U-S health officials say as many as 450-thousand Americans have become allergic to red meat since 2010 because of an illness triggered by tick bites.

Alpha-gal syndrome occurs when an infected person eats beef, pork, venison or other meat from mammals or ingests milk, gelatin or other mammal products. 

When a sugar that’s in meat from mammals and in tick spit enters the body through the skin, it triggers an immune response and can lead to a severe allergic reaction.

Doctors recommend people with the allergy should change their diet, carry epinephrine and avoid tick bites.  

(Canadian Press)