For some people, exercise can set off life-threatening allergies

If you ever thought that exercise might kill you, it's possible you weren't exaggerating.

Research has shown that exercise-induced allergies are responsible for 5 to 15 percent of anaphylactic shock cases, ABC Los Angeles reports. That's what happened to marathon runner Mayra Suarez, who told ABC Los Angeles she is no longer allowed to run alone, as strenuous activity triggered a life-threatening allergic reaction that left her nearly dead. "I was having a really hard time breathing," she said. "My lungs, my airways were starting to close up. My eyelids were pretty swollen. I started running around looking for some antihistamine."

Suarez collapsed and hit her head, and was taken to the hospital. Her doctor, Dr. Shafali Samant at Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center, said that many people who have exercise-induced allergies are unaware or think it's something else. The episodes are infrequent, happening just once or twice a year, and could be linked to food like wheat or nuts. Suarez said she won't let her allergy stop her, and will continue to run marathons — she's just been ordered to not eat four hours before exercising and to always carry an EpiPen. "It's something I enjoy and something that I know is good and healthy for me," she said. "God willing as long as I can do this, I'm going to keep running."

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