Allergy & Asthma

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Allergy Basics Center

An allergen is any substance that the body perceives as a threat, triggering a specific chain of events called an allergic cascade. The immune system protects the body and sometimes mistakenly identifies a harmless allergen as a threat. The resulting allergic reaction causes symptoms, such as sneezing, coughing, runny nose, sore throat, diarrhea, vomiting, itching and hives.

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