Overwhelmed By My Intolerances

[Becca27]

I have been quite ill for a long time and after 4 months gluten free, I decided to pay for a detailed food intolerance test that is available here in the UK as I realised there was something else going on which I thought would be lactose. My results came back yesterday and they are BAD. I'm trying to be positive by doing some research and meal planning but I wondered if anyone else could help with some ideas !

I am intolerant to the following (these foods are just the ones on my MUST avoid list!)

Beef

Cow's milk

Gluten

Wheat

Lamb

Yeast

Eggs

Almond

Soya

Coconut

Garlic

Tuna

Haricot beans

Kidney beans

Chickpeas

Lentils

I am mostly flummoxed by what I could have for breakfast now as conventional foods and their substitutes seem to be off the table. Also, are there any possible dairy substitutes ? Almond, soya and oat milk are a no go as a replacement for cow's milk and it has been made clear that lacto-free milk is not an option because I react to the milk protein not lactose.

I will be having a consultation with a nutritionist too but it seems just as important to ask people who are living with similar. Any help or advice would be so appreciated !

[1desperateladysaved]

I didn't tolerate 49 of 60 things I was tested for.  I don't have the same list, but can understand the over-whelmed feeling.  When I did cut out the offensive foods, I felt much better, so then it seemed more worth while.  In the beginning I simply kept going to the store and finding foods I had never tried before.  I found some favorites and have never failed to find foods to look forward to.

 

For you how about hazlenut (or other nut or sunflower seed) milk?  To make your own milk you would blenderize seeds and water add a little salt and perhaps some sweetener you tolerate.  There may be other varities of beans you could try such as pinto or black beans.  My SCD diet plan suggested soaking beans 24 hours and disposing of the water and getting fresh water before cooking.  I don't see any fruits on your list, so have a little fruit with your meals.  Vegetables I use include Bok choy, swiss chard, spinach, and collard greens.  I use jicama (vegetable)  to make a hash brown product which is delicious.    I can't use fennel anymore, but it is great for digestion and use to give me energy.  Fennel would be in a produce area and it looks a little like an onion with feathery green plume on top.  It is also a spice and that would look like greenish yellow little seeds.  I wonder if you could tolerate duck or quail eggs (or any other bird) besides chicken eggs?

 

For meats you might try another variety of fish such as cod, salmon, or sardines.  I know there are many other kinds of fish, but living in Minnesota, I do not know to many kinds.  I had to begin eating meats that I had never tried so have eaten Yak, bison, elk, and one other you can't have.  I also tested out okay for pork, so I have that.  I take it there were some foods you didn't have any antibodies to, so I would use them too.  Visit your market and search for some new foods.  I think you will find some you like.

 

For breakfast I would suggest meat or fish.  If I couldn't do eggs, I would cook a small amount of meat in a tiny crock pot over -night, so it was done by morning.  Along with mine I have substitute milk and frozen banana whirled together to make a shake.  If I could have any variety of nuts I would make Grain Free Granola which recipe I have gotten of the internet in the past.

 

I think the key is to avoid foods that make your body work hard while still incorporating as much varieties of food as you can.  Concentrated on only a few foods can lead to disaster in my opinion.  You will find things to eat.  Once I looked up vegetables in Wikopedia and noticed that I hadn't ever heard of most of the vegetables on the list.  Now, I have my eyes open for them.

 

Along with a variety of foods in your diet, you may want to consider digestive enzymes to help break your food down while you are healing.

 

All my best to you in healing,  I will follow this thread incase you have any more questions about following this diet.

 

Dee

[cyclinglady]

Those tests are not very accurate, but it is a start! Try keep a food log. Rotate your foods around. Test the foods on your list.

Do you have celiac disease? You might find with healing that many of your intolerances will diminish or go away all together with time (months or years depending on damage).

Oh, eat dinner for breakfast!

[bartfull]

Some folks shell out hundreds of dollars for "food intolerance testing". As of yet there is no scientific evidence that intolerance testing for anything other than lactose is anything but a scam.

 

Doubts cast on food intolerance testing

Allergists and gastroenterologists question the use of expensive but sought-after analyses

April 11, 2012|By Julie Deardorff, Chicago Tribune reporter

 

According to one lab that tests for "toxic food syndrome," eating green peppers may cause bloating or lethargy. Lemons might trigger headaches. Other common foods like corn, soy, egg whites, whey and chicken "may act like a poison in your body," the website warns.

This company and others promise to detect such hidden problems with blood tests that can range in cost from hundreds to thousands of dollars, depending on how many foods are tested for.

Other health practitioners may say they can diagnose food sensitivities by assessing muscle strength, by analyzing hair, gastric juice or body tissue, or by reading the body's "energy pathways." Consumers are told that dietary triggers can cause gastrointestinal complaints such as heartburn or irritable bowel syndrome as well as fatigue, attention deficit problems, autoimmune diseases and arthritis.

But allergists and gastroenterologists say that although food intolerance does occur — most of it involving specific food sugars like lactose or fructose — the tests being marketed to consumers have no scientific basis. Blood tests for food sensitivities are prone to false positives that can lead people to eliminate harmless foods from their diets, they say.

