Intolerance To Smells Of Different Foods?

[seraphim]

Curious if anyone knows the answer to this. Can you react with an intolerance to food smells? I've recently begun getting hives. I know I possibly had a reaction to rosemary. I got itchy on my left hand and it was swollen just a little bit. I'm about to get allergy testing but is it necessarily an allergy? Can intolerance cause histamine type responses? Also, can an intolerance bother you from inhalation like an allergy would?

[Juliebove]

Intolerances won't cause a histamine response but that doesn't mean that you won't get skin issues from them.  Daughter was intolerant to both wheat and soy.  Is no longer.  Poor thing!  I thought she had head lice and freaked.  I saw little black specks all over her scalp.  Turns out that it was dried blood from all the scratching she was doing.  I had been using a shampoo with wheat on her and was alternating it with one that had soy!  I just thought she had dry scalp and hair and was using shampoos for those things because our hairdresser had recommended them.  Once I switched her to a different shampoo, the problem was solved and her hair was no longer dry and began growing in thicker.  I also had to watch what I used.  I had taken a bath with an oat containing product.  And even though I thought I had cleaned the tub well, she still broke out in rash.

 

I also had to keep her out of the bakery department at one store in particular.  I think it had to do with the way that the bakery is set up.  It's a bit hard to explain but it's in a rather confined area of the store.  To get to past it, you have to walk by a self serve display of bread and rolls and several tables of baked goods.  She would wind up feeling itchy and sick to her stomach so we would not go to that part of the store.  You might surmise that it was a psychosomatic reaction but...  She has gone to many other stores that have a bakery in a more open space and it doesn't cause a problem for her.  Nor does the aisle of pre-packaged baked goods.

 

I have suffered from hives all my life.  Sometimes even on my eyeballs and believe me those are no fun.  I don't always know the reason.  But sometimes I do.  Sometimes it's environmental and those things are true IgE allergies.

 

But once, my grandma was visiting.  We took her to an ice cream place.  As we walked through the door, she broke out in hives from head to toe as did my mom and me!  My brother and dad did not.  But all three of us said that something had happened to us when we walked through that door.  I don't know if my grandma had issues with dairy but my mom and I certainly do.  My mom very much lives in denial though and since she loves ice cream, she will eat it.  I never liked it though.  Never.  And if I could get away with not eating it, I would.  Oddly my brother hates and still hates ice cream now.  But he will eat it if there is Magic Shell topping.  He loves the topping which to me tastes like waxy chemicals.  He will take a tiny amount of ice cream.  Just enough to harden the Magic Shell.  I do think that dairy is a problem for him too because he would get big D whenever we ate at a certain pizza place.  So I don't know.  We never did figure out why we got the hives.

 

I also get all sorts of weird rashes.  Have been diagnosed with psoriasis, ezcema, dermatitis, dishydrosis and even on occasion bacterial infections on the skin, cause unknown.  I also got these itchy red bumps from Irish Spring soap and a hideous rash all around my eyes from trying a new eye shadow.

 

I would think if you got an itchy red rash from Rosemary, it could be an allergy but...  I get the same if I touch certain evergreen bushes and trees that I am not allergic to!  For instance, the dwarf Alberta Spruce in my front yard.  I put up the Christmas lights on them and itch for days.  Also happens if I touch Juniper.  Not allergic to either.

 

As for smells, they can cause reactions in me.  I don't really know of any foods that do this but certainly there are perfumes and cleaners that I react to.  The worst is chlorine.  My mom reacts the same way and it put her in the hospital once where she learned that she has asthma.  For us it is far worse if combined with hot water.  I had to use bleach recently on my sink and I made sure to keep the door open and to use cold water.  I was fine.  But...  My dad used to use a cleaner with bleach in it and he'd use hot water.  My mom would start gagging and coughing and I'd just have extreme trouble breathing.  And then for about 48 hours I'd have lung pain and think that I could smell a campfire smell in my nose.

 

There are other times that I think I smell something when others can not.  Like a burning aroma and sometimes even cigarette smoke.  I can also smell when rain is coming, if it we have gone for a while with no rain.

[seraphim]

Intolerances won't cause a histamine response but that doesn't mean that you won't get skin issues from them.  Daughter was intolerant to both wheat and soy.  Is no longer.  Poor thing!  I thought she had head lice and freaked.  I saw little black specks all over her scalp.  Turns out that it was dried blood from all the scratching she was doing.  I had been using a shampoo with wheat on her and was alternating it with one that had soy!  I just thought she had dry scalp and hair and was using shampoos for those things because our hairdresser had recommended them.  Once I switched her to a different shampoo, the problem was solved and her hair was no longer dry and began growing in thicker.  I also had to watch what I used.  I had taken a bath with an oat containing product.  And even though I thought I had cleaned the tub well, she still broke out in rash.

