She usually had a \u201cstomach of steel.\u201d Most food wouldn\u2019t really bother her. But when Eliza Petzinger had a helping of country ham during her family\u2019s Christmas dinner last year, the strong reaction \u2014 stomach discomfort and nausea \u2014 came just hours later.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was so sick, and so I knew. I just knew,\u201d Petzinger told the Lantern.<\/p>\n
Just days later in January, she had her doctor test her blood for alpha-gal syndrome, an allergic reaction by the body to a sugar molecule found in most mammals but not in humans. A bite from a tick, primarily the lone star tick found throughout Kentucky, can expose a person to the alpha-gal molecule and trigger an immune response.<\/p>\n
The test came back positive. And unlike Lyme disease, a rarely fatal but chronic tick-borne disease she contracted years ago, the potential lethality of alpha-gal scares her.<\/p>\n
The syndrome can trigger a life-threatening allergic reaction to animal products, including eating red meat, but it can also include products such as gel capsules that have gelatin sourced from red meat. For some people, even the fumes of cooking red meat can trigger a reaction. Less severe reactions can mean stomach distress, rashes, hives, shortness of breath and swelling of the lips and throat.<\/p>\n
Each person\u2019s reaction is different, and some people can test positive and have no reaction at all. Petzinger said her reaction is often delayed by hours.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou got to think about how late at night you can eat \u2026 because you don\u2019t want to wake up in the middle of the night and be having some reaction. And that\u2019s how a lot of people have had serious, even life-threatening reactions,\u201d Petzinger said. \u201cI\u2019m literally scared to eat certain things.\u2019<\/p>\n
It\u2019s yet another illness connected to ticks that\u2019s continuing to emerge in Kentucky, yet Petzinger was already well aware of it when she was diagnosed. Her 13-year-old daughter, Iris, was the first of her family to test positive for alpha-gal about two years ago. So has a brother and a 10-year-old niece, though she says her brother attests he doesn\u2019t have symptoms.<\/p>\n
She said her father tested positive after breaking out in hives a couple of times in the middle of the night. Her mother hasn\u2019t gotten tested yet, but she broke out in hives recently at her granddaughter\u2019s ball game after eating some ham.<\/p>\n
Much of her immediate family lives on rolling, green farmland next to each other, and her kids sometimes run in between her house and her parents\u2019 cabin. She estimates about five of 10 immediate family members, including herself, have alpha-gal. A neighbor who raises beef cattle also has it; he\u2019s unable to eat the beef he raises.<\/p>\n
Similarly do a growing number of people in Owen County, one of a number of rural communities throughout Kentucky and the nation grappling with a rising number of ticks and the cases of the illnesses they bring, including alpha-gal.<\/p>\n
Petzinger said the ticks on her family\u2019s land, where she has a pottery studio and farm animals, have been relentless, even with the use of the chemical permethrin on clothes to kill them. That includes the lone star tick, a relatively newer tick that\u2019s come to Kentucky and is suspected by health experts to be the main culprit behind alpha-gal transmission in the United States.<\/p>\n
\u201cI grew up on this big farm, and so I take my kids to the creek. We do all these things, and now the first thought is, \u2018Oh gosh, I\u2019m gonna get covered in ticks,\u2019\u201d Petzinger said. \u201cI have to adapt to it and just learn to live with it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Local doctors track the rise<\/p>\n
It wasn\u2019t until two or three years ago that most people in Owen County had ever heard of alpha-gal syndrome, according to one local family doctor. Cases of other tick-borne illnesses such as Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever and ehrlichiosis would sporadically pop up in Larry Johnson\u2019s health clinic.<\/p>\n
But then came the alpha-gal cases. From him diagnosing zero alpha-gal cases in a month has eventually became one to two cases diagnosed a week during some months this spring and summer, a \u201chuge increase\u201d for his health clinic in a county of a little over 11,000 people.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just seemed like all of a sudden it was just spreading like wildfire,\u201d said Johnson, who has worked as a doctor in Owen County since 2001. Johnson said the cases have shown up in people of all ages who work or spend time outdoors \u201cin the brush,\u201d whether that\u2019s farmers or tree trimmers.<\/p>\n
