Here’s why some fruits and vegetables make your mouth feel itchy or tingly

It all began when she bit into a peach one summer. I had never had an allergic reaction when I was in high school. But I was just trying to enjoy some late-summer fruit, but the back of my throat was itchy and my lips were swollen.

I soon realized that I felt the same way about carrots, apples, pears, cherries, and sometimes almonds. The surprising reason is that I have a pollen allergy that comes out in some of the raw foods I eat. The name for this is oral allergy syndrome.

The American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology says that the most common signs of oral allergy syndrome are an itchy mouth and swelling of the lips, mouth, throat, face, and tongue.

The head of allergy and immunology at the Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago, Jacqueline Pongracic, told Business Insider that she regularly sees cases of oral allergy syndrome, which is also called pollen allergy syndrome. However, there aren’t really any good numbers on how many people have it across the country.

The Mayo Clinic says it happens when people become sensitive to an allergen in the environment, like pollen from trees and grasses.

Then, when they eat a food with a protein that is similar to the one they are allergic to, they have a reaction. Birch pollen in particular is a big problem because it contains a protein that is similar to proteins found in many fruits and nuts.

People usually start having reactions after years of eating certain fruits without a problem when they are in their late teens or early 20s. This is different from the common food allergies that young children tend to get, like milk and peanuts.

Most of the time, the symptoms are just in the mouth, but in about 1% to 2% of cases, people can get anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction that can send them to the hospital.

So, if you have reactions to nuts, it might be a good idea to see an allergist or immunologist about your symptoms, says the AAAAI.

Here is a chart that shows how different kinds of pollen cause different kinds of allergic reactions:

Pongracic also says that some herbs, seeds, and even nuts could cause oral allergy syndrome.

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The Mayo Clinic says that when foods are cooked, the proteins that make people sick tend to break down (which could be all the more reason to bake a peach or apple cobbler).

Reactions could also differ based on what season it is, with possibly worst reactions happening after a pollen season.

Pongracic said that even though most people with oral allergy syndrome don’t tell their doctors about it, it’s good to do so so they can keep track of what’s going on.

That’s especially important for people who have reactions to cooked fruit, or who have reactions to certain foods but don’t have seasonal allergies. That might be a sign of an allergy to food.