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Allergy to certain molds is fairly common and can cause symptoms of either hay fever or asthma in sensitized people. Outdoor molds such as Alternaria and Cladosporium seem to cause the most trouble with asthma. Indoor molds such as Penicillium also can cause allergic symptoms.

The antibiotic penicillin is highly purified and does not contain protein or mold spores. Although allergy to penicillin occurs, it is not more common in persons who are sensitive to Penicillium mold. However, people with allergies such as hay fever and asthma may be at increased risk for allergic reactions to drugs of many kinds.

Some people are highly sensitive to certain foods. These people are at risk for sudden and serious allergic reactions.

Children with a severe milk allergy can break out in hives merely by splashing some milk against their skin. And for some adults, eating only half-a-peanut can lead to anaphylaxis — a potentially fatal allergic reaction.

Such people need to read food labels with care. The following suggestions can help.

Start with an evaluation

If you’re worried about food allergies, visit an allergist to establish a diagnosis and discuss possible treatment options.
An allergy evaluation can include a physical exam, medical history and series of allergy tests. In addition, the allergist might ask you to keep a detailed list of what you eat or even to stop eating certain foods for a while.

This evaluation arms you with a crucial advantage — self-knowledge. When you know exactly what foods you need to avoid, you can meaningfully read food labels. Without this knowledge, you can carefully scrutinize every ingredient and still risk an allergic reaction.

Investigate ingredients
As you scan those long lists of food ingredients, keep the following points in mind:
- Know the exact ingredient(s) you want to avoid. Say that you have a peanut allergy and find peanut oil listed on a food label. Before you eliminate this food from your diet, ask your allergist for guidance.

- Know different names for the same ingredient. Suppose that after careful allergy testing and consultation your doctor advises you to avoid milk in any form. In addition to looking for milk on food labels, you’ll also want to watch out for casein and lactoglobulin. Both are milk-based ingredients. Again, ask an allergist for a full list of the ingredients you need to avoid.

- Ask your allergist about ingredients that may not appear on the label. Usually these ingredients are present only in very small quantities. For example, a bag of chocolate cookies may not show peanuts as an ingredient. But if that batch of cookies was made with machinery used earlier for a peanut-based food, the cookies could pick up small amounts of peanut allergen.

There is no way to be completely certain about the safety of eating new foods. If a person suspects that they have a food allergy — especially if they’re modifying their diet already — they should seek an evaluation from an allergist. This visit could include a medical history, physical exam and allergy testing.

A lot of people who think they have a food allergy in fact don’t have one at all. If a doctor can confirm that no allergy exists, these people can have a diet that’s much more liberal. However, if someone does have a true food allergy, that person is dealing with a potentially serious condition. In the most sensitive people it can be life-threatening. They may have to take drastic measures to modify their diet.

An allergist can help you identify safe foods and can give you instructions about carefully introducing potentially safe foods. People with food allergies should not be trying new foods without evaluation and instruction from an allergist.

Many people with food allergies, especially those with severe allergies or serious prior reactions, should have self-administered epinephrine available. Epinephrine is available by prescription only, and receipt of the prescription must be preceded by a detailed medical evaluation. Instructions for epinephrine use must be individualized.

If there’s ever cause for you to pause and consider potential problems with a new food, talk to your doctor.

Acute sinusitis usually is treated by re-establishing drainage of the sinuses, relieving pain, and controlling or eliminating the cause of inflammation.

Decongestants may be recommended to help your sinuses drain. Nonprescription pain relievers may be advised to reduce headache and facial pain caused by sinus inflammation. And antibiotics often are prescribed to kill the bacteria causing the inflammation.

If you have chronic symptoms, your doctor may use nasal endoscopy to examine your nasal passages and the openings into the sinuses. Your nose is numbed with topical anesthetic and a thin, flexible, lighted tube is inserted.

Chronic sinusitis usually is more difficult to treat. Your doctor may prescribe a broader spectrum antibiotic that kills more types of bacteria. Treatment also may last longer. Antibiotics usually don’t cure chronic sinusitis, especially if it’s caused by obstructions in your nose or sinuses. And decongestants may not help your sinuses drain if you have chronic sinusitis.

To help, your doctor may prescribe medications that thin your mucus (mucolytics) and that help it drain even when swelling or obstruction narrows sinus openings. Steroid nasal sprays sometimes are prescribed to help reduce chronic inflammation. More severe cases may require corticosteroid pills to combat the inflammation in the sinuses.

Rinsing your nasal passages with a mild saline solution also may help. When medical treatment does not work, surgery may be advised. Functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) is the most common surgical treatment for chronic sinusitis.

FESS enlarges the opening between your nose and your sinuses, improving drainage. In the procedure, special instruments shave away polyps and remove any other abnormal tissue. Eighty percent to 90 percent of people who have FESS report significant improvement