Kentucky joined a minority of states last year to require cases of alpha-gal syndrome to be reported to public health officials. Three Rivers District Health Department, which serves Carroll, Gallatin, Owen and Pendleton counties, has seen an increase in the rate of all tick-borne illness across the four counties since 2021.<\/p>\n
But with alpha-gal cases now being reported, the rate of cases of tick-borne illnesses per 100,000 people across the four counties has skyrocketed \u2014 from 83 cases per 100,000 people in 2024 to over 300 cases per 100,000 people in 2025 and 2026.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s not clear to Johnson and other medical practitioners whether they\u2019re finding more local alpha-gal cases because there\u2019s more awareness of the condition and doctors are testing for it more, or if there are other factors increasing the number of cases.<\/p>\n
Owen County residents are taking notice. Owen County Judge-Executive Todd Woodyard said he knows people who deal with alpha-gal. The city\u2019s volunteer fire department chief Greg Estes said he had alpha-gal and avoided red meat for months, though he never got tested for it.<\/p>\n
Family Billiards, a diner next to the county courthouse that offers burgers and pool tables, has had a few regulars come in and start mentioning alpha-gal; one of the regulars told co-owner Brandi Neal he stopped eating bacon.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe said he got bit by a tick. I guess that caused it,\u201d Neal said. \u201cWe work around the issues and do our own thing for them. Whatever gets them to eat here safely without getting sick.\u201d<\/p>\n
The unknowns of alpha-gal<\/p>\n
The surge of alpha-gal cases hasn\u2019t just been isolated to Owen County, though. A 2023 report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found Kentucky to be among several states with a high incidence of suspected alpha-gal cases, with Muhlenberg County in Western Kentucky cited as having among the highest county rates of cases.<\/p>\n
The rates of other tick-borne illnesses have also significantly increased in recent years, with Kentucky Department for Public Health data showing cases of Lyme disease in the state increasing by 275% between 2020 and 2023.<\/p>\n
On the national front, data from the CDC show tick-borne illnesses have more than doubled since 2004.<\/p>\n
Kentucky state epidemiologist Kathleen Winter said other nearby states have seen a similar rise in tick-borne illnesses, likely because both disease surveillance and reporting efforts have increased and more people are being exposed to ticks.<\/p>\n
Winter, a University of Kentucky associate professor, also said the ranges of various ticks are expanding both from the north and south into the state.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe live in a region of the country where we have a lot of ticks that like to call this their home,\u201d Winter said. \u201cWe think the tick population is increasing, and there are seemingly to be more and more exposures to ticks. So, whether that\u2019s just people spending time outdoors or having them more in urban areas.\u201d<\/p>\n
Johnson and Winter point to the prevalence of the lone star tick as a key factor behind the rise of alpha-gal.<\/p>\n
Jonathan Larson, an extension entomologist at the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, Food and the Environment, told the Lantern the lone star tick \u2014 now the most common tick in Kentucky based on survey data, he said \u2014 is seen as the primary tick but not the only tick behind alpha-gal transmission.<\/p>\n
Larson said the state is also seeing more ticks in general because of an abundant amount of wildlife hosts, such as deer and mice, warmer winters allowing for tick populations to rebound and weedy, invasive plants creating an environment for ticks.<\/p>\n
Owen County is among Kentucky counties that have plenty of deer, with Kentucky wildlife management officials allowing no limit on the number of antlerless deer that can be taken.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll of that adds together to create this kind of perfect storm that we\u2019re seeing. The lone star tick has taken full advantage of it,\u201d Larson said.<\/p>\n
But for Johnson and the other doctors he works with, there\u2019s plenty still unknown about alpha-gal. For example, Johnson said there\u2019s no \u201crhyme or reason\u201d to how strong an allergic reaction someone might have; a person can have a positive test result, showing an alpha-gal immune response, but have no symptoms after eating red meat.<\/p>\n
Hans Otto, a Boone County allergist who previously served as the president of the Cincinnati Allergy and Asthma Society, told the Kentucky Lantern that alpha-gal has probably been around for decades but only widely recognized by medical professionals in recent years.<\/p>\n
Otto said treating alpha-gal is tricky because, like all medicine, \u201ceverybody presents differently.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe tough thing is that avid hunter, outdoorsman who lives off the land, raises cattle and goes hunting for deer \u2014 and if I tell them not to eat mammal meat, they blow a fuse,\u201d Otto said.<\/p>\n
