It’s the kiwi’s fault! Young woman with asthma and dermatitis

Kiwi fruit is rich in nutrients and can block the production of the carcinogenic factor "nitrosamine". It is listed as one of the 30 anti-cancer fruits by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Therefore, it is deeply loved by consumers. However, there are also a few people who are naturally allergic to kiwi fruit. A 27-year-old woman in Taichung suddenly felt shortness of breath and difficulty breathing, and also developed atopic dermatitis. Allergen testing revealed that it was her favorite kiwi fruit that caused the problem. Fortunately, after nutritional medicine conditioning her body and staying away from allergens, her symptoms have improved.

Kiwi fruit is rich in nutrients and is considered one of the anti-cancer fruits, but a small number of people with allergies may experience allergic reactions after accidentally eating it. (Photo/taken from the "Wikipedia" website, the original author is Luc Viatour)

There are many allergens that cause allergic conditions such as atopic dermatitis and allergic asthma. Acute inhaled allergens include dust mites, dog hair, cat hair, mold, cockroaches, pollen, etc.; food allergies include milk, egg white, peanuts, kiwi, crab, egg yolk, wheat, shrimp, almonds, cod, etc., and even white rice can cause human allergies.

Traditional treatments for allergic diseases are mainly based on antihistamines and appropriate amounts of steroid drugs and immunomodulatory drugs, but they have the limitation of not being easy to eradicate. Dr. Liu Boren, director of the Otolaryngology and Nutritional Medicine Clinic at Cheng Ching Hospital’s Zhonggang Branch, said that if people can stay away from allergens and follow the so-called “allergy march” in medicine, using nutritional medicine to regulate their allergic constitution, they will be able to reduce the incidence of atopic dermatitis, allergic asthma, and allergic rhinitis.

Dr. Liu Boren once co-led a study with Professor Chen Bozhong and Associate Professor Guo Zhihong of the Institute of Nutritional Medicine at Hongguang University of Science and Technology. They conducted a human trial using compound nutritional medical supplements such as multiple vitamins, high-quality fatty acids, minerals, trace elements, antioxidants, and wheat seedlings to adjust the physical constitution of asthma patients. A total of 30 people participated. The results found that asthma patients had high oxidative stress caused by free radicals in their bodies, lacked trace elements such as selenium and zinc, and had an imbalance in fatty acids. However, after 2 months of treatment with nutritional medical supplements, their antioxidant capacity, immune function, lung function, quality of life, etc. were significantly improved, which helped to reduce the recurrence rate of allergies.

In addition to the 27-year-old female patient who was allergic to kiwi fruit, Dr. Liu Boren said that another 52-year-old male patient who accidentally ate a peanut butter sandwich for breakfast also avoided eating peanut products and also used nutritional medicine to adjust his physical condition. After 2 months, his physical condition improved, and the recurrence rate of asthma and the amount of medication he used gradually decreased.

The results of Liu Boren and others' research on nutritional medicine have been published in the March issue of the world's complementary medicine journal "Alternative Medicine Review".