Ignore that allergy at your own peril

It's the mother of all line-ups-master batsman Sachin Tendulkar, superstar Amitabh Bachchan and President A P J Kalam. The cause unifying these celebrity endorsers? That seemingly benign pool of allergies.

On Sunday, messages from the three stars were aired at a public forum in south Mumbai.

As part of the build-up, young boys carrying banners have been out on Marine Drive since Friday and a mobile van has been carrying a similar announcement across the island city.

And experts from the World Health Organisation and the developed world have flown down for a concurrent seminar on allergies at the 9th Asian Research Symposium in Rhinology being held at a five-star hotel.

Are allergies worth such a glitzy display-especially in a country that still suffers under the burden of infectious diseases?

First allergy, then asthma?

View Tendulkar's guest appearance in the educational video released at the forum, and allergies certainly seem to be an area of growing concern.

In medical jargon, an allergy represents the altered reactivity of the body to an otherwise harmless environmental substance. Allergens can range from pollen grains released from plants and grass, dust mites, molds, fungi and animal dander (respiratory tract allergies are more common than, say, food or skin allergies).

Here's what Tendulkar has to say-Don't ignore your allergy, for it could be a precursor to the chronic condition of asthma. Bachchan, an asthmatic, and the President, a man of science, would undoubtedly agree with that advice.

After all, studies have shown that about 80% of the asthmatic population- roughly three per cent of India- began their descent into ill-health with allergic rhinitis, better known as hay fever and characterised by an itchy and runny nose, sneezing and congestion.