I Am Highly Allergic To Peanuts, Do I Need To Avoid Soy And Wheat?

I am highly allergic to peanuts, and a recent allergy test also showed small reactions to soy and wheat, even though I can eat these foods without developing symptoms. Do I need to avoid soy and wheat?

This scenario brings up a couple of very important points regarding food allergy. First, the peanut is a member of the legume family, which also includes peas, soy-beans, and other types of beans. If a patient is allergic to one member of the legume family (e.g., peanuts), there is a high probability that he or she will have a positive skin or blood allergy test to another legume. However, the positive test does not indicate that the patient will have clinical symptoms when that other food is eaten.

It is therefore not surprising that despite a positive skin test to soy, a patient may be able to eat this food without any difficulty. Wheat, on the other hand, is not at all related to the legume family. How-ever, when a large panel of food allergy tests (skin or blood) is performed, it is not unusual to see occasional small positive reactions to foods that are eaten without developing symptoms. For this reason, it is best not to undergo large numbers of allergy tests to foods that the person has been able to tolerate without problems.