What do I do now?

[Donthackmenow]

I appear to have had an allergic reaction for the first time in my life and I don't know what to do.

On Friday I had a coca cola life and within half an hour my lips and nose were itching insanely. I didn't at first think anything of it but people started to comment on my scratching and my eyes started stinging. I took some antihistamine and came home from work to shower. The school nurse told me to have another go at drinking it to see if it had definitely caused the reaction.
I gamely tried again today and although my nose wasn't itchy my lips have been on fire ever since (it feels like I have rubbed a chilli all over them), they are bright red and so sore. I am therefore concluding that I am never drinking coke life again but do I need to tell a dr or nurse what has happened? Do I need to work out which component I have reacted to or because it is an irritation rather than serious do I not need to worry?

Do not do any more experiments yourself - allergic reactions can get worse with each additional exposure. Since you don't know what element it was keep antihistamines with you all the time and if your breathing becomes affected at any time get medical help immediately.

You could be reacting to corn, or the high fructose corn syrup (I have seen discussion on the internet which suggests it is now a genetically modified form of corn used for the syrup in Coca Cola at least in the USA, not sure about the UK). It could also be the caramel colour as some people react to that.

Hope you find out soon what element is causing it so you can avoid encountering it in anything else.