FOOD ALLERGY TESTS
How to prepare for allergy testing? Antihistamine and antidepressant drugs should be stopped 3-5 days before testing, but only with doctor’s approval.
Skin Prick Test
A skin prick test can confirm allergies to certain foods. A drop of a dissolved food sample is placed on the forearm, and pricked with a needle and thus pushed beneath the skin; a red bump, appearing in 10-15 minutes (in delayed reaction in several hours) speaks for allergy (1). False positive results are common but false negative results are rare. The size of the skin reaction does not reflects the severity of allergy. Rarely, an anaphylactic reaction (a life threatening immune response) may occur during the test.
