A Useful Specialist?!

[penguin]

I'm not going to a nutritionist, she wouldn't be able to tell me what I already know.

I am, however, going to the allergist next week. I figure that since celiacs often have more than one allergy/intolerance, I figure I'll get tested for whatever I can. I'd also like to know what my reaction to nuts is all about.

I'd rather not learn about some intolerances through trial and error if I can help it

Sick of being sick. If anything can expedite the getting better process, I'll do it.

Since I already was dx celiac, that should get rid of some of the annoyance with allergists.

That said, any tips for going to an allergy dr? What should I ask about/for?

Hopefully I don't end up with wheat up my butt

Thanks in advance!

[jerseyangel]

Ha Ha--I will be watching for any answers you get to this since I am going to see an Allergist this Friday! I'm going for much of the same reasons as you are. After 8 months gluten-free, I am increasingly intolerant to other foods--especially other grains. I also want to be tested for actual allergies--since going gluten-free, I get tingly mouth symptoms when I eat almonds. I have figured a lot of this out on my own through trial and error, but I think I could use a little help now

In any event, I'll post after the appt. on Friday.

[tiredofdoctors]

Don't know from where you are, but in the US, allergists usually specialize in Allergy & Immunology. They often forget the Immunology part. Make sure yours doesn't. Celiac is an autoimmune disease. They need to find out not only what foods to which you "react" (Allergy), but also the foods to which you are "intolerant" (immunology). You may not "react" to wheat on a scratch test, but still have elevated antigliadin antibodies. They are two very different approaches. Good luck to you both . . . . . ((((hugs)))Lynne

[marciab]

Is he testing you for environmental allergies, like grasses, pollen and mold, or food allergies ?

My allergist regularly tests for environmental allergies, but not food allergies. I didn't know food allergies would cause stomach cramps, gas and bloating when I saw him, so I didn't ask to be tested for food allergies and he didn't test for them. So, unless you specify that you want to be tested for food allergies, they might not do it.

A year later, he did test my daughter for food allergies as well as environmental allergies because her throat swelled up and we had to call 911. Anaphylaxis really gets their full attention.

In my daughter's case there was a discrepancy between the skin prick tests, the RAST (IGE) tests, and what her body was telling her. I'll spare you the details. As a result, the allergist told her to LISTEN to her body. Bananas make her mouth tingle, so she needs to stay away from them. She initially had to avoid peanuts, because they appeared to make her swell up, but now she can tolerate pb from time to time. The list goes on.

Also, it turns out that some people have what's called a delayed allergic reaction. They supposedly waited long enough after my daughter's skin prick test to see that she had a delayed reaction. They didn't even mention it to me when they were doing mine. And my back swelled up really bad after I left there.

So, I'm listening to my body. If my stomach cramps after I have eaten something, I give it about a week, and then try it again. They are other allergic reactions (rashes, migraines, etc.) that you need to look for, but I haven't discovered any of those yet.

My allergist is an allergist / immunologist. And now I realize, I really should change allergists.

Hope that helps. Marcia

[penguin]

Thanks for that, I'm in it for the food allergy tests. Pfft, I already know I'm allergic to the air

I'm going to walk in and tell him that I have just been diagnosed with celiac disease, and that I've read that can often come with other allergies. If he looks at me funny I'll tell him that tree nuts make my mouth itch, because they do.

I really don't want to find other allergies out through trial and error.

[marciab]

ARe u familiar with the difference between allergies and intolerances ? I'm still learning all this myself. If you go to Webmd.com and type in food allergies, then click on food allergies and intolerances, they have a really good easy to understand explaination.

I've gotten pretty good at finding these foods on my own. Actually, I should say that my stomach lets me know right away now, if it likes something or it doesn't. I'm not cramping all the time anymore, so when I do, I can usually figure out what did it. Today, it was oj ... I tried to slip it in, cause I really wanted it, but my stomach had other plans.

It took me a long time to figure out that I was sensitive to all soy, not just soy milk. It is hidden in a whole lot of foods too.

Good luck to you. Marcia

[TCA]

A ood allergist can make all the difference. After trying some in my area, I started driving 6 hrs. to one in Mobile, AL. Dr. Leonard Caputo. the man is amazing. Try to check out the one you're going to. If you're anywhere near Dr. Caputo, I highly recommend him.

[ms-sillyak-screwed]

So how are these allergists treating you??? We all want to know....

I went to one (it was a kings randson) an allergist they scratched and needled me drew blood and told me only [some] of the foods I'm allergic to. Then he made some type of shot to counter act the foods I'm allergic to. IT MADE ME SICKER! I found it was a big waste of money. It's not like enviroments, mold, dust, cats kinda shots. They can't give us a shot and -- all better -- at least that wasn't my experience. Perhpas if you have asma it might be helpful...

[VydorScope]

Yes Chelse, we like our alergist. See my recent thread on him:

Open Original Shared Link

[pixiegirl]

Hmmm I didn't think there was a shot that could change your food allergies?

