The most common causes of hives are allergic reactions that trigger an immune system response. The immune system acts as if there is something foreign in the body and signals the body to release histamine to fight it. Some of the more common causes of hives may be:
- Insect bites
- Food allergies
- Temperature extremes
- Infections (fungal or viral)
- Food additives
- Tight clothes rubbing skin or repeated stroking of skin causes hives
These are very broad but common skin hives causes, particularly when looking for what causes hives of the acute variety.
What causes hive rash
The causes of hives, or what causes skin hives are well known. It is the actual trigger or triggers that have patients and doctors perplexed. It is the release of histamine that causes the small blood vessels to leak fluid. This fluid accumulates in the skin and is actually what causes the hives and the associated rash and wheals. But the trigger is never found in half the cases and chronic hives causes are even more difficult to figure out. The symptoms are usually straightforward to treat, but the causes of hives being so difficult to detect means that what causes rashes and hives will remain a mystery for many.
What causes hives in adults?
The causes of hives in adults, when they can be determined, are usually related to a drug the adult is taking or a reaction to food. Food allergies are where the difference in hives causes in adults differs most from children. In adults, the most common food causes of hives are shellfish, fish, peanuts, and other nuts.
This may be because are more likely to be on drugs or other medications and more likely to eat fish and shellfish than children. Painkillers are a common trigger and more adults use painkillers than children.
What are the causes of hives in children?
Viral infections are generally recognized as the most common causes for hives in children
When the causes of hives in children are narrowed down to food, the food causes in children tend to be mostly milk, eggs, soy, wheat, and peanuts or other nuts. Again, this may be anecdotal since children tend to eat more dairy products than adults, and by the time one becomes an adult, they will have likely already figured out that these dairy products are one of the causes of hives and are already avoiding them.
These are the main differences between what causes hives in children and adults. Most of the other identifiable causes are the same and treatment is usually the same for both adults and children. But you shouldn’t be surprised if the causes of hives is never identified, as the majority never are.
