Perhaps you know that people do get allergic reactions once in a while, but what you don't is the fact that women tend to be more prone to them. In fact, the women are more likely to develop anaphylactic reaction than men. A new research may be able to tell us why.
Our body has been designed to fight off threats or invaders. That's why we have our immune system. However, there are times when it sees certain types of food we eat, environment pollutants, and toxins as threats and react by releasing histamines. In effect, we develop allergic reactions such as rashes, itchiness, watery eyes, and wheezing.
However, the allergic reaction can be so severe it can lead to death. This is called anaphylaxis, a type of allergic response of the entire body. It is so sudden and life threatening it is responsible for a number of deaths attributed to allergies.
While both men and women can develop this type of reaction, it turns out that the latter experience it more often and for a longer period of time. It's possible that the reason is the estrogen hormone.
A team of National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Diseases researchers study the role of this hormone to the susceptibility of females to severe allergic reactions.
Experimenting on the mice, they discovered that estrogen stimulates an enzyme that is found in blood vessel linings. This enzyme then promotes the production of nitric oxide that causes fluid leak from the blood vessels and swelling.
Although the study was conducted on mice, which means the outcome may be different when tested on humans, still the researchers hope that doctors will learn to pay more attention to gender in diagnosing allergic reactions. For example, they may look into hormonal therapies of women, as they can affect the production of estrogen. A supplement with L-arginine, which increases nitric oxide production, should also be considered.