Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsIs It an Allergy?SymptomsCausesThings to AvoidDiagnosisTreatment
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Is It an Allergy?
Symptoms
Causes
Things to Avoid
Diagnosis
Treatment
Salicylate allergy is not atrue allergybut a term informally used to describe an intolerance to salicylates found not only in aspirin but also in foods like strawberries, cauliflower, oats, corn, lentils, beans, and pickled vegetables.
With salicylate intolerance (also known as salicylate sensitivity), a person may experience symptoms similar to a true allergy, including rash, breathing problems, and sometimes digestive problems. While some reactions are minor, others can be quite serious.
This article describes the symptoms and causes of a salicylate “allergy,” including how it is diagnosed and treated< It also lists the foods you should avoid if you’ve been diagnosed with salicylate intolerance.
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What Is a Salicylate Allergy?
A salicylate allergy is a misnomer because it does not involve the specific immune reactions seen with a true allergy. Rather, it is considered a form of intolerance.
With an allergy, exposure to certain substances triggers the release of an antibody calledimmunoglobulin E (IgE). This, in turn, instigates the release of an inflammatory compound calledhistaminethat causes allergy symptoms.
With salicylate intolerance, there is no IgE response. Instead, the body overreacts to salicylate and triggers the release of inflammatory chemicals calledleukotrienes. These chemicals induce many of the same symptoms as an allergy, sometimes making the two conditions hard to tell apart.
Salicylates occur naturally in plants and help protect them from diseases, insects, fungi, and harmful bacteria. They are also found in many perfumes, preservatives, and medications, including
Salicylate intolerance is not the same thing as salicylism which occurs in people who do not have salicylate intolerance. Also known as aspirin poisoning, it is a potentially deadly condition caused an overdose of salicylate medications.
Symptoms of Salicylate Intolerance
Symptoms of a salicylate intolerance may include:
Severe reactions can lead to a life-threatening condition calledanaphylaxis.
Causes of Salicylate Intolerance
The cause of salicylic intolerance is unknown, but it is thought to be related to a category of conditions known as atopic disorders. These are allergy-associated conditions that often develop in a progressive order (sometimes referred to as the “atopic march”).
The atopic march usually starts withatopic dermatitis (eczema)in babies before progressing tofood allergy, thenallergic rhinitis(hay fever), and finally asthma.
Salicylate intolerance is thought to be related because the risk is higher in people with asthma and chronicrhinosinusitis(nasal and sinus infections commonly seen in people with chronic hay fever). More research is needed.
What to Avoid If You Have Salicylate Intolerance
If you have a salicylate intolerance, talk to your healthcare provider about whether you should be avoiding certain foods, products, and ingredients that contain salicylates.
List of Foods
Every person with a salicylate intolerance is different. Avoiding all salicylate-containing foods is difficult and may not be necessary. Talk to your healthcare provider about whether you should eliminate salicylate-containing foods from your diet, which may include:
List of Products
Because salicylates can be absorbed through your skin, ask your healthcare provider if you need to avoid certain products that contain salicylates.
These include:
List of Salicylate-Containing Products
To ensure you aren’t accidentally exposed, you’ll want to carefully read labels for ingredients in your products that may contain salicylate.
Salicylate-containing ingredients include:
How to Test for Salicylate Intolerance
Currently, there are no tests to diagnose salicylate intolerance. However,allergy testingmay be performed to see if there are any other allergy-related explanations for your symptoms.
Your healthcare provider may ask you to keep afood diaryto keep track of when a reaction took place and what you did or took prior to the appearance of symptoms.
If salicylate intolerance is suspected, you may be asked to complete an oral challenge, which involves eating small amounts of salicylate (typically aspirin) under close medical supervision to see if a reaction occurs.
How to Treat a Salicylate Intolerance
The most effective treatment for salicylate intolerance is to avoid salicylate. However, this is not easy because salicylate is found in so many foods and medications.
Some research suggests that the leukotriene inhibitor calledSingulair (montelukast)may be useful in people with extreme salicylate intolerance.
Summary
Salicylate intolerance is a hypersensitive reaction to salicylate found in a wide array of food as well as medications like aspirin. Symptoms include itchy eyes, runny nose, upset stomach, coughing, vomiting, diarrhea, and hives.
At this time, very little is known about the cause of salicylate intolerance. If you believe you are sensitive to salicylate, speak with your healthcare provider. You may be advised to avoid food and non-food items that contain high amounts of salicylate.
