This Wine Is Making Me Feel... Sneezy?

Sept. 15, 2008— -- Cursed, blessed wine. Since ancient times, this drink has been simultaneously touted for its health benefits and blamed for its tortuous side effects.

A single glass with dinner may protect the heart, but it can send others into a wheezing attack with a bad headache, flushed face and runny nose.

"I, too, have experienced the stuffy nose after a glass of wine," said Sloane Miller, a food allergy coach and advocate, who is also president of Allergic Girl Resources Inc. in New York City.

Miller said the symptoms can get worse since she has found that wine frequently compounds her other food allergies. "It seems between the stuffy nose and the skin irritation that there's a reaction," said Miller.

Reports of wine allergy are usually relegated to symptoms after drinking a glass, but this Monday the U.K.'s Telegraph featured a teenager who reportedly falls into sneezing fits anytime she smells it.

"I only have to see a glass of wine and it sends me off which can be incredibly annoying for my friends, but it happens so often they have almost got used to it," Leah Miller told the Telegraph.

Leah's sneezing symptoms may be one-of-a-kind, but plenty of adults occasionally find themselves with pounding headaches and congestion from a glass.

Despite these common reactions to wine, allergists say a true wine allergy is a fluke at best, and a controversial misnomer at worse.