Mother-of-four can't go to the gym because she is allergic to EXERCISE (honest!)

• Kasia Beaver, 33, suffered her first allergy attacks in her early 20s
• Doctors were baffled about the cause, but an expert finally realised they were triggered by a raised heart rate
  
• When Mrs Beaver exercises her face swells up and she is in danger of going into anaphylactic shock. A new anti-histamine has eased her symptoms

By CLAIRE BATES

Published: 05:32 EST, 7 March 2013 | Updated: 05:11 EST, 8 March 2013

Many people who are reluctant to head to the gym joke they are allergic to exercise, but for one mother this is actually true.

Kasia Beaver, 33, can't work up a sweat as an increased heart rate could spark a potentially fatal reaction.

The mother-of-four is just one of a handful of people in the UK who suffer from the condition, known as Exercise-Induced Angioedema (EIA).

Kasia Beaver's face swells during an allergy attack, which is usually brought on by exercise

Running for a bus or chasing after her kids after she's eaten certain foods causes her face to swell and could kill her if she went into anaphylactic shock.

Mrs Beaver, from Redditch, Worcestershire, said: 'When I get an attack, my eyes swell up and start to itch. Within five minutes, they're completely closed. It's terrifying, especially if I'm alone with the children.

'I was ice skating with my husband when I had a really bad attack. I had to use an epiPen to bring the swelling down.

'People don't believe me when I tell them I'm allergic to exercise. They think it's just an excuse to be lazy. But the truth is, I used to go the gym all the time. I was really sporty. I was a size ten.'

Kasia suffered her first attack when she was in her early 20s before she fell pregnant with her first child, Jay, now 12.

At first, she assumed it was an allergic to reaction to some eye shadow she'd bought off the market.

Mrs Beaver used to be a size 10 (pictured aged 19, left) before her condition made it impossible to exercise

Mrs Beaver can finally enjoy walking to her local park with her children without the fear of an attack, after being put on a new medication

Mrs Beaver, who is also mother to Grace, eight, Madison, seven and three-year-old Millie, immediately stopped using the make-up but it took another three days for the swelling to go down.

She said: 'One day I went to the gym with my mum. I just did a normal work-out then my eyes started feeling tight.

'Mum said they looked funny. She was really worried so she took me to A&E. They put a cold compress on my eyes and prescribed me antihistamines.

'It helped but it kept happening. I'd planned to walk everywhere to help lose my baby weight but I'd walk a few hundred yards and swell up.

'It took me years to realise that exercise was the trigger.'

Doctors had also been baffled by Kasia's strange allergic reactions and tried her on a range of antishistamines. But over the year her reactions became more severe.

Kasia: 'I was on the bus with my children when it suddenly swerved. The driver slammed on his brakes and the buggy tipped up.

'My eyes instantly swelled up. I had all four children with me and I didn't know what to do. The girls were crying. I couldn't see and Jay had to take us to my sister's house.

'Every time my heart rate goes up I have an attack. My sex life was null and void.'

Mrs Beaver can't risk going on the cross-trainer as raising her heart rate can trigger a dangerous reaction

When an eye specialist couldn't find anything wrong with her eyes, she was a referred to a dermatologist but he also drew a blank.

Mrs Beaver and her husband Mark, 35, a civil engineer, then travelled to Norwich to see an expert.

She was finally diagnosed with Exercise-Induced Angioedema (EIA), which can be brought on by exercising after eating certain foods, as well as an underactive thyroid that is linked to the condition.

Kasia with her husband Mark and four children. She has joined a slimming group to try and lose extra weight through her diet

She said: 'It was a relief in a way because I could put a name to it. I wasn't going mad. I'd been tested for all sorts over the years. I thought it could be hay fever, a blocked tear duct or sweat gland.

'He gave me different medications. He told me because the condition is so rare it was exploratory. None of them worked though.'

Finally, thanks to a new type of antihistamine Mrs Beaver can walk to the park for the first time in ten years without having an attack.

She said: 'I still can't exercise though and that does get me down. I joined a slimming group because I want to lose weight but it can only do so much.

'They think it's food related but they don't know what food it is. They've tested me for all sorts. If I knew what food it was I would stop eating it.

'I've been prescribed an epiPen in case an attack turns into an anaphylactic shock but luckily it hasn't yet. I know the signs now and stop what I'm doing because I can't risk it.'

Maureen Jenkins, from Allergy UK said: 'Some people can suffer allergic symptoms such as urticaria (raised weals), rhinitis (blocked and runny nose), wheezing or gastric symptoms when they exercise.

'When it only occurs sometimes on exercise, it may be linked to eating a certain food beforehand, even though the food can be safely eaten when not followed by exercise.

'Fortunately, this is not common, but it is important to have this condition diagnosed as the reaction can cause anaphylaxis.'

For more information about Allergy UK visit www.allergyuk.org or call our national helpline on 01322 619898