7 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Baenkler HW.Salicylate intolerance: pathophysiology, clinical spectrum, diagnosis and treatment.Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2008;105(8):137-142. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2008.0137Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.What are the symptoms of an allergy?Kęszycka PK, Lange E, Gajewska D.Effectiveness of personalized low salicylate diet in the management of salicylates hypersensitive patients: interventional study.Nutrients. 2021;13(3):991. doi:10.3390/nu13030991Yang L, Fu J, Zhou Y.Research progress in atopic march.Front Immunol. 2020;11:1907. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2020.01907Chin RL, Olson KR, Dempsey D.Salicylate toxicity from ingestion and continued dermal absorption.Cal J Emerg Med.2007 Feb;8(1):23-5. PMID: 20440389; PMCID: PMC2859737.Nigg JT, Holton K.Restriction and elimination diets in ADHD treatment.Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am.2014 Oct;23(4):937–953. doi:10.1016/j.chc.2014.05.010Park SM, Park JW, Park HS, Park CS.Unraveling the genetic basis of aspirin hypersensitivity in asthma beyond arachidonate pathways.Allergy Asthma Immunol Res.2013 Sep;5(5):258–276. doi:10.4168/aair.2013.5.5.258
7 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Baenkler HW.Salicylate intolerance: pathophysiology, clinical spectrum, diagnosis and treatment.Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2008;105(8):137-142. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2008.0137Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.What are the symptoms of an allergy?Kęszycka PK, Lange E, Gajewska D.Effectiveness of personalized low salicylate diet in the management of salicylates hypersensitive patients: interventional study.Nutrients. 2021;13(3):991. doi:10.3390/nu13030991Yang L, Fu J, Zhou Y.Research progress in atopic march.Front Immunol. 2020;11:1907. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2020.01907Chin RL, Olson KR, Dempsey D.Salicylate toxicity from ingestion and continued dermal absorption.Cal J Emerg Med.2007 Feb;8(1):23-5. PMID: 20440389; PMCID: PMC2859737.Nigg JT, Holton K.Restriction and elimination diets in ADHD treatment.Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am.2014 Oct;23(4):937–953. doi:10.1016/j.chc.2014.05.010Park SM, Park JW, Park HS, Park CS.Unraveling the genetic basis of aspirin hypersensitivity in asthma beyond arachidonate pathways.Allergy Asthma Immunol Res.2013 Sep;5(5):258–276. doi:10.4168/aair.2013.5.5.258
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Baenkler HW.Salicylate intolerance: pathophysiology, clinical spectrum, diagnosis and treatment.Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2008;105(8):137-142. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2008.0137Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.What are the symptoms of an allergy?Kęszycka PK, Lange E, Gajewska D.Effectiveness of personalized low salicylate diet in the management of salicylates hypersensitive patients: interventional study.Nutrients. 2021;13(3):991. doi:10.3390/nu13030991Yang L, Fu J, Zhou Y.Research progress in atopic march.Front Immunol. 2020;11:1907. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2020.01907Chin RL, Olson KR, Dempsey D.Salicylate toxicity from ingestion and continued dermal absorption.Cal J Emerg Med.2007 Feb;8(1):23-5. PMID: 20440389; PMCID: PMC2859737.Nigg JT, Holton K.Restriction and elimination diets in ADHD treatment.Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am.2014 Oct;23(4):937–953. doi:10.1016/j.chc.2014.05.010Park SM, Park JW, Park HS, Park CS.Unraveling the genetic basis of aspirin hypersensitivity in asthma beyond arachidonate pathways.Allergy Asthma Immunol Res.2013 Sep;5(5):258–276. doi:10.4168/aair.2013.5.5.258
Baenkler HW.Salicylate intolerance: pathophysiology, clinical spectrum, diagnosis and treatment.Dtsch Arztebl Int. 2008;105(8):137-142. doi:10.3238/arztebl.2008.0137
Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.What are the symptoms of an allergy?
Kęszycka PK, Lange E, Gajewska D.Effectiveness of personalized low salicylate diet in the management of salicylates hypersensitive patients: interventional study.Nutrients. 2021;13(3):991. doi:10.3390/nu13030991
Yang L, Fu J, Zhou Y.Research progress in atopic march.Front Immunol. 2020;11:1907. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2020.01907
Chin RL, Olson KR, Dempsey D.Salicylate toxicity from ingestion and continued dermal absorption.Cal J Emerg Med.2007 Feb;8(1):23-5. PMID: 20440389; PMCID: PMC2859737.
Nigg JT, Holton K.Restriction and elimination diets in ADHD treatment.Child Adolesc Psychiatr Clin N Am.2014 Oct;23(4):937–953. doi:10.1016/j.chc.2014.05.010
Park SM, Park JW, Park HS, Park CS.Unraveling the genetic basis of aspirin hypersensitivity in asthma beyond arachidonate pathways.Allergy Asthma Immunol Res.2013 Sep;5(5):258–276. doi:10.4168/aair.2013.5.5.258
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