AGS & Ticks: A False Trail?

Alpha-Gal Syndrome and Ticks: A False Trail?

Individuals who tend to follow the advice of mainstream nutritionists likely find the on-again, off-again demonization of red meat rather confusing.¹ Weston A. Price Foundation members know better, recognizing that red meat—when obtained from healthy animals raised on healthy farms—is not only innocent of the many crimes of which it is often accused but is a nutrient-rich powerhouse.²

But what if you are a nutritionally informed red meat lover—enjoying animal fats, organs and bone broth as well as varied cuts of meat— and you suddenly cannot eat anything red-meat-related without developing hives, rashes, excruciating stomach pain or life-threatening anaphylaxis? In the past, allergy experts considered red meat allergy to be unusual,³ but by 2012, a red meat allergy dubbed “alpha-gal syndrome” or simply “alpha-gal”—named after a carbohydrate molecule (galactose-alpha-1,3- galactose) present in non-primate mammalian meat and high-fat dairy products⁴—had made it into the pages of Science magazine, which colorfully described it as “a carnivore or BBQ lover’s worst nightmare.”⁵

Since then, the number of individuals allergic to red meat—both adults and children—has continued to climb.⁶ In the U.S., one specialist sees five new patients a week and reports having treated nine hundred individuals over the past decade.⁷ The same trend is apparent in numerous other countries—including various European nations, Japan, South Korea, Panama, Brazil, the Ivory Coast and South Africa⁷—with the result that a lot more carnivores are coming face to face with their “worst nightmare.”

A MODERN MALADY

As medical historians remind us, allergies are a “modern malady.”⁸ Hay fever became a recognized condition only in 1870,⁹ and the term “allergy” did not come along until 1906, following on the heels of French physiologist (and eugenicist) Charles Richet’s 1902 invention of the term “anaphylaxis.”¹⁰

Around that time, injected antitoxins and vaccines—new on the scene—were causing “new diseases and strange reactions that physicians could not explain.”10 Observing these “hypersensitivity reactions” that seemed to involve the “collision of antigen and antibody,” particularly with repeated injections, Austrian pediatrician Clemens von Pirquet coined the term “serum sickness” and later elaborated the concept of allergy.¹⁰(See link for article)

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SUMMARY of article info on Alpha Gal Syndrome (AGS):

It wasn’t until 2009 that simultaneous case reports of American, Australian, and French patients presented with immunoglobulin E (IgE) antibodies, yet defied bedrock tenants of normal food allergies. These patients had delayed hit or miss allergic reactions.
Normally food allergies are caused by proteins; however alpha-gal is a carbohydrate.
Alpha Gal was zeroed in on due to a previously described severe and sometimes fatal hypersensitivity reaction in up to 20% of patients who developed IgE antibodies specific for AG after receiving a GMO cancer drug called cetuximab produced in mouse cell culture in with AG is present.
French authors stated the diagnostic value of alpha-gal IgE antibodies “has yet to be clarified” and that a finding of positive antibodies generally “has limited predictive value for the characteristics or severity of this allergy,” yet most have embraced the notion that IgE of AG is at the root of the cetuximab and red meat allergy.
Ticks offer a perfect environmental scapegoat trigger to explain the cause of IgE response to AG, despite researchers admitting they don’t understand the mechanism of action.
A close reading of a 2009 Australian paper concludes:
- History of tick bites in preceding 6 months is far from unusual as participants lived in endemic areas.
- Of the 25 patients, one reported a tick bite 6 months after the onset of meat allergy. One in 5 in the U.S. reported no tick bite at all. In Switzerland, only 1 out of four had a history of tick bite and the authors speculated that there may be other ways of sensitization.
- While the Australian researchers inferred that the perp is 1 species of tick, they couldn’t prove it as no lab method exists to check! In the U.S. and Europe, researchers confidently blame different ticks as the sole perps despite meat allergies occurring ‘well outside’ the areas populated by these ticks.
- Researchers have never been able to confirm that something in tick saliva is responsible for AG antibodies.
The article rightly questions if researchers have properly considered other explanations since reactions also include gelatin, medications, vaccines, cosmetics, deodorant, etc. – not just red meat.
A website for those with allergies singles out gelatin-containing vaccines as a prominent suspect. Gelatin is used as a stabilizer in 11 vaccines in the U.S.
Further damning vaccines is a wealth of Japanese documentation on the connection between anaphylactic reactions and a strong causal relationship between gelatin-containing DTaP vaccine, anti-gelatin IgE production, and the risk of anaphylaxis with live viral vaccines containing a larger amount of gelation like the MMR and the MMRV.
Historically, studies have also linked bovine serum albumin (BSA), widely used in cell cultures that produce vaccines, to meat allergies.
The comments section of a 2015 People’s Pharmacy show about AGS is filled with patients reporting AGS after getting a vaccine.
Clear labeling is not required by the FDA regarding if an ingredient is sourced from mammals. The list includes:
- the clotting drug heparin,
- pancreatic enzymes
- thyroid supplements
- intravenous fluids
- suppositories
- magnesium stearate
- some toothpaste, lotions, sunscreens, antibiotics and whey protein powders

See the article for natural remedies for AGS.

Also see: https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2025/09/01/when-a-tick-changes-the-game-jared-allens-battle-with-alpha-gal-syndrome/ After the article I write of my son’s subsequent symptoms after a nibble from a Lone Star tick. I include the treatment he took as well as the fact some have found the combination of ivermectin and Fenben to cure AGS.

Interestingly, he initially reacted to red meat (diarrhea 3-6 hours after ingestion) but this particular symptom went away. There’s an obvious chance antibiotics caused it or perhaps treatment helped and strengthened his immune system enough to fight it off. We will never know for sure. Regarding vaccination history, he received 5 types of vaccines until he turned five. Thankfully, by then I had done my homework and discontinued ALL vaccines. Even though he has received far fewer vaccines than most children today, damage could very well be done.

It would be extremely interesting to determine if anyone that is unvaccinated has AGS.

Please note, many have experienced AGS without a tick bite: https://madisonarealymesupportgroup.com/2022/11/02/when-alpha-gal-syndrome-is-not-related-to-a-tick-bite/ I think it would be a mistake to make ticks the sole perp.

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Madison Area Lyme Support Group