Treatment

As with any food allergy, alpha-gal syndrome treatment involves avoiding the foods that cause your reaction. Always check the ingredient labels on store-bought foods to make sure they don't contain red meat or meat-based ingredients, such as beef, pork, lamb, organ meats or gelatins. Check soup stock cubes, gravy packages and flavor ingredients in prepackaged products. Ask your doctor or allergist for a list of foods to avoid, including meat extracts used in flavoring. The names of some ingredients make them difficult to recognize as meat based.

Use extra caution when you eat at restaurants and social gatherings. Many people don't understand the seriousness of an allergic food reaction, and few realize meat allergies even exist. Even a small amount of red meat can cause a severe reaction.

If you are at all worried that a food may contain something you're allergic to, don't try it. Come prepared to social events to avoid risk of exposure. For example, if you're attending a party where guests prepare food on a shared cooking surface, bring your own precooked food.

For a severe allergic reaction, you may need an emergency injection of epinephrine and a visit to the emergency room. Many people with allergies carry an epinephrine autoinjector (EpiPen, Auvi-Q, others). This device is a syringe and concealed needle that injects a single dose of medication when pressed against the thigh. Once you've been diagnosed with alpha-gal syndrome, your doctor or allergist likely will prescribe an epinephrine autoinjector.

Symptoms of alpha-gal syndrome may lessen or even disappear over time if you don't get any more bites from ticks that carry alpha-gal. Some people with this condition have been able to eat red meat and other mammal products again after one to two years without additional bites.