The best way to test for the problem is to eliminate various foods from the diet until the symptoms clear, then reintroduce them one at a time, experts say. None of the other tests is recommended by U.S. or European allergy or immunology societies or the National Institutes of Health.

"Blood testing is confusing to patients," said Elana Lavine, a pediatric immunologist in Toronto who now spends part of her time counseling anxious parents whose children have undergone food sensitivity testing. Armed with their itemized results, which list dozens of forbidden foods, they ask her what to feed their children.

Part of the confusion lies in the difference between food intolerances and allergies, terms that are often used interchangeably by testing companies, health practitioners and even in peer-reviewed medical journals.

In an allergic reaction, the immune system overreacts to a food by producing an antibody called Immunoglobulin E that causes hives, vomiting, diarrhea and respiratory problems, among other symptoms. To diagnose an allergy, allergists use a blood test that checks for IgE, skin prick testing and other methods. The gold standard is an oral food challenge, which involves eating small doses of the suspect food under medical supervision.

Food intolerances are unpleasant reactions that do not involve the immune system, according to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. They can be caused by enzyme deficiencies, sensitivities to food additives such as sulfites and monosodium glutamate, or reactions to naturally occurring chemicals.

For example, people who lack an enzyme needed to digest sugar in milk have lactose intolerance. Sulfites used to preserve dried fruit, canned goods and wine trigger asthma attacks in sensitive people.

Adverse reactions to wheat or the protein gluten come in several forms. Celiac disease is an immune system reaction to gluten that causes inflammation in the small intestine. A wheat allergy is an allergic reaction to wheat, almost always caused by the gluten. And gluten sensitivity means a person has symptoms after ingesting gluten but doesn't have either of the other conditions, said Stefano Guandalini, founder and medical director of the University of Chicago's Celiac Disease Center.

 

 

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So as time consuming and frustrating as it may be, the ONLY way to be sure of an additional intolerance to a food is to do an elimination diet and keep a food and symptom diary.

 

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[Becca27]

Thanks all for your input and advice.

Bartfull, There is so much conflicting information about tolerance testing and I did the best research I could before getting this test done and I'm happy that I made the right choice in having it, in so far as it's given me some areas to focus my attention. I thought dairy was a problem, the test shows it to be so I'm definitely going to focus on that most specifically. I understand your point however, and I agree in a lot of ways that perhaps there isn't adequate evidence to support it. A majority of recent articles about the test I had were very favourable from the standpoint of somebody already experiencing symptoms. I'm not putting too much faith in it's accuracy !

1desperateladysaved Thank you for your advice and ideas, I've been and bought some hazelnut milk which I had with oats for breakfast and I actually quite enjoyed it. As for the duck and quail eggs you mentioned, the test says to avoid all eggs at the moment which is disappointing because I LOVE having bacon and eggs for breakfast ! I'm hoping to be able to reintroduce eggs and some of the other foods after I've had more time to heal. HOPING, A LOT!

I do have coeliac disease, Cyclinglady, yes and I think perhaps my results have come back so strongly because there is likely damage to my gut that's throwing my digestion of other things out of whack. I've not long been diagnosed and although, I'm comfortable with the gluten free diet now, I was still feeling like I had been glutened all the time, despite being so careful. I was starting to realise it was probably something else because my gluten reaction is very severe but these reactions were not so bad, just a lot of digestive discomfort and irritability. The yeast and eggs thing is annoying in terms of the gluten free bread I was having, II don't think I'll miss it particularly, it's just nice to have the ease of convenience as I work in other cities a couple of days a week and like to take my own packed lunch.

I'm feeling much calmer thanks yo a bit of perspective and all your advice so far. I'll just have to be creative, and be consistent with myself. I've started a little food diary like you've suggested and I keep reminding myself that I can eat lots of GOOD food, being careful is only for my benefit and good health and things could be a lot worse !

[Renaye]

My list is similar to yours. I can not eat eggs or dairy and have other food that were troublesome. Vans has a frozen waffle that is easy for breakfast. I eat baked potatoes or sweet potatoes, vegetable or fruits. Some of orieda's frozen potatoes are gluten-free I have smoothies or various hot cereals. There is flax milk, rice and hemp that you can try. I eat daiya cheese and earth balance soy free butter. It takes some getting used to but is possible. I rotate my milks so now I can drink all kinds except soy. I do know my testing is accurate because if I eat eggs more than once in a while I am doubled over with pain. I have lived this way for 2 years and feel good. I am starting to eat an egg one time a week and some sharp cheddar cheese once in a while. No problems with eating it once a week in moderation. Good luck.

[bartfull]

When we first start the diet our guts are such a mess just about anything can set us off. Even lettuce gave me major problems at first. We need to concentrate on a few foods that don't bother us and then slowly add things back. Raw veggies are hard to digest, so eat them cooked at first. Processed foods of all types are full of ingredients that may be hard to digest. Stick to plain meats, rice, potatoes, cooked veggies, and a bit of fresh fruit at first. After six months or so you will be surprised at the foods you can add back to your diet.

