New Hampshire Sees Rising Concern Over Tick-Borne Meat, Dairy Allergy

A tick-borne illness that can leave people severely allergic to meat and dairy is becoming a growing concern in New Hampshire, according to comments from a state public health official and federal health guidance.

Alpha-gal syndrome is becoming more frequent in New England as ticks move farther north, some say, due to climate change.

The illness is carried most commonly by the Lone Star tick.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly half a million people nationwide are affected by alpha-gal syndrome. The CDC says the condition differs from typical food allergies because symptoms are often delayed by two hours or more after exposure and can appear suddenly after years of eating meat without problems.

The CDC says the reaction is linked to alpha-gal, a molecule associated with mammalian meat and some mammalian-derived products. In people with the syndrome, symptoms can occur 2 to 10 hours after eating pork, beef, lamb, other mammalian meat, or products such as gelatin. The CDC also says symptoms can develop within two hours after intramuscular, intravenous, or subcutaneous administration of alpha-gal-containing vaccination or medication.

Symptoms listed by the CDC include abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, and heartburn or indigestion. The agency also says people may experience hives, itching, swelling of the lips, tongue, throat, face or eyelids, shortness of breath, cough, wheezing, and acute hypotension. Anaphylaxis is also among the symptoms identified by the CDC.