Accepting \u2018what your cards are dealt\u2019<\/p>\n
Greg Cole and his wife are among the Owen County people who\u2019ve been told not to eat mammal meat after being diagnosed with alpha-gal.<\/p>\n
That reality is especially stark given his occupation as a beef cattle farmer, or \u201cplaying cowboy for a living\u201d as he calls it. He\u2019s the manager of the Eden Shale Farm, a demonstration farm that raises around 100 beef cattle to help educate other cattle farmers on best practices. The farm is overseen by the Kentucky Beef Network, a part of the industry group Kentucky Cattlemen\u2019s Association.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can accept what your cards are dealt, or you can be mad about it,\u201d Cole said. \u201cThis is what I\u2019ve done all my life, and I\u2019m not going to change that.\u201d<\/p>\n
On a cloudy September day, his lifelong work meant corralling cattle on the Owen County farm as part of the weaning process, a chorus of bellows heard from the cows in the pens. He tested positive for alpha-gal two years ago, while his wife tested positive about a year later.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s been able to pivot, learning to appreciate other foods including seafood, chicken, turkey \u2014 \u201cI make a mean turkey burger\u201d \u2014 even if he occasionally misses beef. He said he and his wife drive about 40 miles north to a Kroger grocery store that\u2019s well-stocked with options including vegan products. He mentioned how some people are raising ostriches as an alpha-gal-safe alternative. They\u2019ve also grown accustomed to bringing their own food to local Cattlemen\u2019s Association events as well.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just dealing with it,\u201d Cole said, mentioning he\u2019s not sure if there will ever be a cure for the allergy.<\/p>\n
Winter, the state epidemiologist, said research is still active and ongoing around potential treatments, including ways to mitigate or reduce symptoms, though the current guidance is to avoid exposure to food and other products that could trigger a reaction. Some people have sought out a specific form of acupuncture that some people say helps with symptoms, though Winter said there is \u201cno clear recommended treatment at this time.\u201d<\/p>\n
Adapting to alpha-gal, though, has been a harder challenge to grapple with for some of Petzinger\u2019s younger family who live just down the road from the Eden Shale Farm.<\/p>\n
Petzinger, who was assembling the dark, clay pieces of soap dishes to be put in her kiln, told the Lantern that her 10-year-old niece has had to go to birthday parties where \u201cyou can\u2019t have any of the cake or ice cream.\u201d<\/p>\n
Petzinger\u2019s mother will bake \u201calpha-gal safe cupcakes for her to take to the party.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her own 13-year-old daughter has struggled at times with managing an alpha-gal-safe diet, too.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s just so hard. They have enough going to deal with as a teenager,\u201d Petzinger said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
She usually had a \u201cstomach of steel.\u201d Most food wouldn\u2019t really bother her. But when Eliza Petzinger had a helping of country ham during her family\u2019s Christmas dinner last year, the strong reaction \u2014 stomach discomfort and nausea \u2014 came just hours later. \u201cI was so sick, and so I knew. I just knew,\u201d Petzinger<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":49783,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[7793,35189,37824,37823,9997,14511,71,7796,4344,4342,4340,4343,4341,37825,37826,34761,37827,37821,37822],"class_list":["post-49782","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-kentucky","tag-allergy","tag-alpha-gal-syndrome","tag-amblyomma-americanum","tag-and-environment","tag-disease","tag-diseases-and-disorders","tag-food","tag-immunology","tag-kentucky","tag-kentucky-dining","tag-kentucky-food","tag-kentucky-grocery-stores","tag-kentucky-restaurants","tag-larry-johnson-running-back","tag-owen-county","tag-red-meat","tag-syndrome","tag-tick","tag-university-of-kentucky-college-of-agriculture"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/vive.im\/@dc\/117424655127851358","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49782","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49782"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49782\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49783"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49782"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49782"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.diningandcooking.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49782"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}