 

I also had to keep her out of the bakery department at one store in particular.  I think it had to do with the way that the bakery is set up.  It's a bit hard to explain but it's in a rather confined area of the store.  To get to past it, you have to walk by a self serve display of bread and rolls and several tables of baked goods.  She would wind up feeling itchy and sick to her stomach so we would not go to that part of the store.  You might surmise that it was a psychosomatic reaction but...  She has gone to many other stores that have a bakery in a more open space and it doesn't cause a problem for her.  Nor does the aisle of pre-packaged baked goods.

 

I have suffered from hives all my life.  Sometimes even on my eyeballs and believe me those are no fun.  I don't always know the reason.  But sometimes I do.  Sometimes it's environmental and those things are true IgE allergies.

 

But once, my grandma was visiting.  We took her to an ice cream place.  As we walked through the door, she broke out in hives from head to toe as did my mom and me!  My brother and dad did not.  But all three of us said that something had happened to us when we walked through that door.  I don't know if my grandma had issues with dairy but my mom and I certainly do.  My mom very much lives in denial though and since she loves ice cream, she will eat it.  I never liked it though.  Never.  And if I could get away with not eating it, I would.  Oddly my brother hates and still hates ice cream now.  But he will eat it if there is Magic Shell topping.  He loves the topping which to me tastes like waxy chemicals.  He will take a tiny amount of ice cream.  Just enough to harden the Magic Shell.  I do think that dairy is a problem for him too because he would get big D whenever we ate at a certain pizza place.  So I don't know.  We never did figure out why we got the hives.

 

I also get all sorts of weird rashes.  Have been diagnosed with psoriasis, ezcema, dermatitis, dishydrosis and even on occasion bacterial infections on the skin, cause unknown.  I also got these itchy red bumps from Irish Spring soap and a hideous rash all around my eyes from trying a new eye shadow.

 

I would think if you got an itchy red rash from Rosemary, it could be an allergy but...  I get the same if I touch certain evergreen bushes and trees that I am not allergic to!  For instance, the dwarf Alberta Spruce in my front yard.  I put up the Christmas lights on them and itch for days.  Also happens if I touch Juniper.  Not allergic to either.

 

As for smells, they can cause reactions in me.  I don't really know of any foods that do this but certainly there are perfumes and cleaners that I react to.  The worst is chlorine.  My mom reacts the same way and it put her in the hospital once where she learned that she has asthma.  For us it is far worse if combined with hot water.  I had to use bleach recently on my sink and I made sure to keep the door open and to use cold water.  I was fine.  But...  My dad used to use a cleaner with bleach in it and he'd use hot water.  My mom would start gagging and coughing and I'd just have extreme trouble breathing.  And then for about 48 hours I'd have lung pain and think that I could smell a campfire smell in my nose.

 

There are other times that I think I smell something when others can not.  Like a burning aroma and sometimes even cigarette smoke.  I can also smell when rain is coming, if it we have gone for a while with no rain.

 

 

Ugh...the things we all put up with How horrible. So you've had itchy stuff from things you weren't allergic to? How strange. What do you think causes that kind of thing? My knuckle was a little swollen as well I dunno if that happens to you?

[Juliebove]

Ugh...the things we all put up with How horrible. So you've had itchy stuff from things you weren't allergic to? How strange. What do you think causes that kind of thing? My knuckle was a little swollen as well I dunno if that happens to you?

Yes.  I have had the swollen knuckles.  My most current thing is a swelling under my arm pit.  I was wearing some new bras.  Could be a connection there.  I used an antibacterial soap just in case it was an infection, stopped using antiperspirant for a few days...luckily I was at home and just used one of those crystal deodorants.  Also dabbed on some Curad Silver solution.  Swelling is down and there is only pain if I press on the area.  Prior the pain was constant. 

 

Am also suffering with my eyes.  They feel itchy and sticky.  Was in a hurry this morning and did not use the baby shampoo in the shower.  Did use a disposable eye scrub on my way out but it is not as effective.

 

Once, I had painful itchy swellings all over my legs.  Drove me nuts!  Thought I was getting bitten by mosquitos but never saw any present.  And I was in my house!

 

I also had problems when I worked in the Garden Shop at K Mart.  Whatever they put on the Hyacinth bulbs burned my skin.  I could carefully handle the packages at the register but if I were hanging them on the peg hooks, my hands and arms broke out terribly.  I used to look around for a kid and pay them a quarter to hang them up for me.  Of course this was years ago.  Would have to pay them a dollar or more these days.  Heh.