 

All that being said, additional intolerances DO happen. Dairy of course is the first thing that should be eliminated because the part of the body that digests dairy is the villi, which on us is damaged. Other common intolerances are soy, corn, nightshades (potatoes, tomatoes, peppers and eggplant). But science has not come up with any kind of reliable test for any of these except dairy. Heck, they don't even have a test for non-celiac gluten intolerance! Elimination diet is the only sure way to find out what bothers you, and as I said, after time and healing most of those foods won't bother you anymore.

 

So keep your diet simple, keep a food and symptom diary, give it time, and you will soon have a much richer, fuller diet.

[charlieroseburns]

When we first start the diet our guts are such a mess just about anything can set us off. Even lettuce gave me major problems at first. We need to concentrate on a few foods that don't bother us and then slowly add things back. Raw veggies are hard to digest, so eat them cooked at first. Processed foods of all types are full of ingredients that may be hard to digest. Stick to plain meats, rice, potatoes, cooked veggies, and a bit of fresh fruit at first. After six months or so you will be surprised at the foods you can add back to your diet.

 

All that being said, additional intolerances DO happen. Dairy of course is the first thing that should be eliminated because the part of the body that digests dairy is the villi, which on us is damaged. Other common intolerances are soy, corn, nightshades (potatoes, tomatoes, peppers and eggplant). But science has not come up with any kind of reliable test for any of these except dairy. Heck, they don't even have a test for non-celiac gluten intolerance! Elimination diet is the only sure way to find out what bothers you, and as I said, after time and healing most of those foods won't bother you anymore.

 

So keep your diet simple, keep a food and symptom diary, give it time, and you will soon have a much richer, fuller diet.

Thank you for this post! I was searching this forum trying to figure out how (and when) people decide to cut foods from their diet. It was suggested that I stop dairy but I have been playing around with it. I will just eliminate it for now. Never knew about the raw veggies and fruits. My nutritionist had me supplementing all of my meals with juicing. This may explain all those bathroom runs and angry tummy. Only been doing this for 3 months so I am very new! Thanks again. :]

[Sammykins]

You can make porridge or Bircher muesli with quinoa (whole or flaked), millet, buckwheat, amaranth, polenta or a combination of these. You can have certified gluten free oats too if they are permitted on a gluten free diet where you live and you don't have problems with them. Top with sautéed mushrooms for a savory breakfast or dried or fresh or stewed fruits for sweet. Add some chopped nuts other than almonds of course, or stir through a nut or seed butter - maybe peanut or cashew or sunflower seed. Top with a sprinkling of psyllium husk for added fibre.

You can make your porridge or Bircher muesli with water or with an alternate milk such as hazelnut, quinoa or rice milk - make sure these are also gluten free and not fortified with chickpeas (rice milk sometimes contains chickpeas to boost the protein content). Look for vegan Bircher / overnight oats recipes since they will also be dairy free.

Buy or make your own gluten free granola/cereal with approved grains and seeds, dried fruits and approved nuts. Consider puffed corn, buckwheat, millet, rice, amaranth or quinoa, or rice flakes or rice bran.

Keep your eyes open for muesli/granola bars targeted to kids with multiple food allergies since a lot of adult ones also contain soy. You can also make your own muesli bars with approved grains/seeds/nuts and dried fruits. Bind them with a nut butter and sugar or sugar alternative such as golden, rice malt or carob syrup or honey, smashed banana or soaked and pulverised dates. Or make your own protein bars with brown rice protein or pea protein. Making your own bars is quicker and easier than you might think.

You can make sago or chia pudding made with water or an approved milk. Sago usually contains coconut milk but I see no reason why you can't just substitute an alternate milk!

Make a protein shake with fresh or frozen fruit (bananas make excellent thickeners), rice or pea protein, and water or an approved milk substitute. This will have more substance than the juices you've been having and see you energised until your next meal.

You can have yeast- and gluten-free toast or muffins or bagels, etc. topped with avocado or hot beans or cold smashed beans - there are many types of beans other than the ones to which you are intolerant. Or keep it even simpler with an approved nut butter or sunflower seed butter or jam or marmalade.

You can have dinner leftovers for breakfast - I particularly love mixed mushroom risotto for breakfast! Gluten free corn couscous also works well, you can make a breakfast variant too - it's a traditional meal!

Consider looking for gluten free vegan recipes recipe on the Internet. While you will have to filter out those which contain some of the other foods you are intolerant to, they are a good source of inspiration. The Oh She Glows blog has some great recipes and the author is very friendly and helps out with substitutions for those who need them.

There is a world of options open to you! Yes, you may need to do some cooking, but most of it is batch cooking and will set you up for a week or longer. Muesli/protein bars and cooked grains freeze well, cereal will last a long time too when stored well, Bircher muesli (or search for 'overnight oats' for US recipes) can be made in batches that will last a week.

[Sammykins]

Holy batman that was an essay!