Syracuse (WSYR-TV) -- Are you thinking about spicing up your Thanksgiving dinner? You may want to think again, and hold off sprinkling too many spices on your turkey.
New information presented at a meeting of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology says two percent of all food allergies can be blamed on spice, and a spice allergy is serious business. It forces you to keep a strict diet and may lower the quality of your life. In extreme cases, it can cause malnutrition.
There is another problem with spices. It’s difficult to avoid them, even if you know that you are allergic to them. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration doesn’t regulate spices, so they’re often not listed on food labels, making them difficult to identify. And spices aren’t just in foods, they’re also widely used in cosmetics and dental products.
Another problem: many people don’t know they’re allergic to spices because there are no reliable allergy skin or blood tests available.
So the best way of preventing a spice allergy in the first place may be by simply reducing your spice consumption.
