Mangos Make Me Itch

Ever since I began "dieting", I've made a substantial effort to eat lots of fresh fruits and veggies daily. I bought a batch of melons and mangos at Sam's last week and went nuts. I never really knew how much I liked mangos. I've never really had them before. So I've been eating a mango just about daily. I had one yesterday morning for breakfast and shortly after I realized that I had broken out with hives along my lips, chin, and neck. I took some Benadryl last night hoping the itchy red bumps would vanish. Instead I woke up this morning with sizably larger lips, and a very irritate rash. I now know what I would look like if I were to get my lips plumped with Juvaderm. I look like Melanie Griffith. The rash is not only itchy, but it burns as well. I've been taking Claritin all day, and keeping a cool damp cloth on the areas but it is not helping. So tomorrow I'll be seeing my dermatologist. I'm not looking forward to going out into public like this, but I think I need something stronger. I did a little research about allergic reactions to mango and found out that they are in the same plant class as poison ivy, oak, sumac, and cashews. The skin of the mango contains urushiol - the same thing that causes rashes from poison ivy plants. According to the information I found, I should be able to eat mangos without incident if I wash the skin thoroughly, and peel the flesh away before eating it. It also explains why I had eaten several before I broke out. The others probably had been washed better. An allergic reaction can start immediately after contact and could possibly last up to six weeks. I'm lucky that I didn't experience anaphylactic shock! The upside to all this is that I've lost 11 pounds in 13 days, which nearly makes up for having the hives!