Diseases

Milk Allergy

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Milk allergy is an adverse immune reaction to one or more proteins in cow's milk. When allergy symptoms occur, those can be rapid or gradual in onset. The former may include anaphylaxis, a potentially life-threatening condition which requires treatment with epinephrine among other measures.

SYMPTOMS

Milk allergy symptoms, which differ from person to person, occur a few minutes to a few hours after drinking milk or eating milk products.
Immediately after consuming milk, signs and symptoms of a milk allergy might include:

hives
wheezing
vomiting

Signs and symptoms that may take more time to develop include:

loose stools, which may contain blood
diarrhea
abdominal cramps
coughing or wheezing
Runny nose

CAUSES

All true food allergies are caused by an immune system malfunction. Your immune system identifies certain milk proteins as harmful, triggering the production of immunoglobulin e (ige) antibodies to neutralize the protein (allergen). The next time you come in contact with these proteins, ige antibodies recognize them and signal your immune system to release histamine and other chemicals, causing a range of allergic signs and symptoms.
There are two main proteins in cow's milk that can cause an allergic reaction:

casein, found in the solid part (curd) of milk that curdles
whey, found in the liquid part of milk that remains after milk curdles
You or your child may be allergic to only one milk protein or both. These proteins may be hard to avoid because they're also in some processed foods. And, most people who react to cow's milk will react to sheep's, goat's and buffalo's milk. Less commonly, people allergic to cow's milk are also allergic to soy milk.
watery eyes
itchy skin rash, often around the mouth
colic, in babies