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Hundreds of thousands of Americans may be infected with a tick-born illness that causes an allergy to meat without knowing it, according to the Centers for Disease Control Prevention. Alpha-Gal syndrome, or AGS, is caused by the bite of a lone star tick, which can be identified by a white dot on its back. The saliva of the tick will cause those who have been infected to have a reaction to red meat, including pork and lamb. They may also have reactions to gelatin or dairy products. This illness can also infect all mammals, not just humans. Symptoms of the...

You may just be one tick bite away from never being able to eat a ham sandwich again. The lone star tick is making its way into Massachusetts from the southeastern part of the United States. People will find them on Nantucket and the coast. The tick's bite can cause some people to develop an unexpected food allergy. "The reason we are seeing more coastal areas is because there is a substantial difference when it comes to temperature in coastal regions than inlands," explained Dr. Goudarz Molaei, Chief Scientist at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station. "In some municipalities it has...

I'd always loved meat growing up - sausage sandwiches, lamb cutlets and of course, Christmas ham. So I was far from thrilled when I discovered that I had developed an allergy to red meat at the age of 14. I had been bitten by a tick and developed what is now known as a mammalian meat allergy, which saw me develop the potentially life-threatening condition anaphylaxis, which means I have to carry an epi-pen. One reaction was so severe I had to be taken to hospital in an ambulance after being given a shot of steroids and antihistamines by my...

Some children living in the U.S. Southeast have a rare meat allergy linked to tick bites, according to a new study. Bites from ticks, usually lone star ticks, cause the body to become allergic to a protein called alpha-gal — which also happens to be found in some mammals, including cows, pigs and sheep, the researchers said. When people who have been bitten develop this allergy, and then eat meat from these animals, they can experience hives, swelling, or more rarely, a life-threatening allergic reaction known as anaphylaxis.