Managing Life With Allergies: Findings From the Inaugural Allergies In America Survey

Allergies are one of the most common chronic health conditions in the world, affecting about 50 million people in the United States. Nearly anything can be an allergen and cause an allergic reaction in a person, which can make managing allergies exhausting, frustrating, and, sometimes, life-threatening.

Allergies can develop at any point and even change over time, making diagnosis and treatment complicated and dynamic. In our Inaugural Allergies In America Survey, 1,021 respondents shared their experiences living with all types of allergies.

Do you experience multiple types of allergies?

There are so many different types of allergies. Some allergies occur only when exposed to an allergen or substance. Other allergies only occur seasonally or year-round. And, it is common to experience more than 1 type of allergy. In fact, 96 percent of those surveyed experienced more than 1 type of allergy. On Allergies.net, we offer a community and information for many different types of allergies, including environmental, food, insect, and latex allergies.

Managing allergy symptoms means avoiding triggers

Finding the best way to control and manage allergy symptoms takes time and is different for everyone. Across all the types of allergies, most people surveyed manage their symptoms by avoiding allergens altogether. A combination of methods to control symptoms is typical among people with allergies.

Avoiding allergens sounds ideal, but it isn’t so easy

Avoidance is usually just one aspect of allergy management. Complete avoidance of allergens is nearly impossible, but those with allergies have to stay vigilant. This usually means many people miss out on the things they want to do because of allergies. Annoying, miserable, frustrating, exhausting, disruptive, and scary are a few of the words used to describe life with allergies.

Digging deeper into the findings by allergy type

We dig deeper into the Inaugural Allergies In America Survey results based on the specific type of allergies that people live with. Learn about the most common ways that people were diagnosed with specific categories of allergies and which treatment and symptom management methods are most popular among others living with allergies.

The Inaugural Allergies In America survey was conducted online from March 2020 through February 2021. The survey was completed by 1,021 people.