Ticks Can Spread An Allergy To… Red Meat?

It's been about ten years since scientists categorized alpha-gal syndrome, AKA the red meat allergy spread by ticks. But while researchers know more about it, there's a chance that doctors don't.

Hosted by: Hank Green (he/him)
----------
----------
Huge thanks go to the following Patreon supporters for helping us keep SciShow free for everyone forever: Adam Brainard, Alex Hackman, Ash, Bryan Cloer, charles george, Chris Mackey, Chris Peters, Christoph Schwanke, Christopher R Boucher, Eric Jensen, Harrison Mills, Jaap Westera, Jason A, Saslow, Jeffrey Mckishen, Jeremy Mattern, Kevin Bealer, Matt Curls, Michelle Dove, Piya Shedden, Rizwan Kassim, Sam Lutfi
----------
Looking for SciShow elsewhere on the internet?

#SciShow #science #education #learning #complexly
----------
Sources:

Images:

[MxDiagnosis]

My therapist is allergic to red meat and her doctor just told her that's not a thing, I'm glad scishow is spreading awareness!

[fiveminutefridays]

I had a coworker a decade or so back, who had alpha-gal syndrome, but initially her doctor literally did not believe her when she said she was fine eating eggs and chicken, but not beef/pork/milk-derived products. She switched doctors to someone who actually recognized it eventually, but she had to do a lot of self-education-via-internet when she first developed it. Glad its getting more recognition!

[MarcWFaceman]

Always glad when a video treats ticks as a serious problem. I survived Lyme's in my teens, and I say it that way not only because the disease itself really really messed me up, but also because the 10 years it took me to fully recover can only be described as "my personal hell". Ticks are serious stuff, take care to avoid them.

[woodswalker]

My friend was diagnosed with AGS several years ago and it horrified me to learn that this was a thing. Glad SciShow is helping with awareness though, since that's something she had mentioned when she was first diagnosed.

[Bigsistermeg]

Oh hey, I have AGS. The number of people that think I’m making the syndrome up until they google it is wild 😂😅 I haven’t (intentionally) eaten red meat in a decade. I’m no longer at risk of anaphylaxis as far as we know, but accidentally eating red meat is a BAD TIME for me. I’ll end up bedridden for days at a time by eating the amount of pork found in about 1/6 of a hot dog.

Fun fact! Pineapple can help with the gastrointestinal distress that comes with accidentally eating red meat. I keep emergency pineapple on hand just in case.

[DemPlantz]

My step-cousin was diagnosed with AGS, but was miserable and nearly died before they finally figured out what it was. We definitely need to increase the awareness of AGS so it can be diagnosed quicker.

[Crabtaculus]

I contracted AGS in 2015 (from paralysis ticks here in Sydney Australia) the only reason I was diagnosed was because I was looked at by Australia’s head researcher on this allergy. I’ve spent my whole life since then having to adjust my diet / explain that its a real thing, I’m super grateful to scishow for raising awareness about this disease as its a growing problem here!

[mabylene]

My cousin had this happen to him, and he even denied it at first and ended up in the hospital. After that he took it seriously. He was 18 at the time and is now 24, and he still can't eat beef, pork, nor any sort of shellfish. Chicken or turkey is all the meat he can eat without getting seriously ill. He was so headstrong in thinking he was indestructible until that little tick bite. I know it sucks, but he grew up and adjusted his lifestyle to his illness.

[QueenShashsperonza]

My cousin has Alpha Gal. It's horrible on her. She runs into things that had cross contamination and gets hellishly sick for days

[TheStobb]

I’m a survivor of Lyme disease I was diagnosed early and got rid of it but the damage was done I now have problems with short term memory loss and it did make my ulcerated colitis get worse. But I’m happy to say I still love and enjoy red meat. Thank you for making the time to make this video very informative. Thank you again

[rlbarney]

There should be a "D" for "Don't follow deer trails." Deer harbor many ticks that drop off along their paths and await (like the tick at 4:44) for their next meal.

[eirianoboe]

I was recently diagnosed with AGS and had such a hard time finding an informed healthcare provider. I am so happy that SciShow is making accurate information so much more accessible

[jkoking]

I know someone affected by ags and I was shocked because. I had never heard about it before and I haven't seen a lot about it since then. So thank you! SciShow for raising awareness

[MonochromeWench]

I've heard reports that people with particularly severe cases can react to just the smell of meat cooking. So a neighbour cooking up some burgers on their grill might be enough to give a sufferer an allergic reaction.

[MrKegkiller]

My grandma got this back around 2009. Around 10 years later she was seemingly able to eat red meat again

[SandyMasquith]

As an AGS sufferer for the past 5 years, I am very glad to see this covered on the SciShow. So many people don’t think this is a real thing!!! Your mention of AG-free bacon gives me some hope that I might be able to have bacon again some day. How awesome that would be!! Weird thing I discovered I can’t eat (besides all the usual): marshmallows! Go figure I can’t have a s’more or hot chocolate with marshmallows. I do really miss steaks, bacon, pepperoni…all the wonderful meats. Thanks for yet another great and informative video!

[georgiascarborough]

Hank, as someone newly diagnosed with AGS in the last year after 10+ years of GI issues, THANK YOU for making this video! Your videos on SciShow and CrashCourse have always made difficult topics easier to understand, and now this is one that I can use with my family and friends. Thank you thank you thank you!

[hhjk]

So are ticks one of those lifeforms we can just... live without? Like how we're trying to wipe out certain mosquito species with gene editing? Like if ticks all vanished, would that obliterate the food web?

[SuLokify]

Ticks spread the worst diseases.

Lyme disease is awful too - fortunately awareness and testing is improving a LOT, and stem cell therapy works amazingly well for advanced disease

[camplays]

Level1Techs appreciates you’re help in spreading awareness