based Pharmacy

Nerve Conditions Which Damage Muscles

Conditions affecting nerves tend to lead to true muscle weakness. This is because if the nerve to a muscle fibre stops working, the muscle fibre can’t work either and it will become floppy and eventually shrivel.

Neurological conditions: muscle weakness can be caused by cerebrovascular disease such as stroke and brain haemorrhage and spinal injury. Tumours in the brain can also lead to muscle weakness. Muscles which become partially or completely paralysed lose their normal strength and will eventually waste. Some recovery is possible but it will be slow and may not be complete.

Spine-related conditions: when nerves are damaged as they emerge from the spine , weakness can result. When the discs slip out, they press on nerves headed lower down in the body. The weakness affects only the muscles served by the irritated or compressed nerve.

Other uncommon nerve conditions:Multiple sclerosis : this is caused by damage to nerves in the brain and spinal cord and can cause sudden paralysis. This can recover partially but does not always do so.

: this is a post-viral paralysing disease which causes weakness and loss of muscle function from the fingers and toes upwards. It may last many months, although complete recovery is usual.

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Can Seasonal Allergies Cause Back Pain

Your body is an intricate network of organ systems thataffect one another in a myriad of ways. When one of these systems is damaged or impeded from performingoptimally, it may influence other, seemingly unrelated systems in unexpectedways. That is why many people who experience seasonal allergies maysimultaneously experience seasonal back pain.

In the most general terms, your seasonal back pain may becaused by an overload on your overall physiology, but there are many specificways that allergic reactions may worsen back pain symptoms. If you are likemany back pain sufferers, there are multiple causes of your back pain, frompinched nerves to prolonged muscle contraction.

Seasonal Allergies

Most commonly affecting people in the spring and earlysummer when plant pollination occurs, seasonal allergies are a physiological responseto airborne allergens. The most commonsymptoms associated with seasonal allergies include

• Sneezing
• Coughing
• Red or watery eyes

Almost eight percent of Americans will suffer from seasonal allergies, but doctors arent exactly sure why some people react this way while others dont. It is believed that seasonal allergies are an overreaction by the immune system to environmental factors that are harmless but misidentified as dangerous. In many cases, there appears to be a strong hereditary component.

Seasonal Back Pain

Back Pain and Allergies

How to Manage Seasonal Back Pain

Articlewritten by: Dr. Robert Moghim CEO/Founder Colorado Pain Care

Identify When Symptoms Start

So youve decided you probably have seasonal allergies. Great. But also, not great, because while allergies from pollen arent typically serious, they also arent fun.

Some people are like, Oh, its just allergies, but allergies can be debilitating. Quality of life goes down, people miss school and work and theres an economic impact, says Dr. Drew Ayars, an allergist who sees patients at the allergy clinics at UW Medical Center Montlake and UW Medical Center Eastside Specialty Center.

Your first step toward getting relief is figuring out what kind of seasonal allergies you have.

Does your foggy-headed misery set in before the first flowers bloom? Or later in spring when everyone starts mowing their lawns again?

You dont have to be tested to know what youre allergic to. You can correlate symptoms to pollen counts around that time, he explains.

Thats because different types of pollen emerge at different times. In late winter and early spring, the most prevalent pollens are from trees hazelnut, birch, alder, oak, cottonwood, ash and juniper are especially common in the Seattle area, Rampur says. Mid- to late spring is full of grass pollen, and the biggest culprit in late summer to fall is weed pollen.

Once you notice when specifically your allergies flare up, you can put a plan in place for dealing with them .

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Treatments For Neck Pain

Identifying the correct source of your neck pain is critical to a successful treatment. Proper diagnosis of your neck pain problem starts with a visit to a pain specialist. Your visit will include a complete medical history and a thorough physical examination.

Based on your individual neck problem, your pain specialist may offer a number of treatments:

Treatments for muscle tension in the neck

• Anti-inflammatories
• Trigger point injections with numbing agents and/or steroids
• Botox injections

You Suffer From Chronic Headaches And/or Migraines

You have headache pain upon awakening in the morning, several hours after a meal, or even a day after eating certain foods. This is often due to food sensitivities which act as migraine triggers, and/or trigger a hypoglycemic response.

Solution: Keep a food diary and write down everything you eat. Notice patterns of how certain foods affect you. Certain foods and additives are known migraine triggers . Sending off a food allergy profile can be helpful in determining which foods may adversely be affecting you.

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Allergies Are An Often

Home»Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology»Allergies Are an Often-Overlooked Cause of Fatigue, Body Aches, and Pain

Anyone who suffers from allergies knowns how frustrating they can be to deal with. They can cause all sorts of issues such as constant sneezy, running noses, watering eyes, and itching. What many people dont realize is that allergies can also cause fatigue, body aches, and pain. Not only do people who suffer not realize that allergies are the culprit, but doctors often do not know or diagnose properly.

If you have been dealing with allergies, and have also had body aches, been chronically tired, or had undiagnosed pain, it could all be related. Your first step is to contact Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology Medical Group at 805-658-9500 for comprehensive allergy testing. Once we know what the specific allergy is, we can provide treatment options. In the meantime, read on to learn about the link between fatigue, body aches, pain, and allergies.