Itchy mouth after a mango smoothie, or a rash around your lips the day after eating one? Mango can cause two very different kinds of reaction, and only one of them is IgE. Our test checks for IgE antibodies to the mango protein Man i 1, as part of 300 allergens and allergen components including birch and mugwort pollen, cashew and pistachio.
The first kind is IgE. It comes on fast, within minutes to two hours, and people describe itching in the mouth, swollen lips, hives or stomach symptoms. This is what the blood test is about.
The second kind is a delayed skin reaction. Mango skin and sap contain urushiol-like substances, the same family of chemicals found in poison ivy. In some people they cause an itchy, blistering rash around the mouth or on the hands one or two days after peeling or biting into a mango. That is contact dermatitis, not IgE, and this test does not measure it. Peeled, cut mango touches the skin around the mouth far less.
In Europe, many people sensitised to mango are also sensitised to pollen. A German study found that mango cross-reacts with birch pollen, mugwort pollen, celery and carrot, through proteins related to Bet v 1 (birch) and Art v 1 (mugwort). This pattern is usually linked to mouth-only itching.
Mango also belongs to the same plant family as cashew and pistachio. Botanical relation does not automatically mean shared reactions, but the panel measures all three, so you can see them together.
Reactions people describe after mango range from itching or tingling of the lips, mouth and throat to hives, swollen lips, stomach cramps and, less often, wheezing.
Swelling of the lips, tongue or throat, trouble breathing or feeling faint after eating is an emergency. Call 112 (EU) or your local emergency number. Do not wait for a test.
Your finger-prick sample goes to the lab, which measures IgE to one single mango protein (molecular component). There is no whole mango extract on the panel. Your lab report gives it a measured value and class, from Negative to Very high, next to birch and mugwort pollen, celery, cashew and pistachio. A positive result shows sensitisation, not a clinical allergy. Discuss the result with a doctor before you change what you eat.
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One finger-prick sample checks IgE to 300 allergens and allergen components, from birch and peanut to cat and house dust mite. Post it to the lab, and about 5 days after it arrives you get a value for every one. Our plain-English guide shows you how to read them. €399 in total, €1.33 per allergen.
A rash that appears a day or two later is often contact dermatitis from substances in mango skin and sap, related to poison ivy. That is not IgE and does not show on a blood test. Fast itching or swelling within minutes points more towards IgE.
Often, yes. Studies link mango sensitisation to birch and mugwort pollen. The test checks those pollens and mango in the same sample.
Not necessarily. They are from the same plant family, but the proteins that matter in cashew are different. The panel shows cashew, pistachio and mango separately, which helps a doctor judge the pattern.