At any rate your allergist still may put you on a rotation diet after your testing results come back, mine did. I turned up allergic to a lot of stuff and I was told to leave it out of my diet for a few weeks, I was also give a drug (short acting, very few if any side effects) called Gastrocrom to take before meals. Which was supposed to help with allergic responses.... I also took zantac, all this to heal up my leaky gut.

Then after a few weeks I was able to start adding back, slowly the things I tested "low" positive too. And many of them I can now tolerate... some completely, some in small amounts. Certain things that I tested high positive to, like peanuts they want me to avoid forever.

I think the theory is (well at least its mine) ... that often diseases like Celiac or other GI problems causes your gut to be far to permeable, so when you eat molecules of food (molecules that are far too large) escape your gut and get into your blood stream. Normally your body never deals with such large food molecules because they stay in your gut, but when its leaky they do not.

Your body doesn't recognize these larges food particles and mounts an attack against them and that's your allergic reaction. So I think the hope is that if your gut gets totally healed these large food particles won't leak out and cause that allergic response.

For me that's how its working... many of the foods I tested "low" positive too I can now eat, but many of those in the mid range still bother me.

Hope this helps, its early and I'm rambling...

[ms-sillyak-screwed]

pixiegirl -- Thank you for that explaination. It makes sense.

You are right no magic shot for food allergies. This doctor was another liar to add to our list of NO-GO DOCS!

For me the rotation diet was a printed out form that came back from the lab. It had everything they had tested me for that I had a problem with eating, they wanted me to eat. @#$%^& -- What I mean to say is the lab just printed out a FORM ROTATION DIET that was a general diet, not eliminating the things they had tested me positive for. I can't believe they can take our money for nothing and get away with it. If I ate what the labs form letter recommened I would end up in the hospital.

I'm sure the concept works. I have begun to do it on my own. I was reading "Dangerous Grains" great book by-the-way, the author writes about rotating our diets otherwise we as celiac's will develope secondary food allergies, just as you have mentioned.

Thanks again pixiegirl!

[penguin]

I love my allergist, he made so much sense! He didn't question Celiac at all and said, "you probably had a sensitive stomach as a child, right?" Dead on, ancient doctor man! He explained all of the different foods and how they were related in the botany sense.

I told him that tree nuts like pecans and walnuts make my mouth itch, but almonds and peanuts don't. He said that's because you're allergic to tree nuts, but almonds are in the peach family and peanuts are beans. I knew that about the peanuts, but not the almonds.

He said he'd do the food testing, but that it would probably be negative and that the only way to know for sure is by elimination diet. Fair enough. I was IgE tested for a whole slew of foods and was negative to all of them (yay!). I think the only thing he didn't test for was nuts, since he already knew that was an allergy and that I had to stay away from them anyway.

The scratch tests sucked. He decided to do environmental allergens, as long as they were poking me anyway. No allergies to foods, but allergic to damn near everything else. Severely allergic to almost all molds, elm, grass, dogs and cats. One of the needle stick sites got cellulitis because I couldn't metabolize the mold spores. That was fun.

He also said that the drug companies tell you that you have to take Clarinex or Zyrtec for a week before it will work, but they work just as quickly and effectively as benadryl does. I love honest doctors. Of course, he's a fossil, so he was already practising before drug companies ruled the world.

Basically, it was a waste, because I didn't learn anything new, but at least I know I'm not allergic allergic to anything (other than nuts and air). I'm glad I did it though, because it's a baseline. He told me to put the cats outside and to add a hepa filter. Cats still sleep with me and I haven't bothered with the filter, I'm at a threshold where I'm ok most of the time because I've built up so many antibodies over the years.

[tiredofdoctors]

I just have to say it: A useful specialist? Isn't that an oxymoron????

[kabowman]

Glad you found an allergist you like and seems knowledegable.

My allergist used to try to tell me to keep the cats out of the bedroom, filters, sheet stuff, close the windows - I told him I wasn't doing any of that, the windows stay open (unless my son is having problems - then we do close them but not for me), we aren't staying inside, etc. He works with what I am willing to do.

I really like my doc - he was an army doc and gives me hints to avoid extra meds and what the really safe levels of meds are and you can take about twice what the labels say which often brings you to the rx level.

His wife, in the same practice, was an army pediatrition before this so that is who my son sees - I like her equally well. I even chatted with her about celiac disease for my son (nobody in our family has been offically tested--I have not done any blood work for celiac disease myself) and she is very aware because it is in her family and knows that not everyone is symptomatic but for now, we are watching since we have fixed his heartburn and most potty problems with the asthma meds and elimination of lactose.

[ms-sillyak-screwed]

I told him that tree nuts like pecans and walnuts make my mouth itch, but almonds and peanuts don't. He said that's because you're allergic to tree nuts, but almonds are in the peach family and peanuts are beans. I knew that about the peanuts, but not the almonds.

ChelsE -- thank you for that information. Now I know why when I eat peaches I get tiny mouth blisters. I have issues with almonds, peanuts, and SOY.

This sounds odd but my chropractor is doing me more good then any of these other doctors I've been to. I have been able to put on about 7 or 8 lbs, I'm up from 99lbs. And I'm sleeping better too. He is 're-setting' my digestion system and my body some how.