Hives are a fairly common skin condition. The condition involves red, bumpy rashes appearing on your skin. Hives are not confined to a certain area of the body and are generally accompanied by itchiness. For some sufferers, hives cause pain as well.

Initially, it is easy to mistake a hives outbreak as a bug bite. Once additional hives appear, though, it is clear what is happening. Each rash that appears during a hives outbreak is known as a wheal. Wheals can vary in size. Although most wheals are approximately the same size as an average mosquito bite, some can be several inches wide.

It is important to remember that hives can look different on every person, so you shouldn't worry if your wheals are not identical to photos you have seen on the internet or in books. If you have had multiple outbreaks of hives, you should try to figure out what is triggering them. There are a number of things that can trigger a hives outbreak. In this article, you will learn some of the most frequent causes.

Viruses

Hives can be a symptom of several types of viruses. Most commonly, hives as the result of a virus afflicts children, but adults can also experience it. In situations where adults develop hives as the result of a virus, athlete's foot and urinary tract infections are the most likely culprits. Often, hives are the only physical symptom of a virus, so the sufferer may not seem ill in any other way.

Allergies

Allergies are one of the most common triggers for hives. Hives are often your body's way of reacting to foods or medications to which you are allergic. Luckily, it is usually fairly easy to determine what allergy is causing your hives.

If a food allergy is responsible, the first hives will generally appear within a few minutes to a few hours of the time the item was eaten. If a medication is causing your hives, they will probably start showing-up within a few minutes of the first dose. After you know what allergic reaction is causing your hives outbreaks, you can begin avoiding that item. If you cannot deduce what precisely is causing your hives, speak to your physician about having an allergy test. It is important to know about hives causes.

Stress as the Culprit

Stress can also cause you to experience hives. Stress affects every person slightly differently and causes some to experience hives. If you seem to only have hives outbreaks when you are overwhelmed or under-pressure, this is probably the cause of your condition. Hives caused by stress are not completely avoidable, but you can attempt yoga, meditation, journaling, or another serene activity to keep them at bay. There are treatment for hives.