Sesame seed allergies are on the rise in the United States, but many Americans never even consider the ubiquitous seed used in bakery products and ethnic dishes such as hummus, to be a source of allergies.
“Sesame allergies have probably increased more than any other type of food allergy over the past 10 to 20 years,” said Robert Wood, MD, immunologist at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore and director of the division of pediatric allergy. “They’re now clearly one of the six or seven most common food allergies in the U.S.,” he told WebMD. An allergy to sesame appears to affect all ages and doesn’t seem to be easily outgrown.
Dr. Ama Alexis blames the rise in cases to diets that are more ethnically diverse. “We’re eating more foods that contain sesame seeds: falafel, tahini, hummus, and halvah, for example,” she said. Even McDonald’s may share blame. “Three quarters of Mexico’s sesame seeds go to McDonald’s for their sesame buns.” Sesame is also used in cosmetics and ointments, and is known to cause allergic dermatitis.
Since peanuts and sesame share similar biochemical structures, those who are allergic to peanuts are at risk of being allergic to sesame. A recent Australian study found that sesame was the fourth most common allergy. Only egg, milk and peanut allergies were more common.
Common symptoms of food allergy include hives, itching, nausea, asthma, vomiting and abdominal pain.
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