If you have food allergies, rice may be a lifesaver. Many people with food allergies are sensitive to wheat, and rice products can be a good substitute. As one MyFoodAllergyTeam member reported, “I recently became sensitive to wheat. I basically eat only rice cakes and rice crackers.”

However, it’s possible to develop an allergy to rice. If you have this rare allergy, then it’s important to know that avoiding cooked rice doesn’t necessarily keep you away from the rice proteins that cause allergies. Other foods — and even nonfood products, like cosmetics — can contain rice products.

How Common Are Rice Allergies?

Rice allergies are very uncommon, especially in the West. It’s estimated that 0.7 percent to 2 percent of the Western population has a rice allergy. People in East Asian countries may be more likely to report rice allergies. A South Korean study of children with suspected allergies found that nearly 14 percent reacted to rice. Awareness of rice allergies in Japan led to the production of hypoallergenic rice.

If you’re allergic to rice, you’re more likely to be allergic to other grains, cereals, and grasses as well. These include wheat, corn, barley, and rye. You’re also more likely to be allergic to the following foods:

• Peanuts, walnuts, and hazelnuts
• Citrus fruits like oranges and grapefruit
• Other fruits like grapes and peaches
• Vegetables like lettuce, tomatoes, carrots, asparagus, and onions

Symptoms of Rice Allergy

Rice allergies usually cause digestive symptoms. These include pain, cramps, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Skin symptoms include itching, hives, and eczema. Rice allergies can also cause wheezing and congestion.

A rice allergy can cause more severe symptoms. Your throat can tighten, and it can become difficult to swallow. In extreme and very uncommon cases, a rice allergy can cause anaphylaxis, a life-threatening immune response that causes a person’s blood pressure to drop and airways to narrow, blocking breathing. If not treated right away with epinephrine, anaphylaxis can be fatal.

Rice Allergies and Hay Fever

You don’t have to eat rice to be allergic to it. Just like other members of the grass family, rice can cause hay fever (also called rhinitis). Hay fever caused by rice is more common in areas where rice is grown commercially. In the United States, these areas include Louisiana, Mississippi, Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, and California. Researchers have also reported cases of rhinitis caused by inhaling rice flour or steam from cooked rice.

Symptoms of rhinitis include a stuffy or runny nose, sneezing, and itchy eyes, nose, and throat. Rhinitis can also cause ear infections and exhaustion.

In addition, allergic reactions from touching rice have been reported. The skin contact causes hives.

Foods That Contain Rice Products

It may seem like it’s easy to cut rice out of your diet by just avoiding rice and dishes that contain it. However, some foods that don’t look like they have rice may actually use rice flour. Many gluten-free baked goods, such as cookies, muffins, and even pizza crusts, replace wheat flour with rice flour. If you have rice sensitivities and celiac disease or a wheat allergy, check the ingredients lists of gluten-free baked goods for rice before buying them.

Rice is also used in several drinks, as either the base or an addition. Rice milk can be used as a substitute for dairy milk in coffee, teas, and smoothies. The popular sweetened drink horchata is often made with a base of ground white rice.

East Asian and Indian cuisines use rice flour to make many types of foods, including noodles, dumpling wrappers, crepes, and desserts. Talking to servers and managers at restaurants and bakeries can help you avoid foods that contain rice or rice flour.

Rice protein is also used in some protein supplements, especially those marketed to vegetarians. Although rice does not provide a complete protein, it can be part of a replacement for animal proteins.

Other foods can contain rice as well. If you have a rice allergy, it’s important to always check ingredient lists. Even if you’ve purchased a product before, check again, because ingredients can change.

Rice in Cosmetics

Rice isn’t just used in food. Some cosmetics and beauty treatments contain rice products as well. For example, rice masks and rice polishes are used in facial treatments. Many mineral makeup products contain rice powder to set the makeup and absorb oil. Dry shampoos (sprays or powders that refresh hair without a shower) often contain rice powder to absorb oil from the scalp.

As with baked goods, always check the ingredients list of any cosmetic treatments to make sure they do not contain rice products.

If you suspect you have a rice allergy, talk to your allergist. They can recommend tests, such as a blood test or a skin prick test, for rice allergies.

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Have you experienced a reaction to rice? How do you avoid products that trigger your rice sensitivity? Share in the comments below, or start a conversation by posting on your Activities page.