Other Allergies And Intolerances

[Kaycee]

I am coeliac, who isn't?

Okay, it seemed to start with that my diagnosis had all the answers and things were getting better. But a few weeks in, things were not really that much better, and I still had a lot of the symptoms. So I thought I probably need time to heal and get better, but that is where things are not getting better so going gluten free was not the total answer. I would never have thought I had any other intolerances. So I discounted that, but I can't discount it any longer. Sounds like I am like most others on this forum.

I feel I am as gluten free as I can be. I prepare all my foods, rerad labels dilligently, so I should know what is in them.

About four weeks back I toyed with the idea of not eating any soy, nuts as in peanuts, additives and colours, chocolate, spirits and legumes, apart from frozen varieties. I did stick to drinking a wine now and again, and have not given up milk or yoghurt. Hopefully I can presume that has been fine. So I went ahead with the changes and I must admit I felt wonderful, and did not have a bout of diahrhea the whole time, except for one night, but that was that. My cycle had changed from four days okay, four days not so good, to feeling wonderfull, well better, for a good two weeks in a row. So I feel I had eliminnated something that was giving me greif.

I then thought on Monday it is time to re-introduce something, and that something happened to be peanuts, as in peanut butter. The first day was pretty uneventful, so I kept at the peanut butter. The next day was when my stomach felt a bit rough, and then had a bit of indigestion, burps, and then not quite diahrhea but nearly, and I felt a bit bloated. Are these symptoms to which I should heed and think, those peanuts will be off the menu from now on. So I have been eating peanut butter for four days, and the weird thing is I am thinking I am not even enjoying this. I guess I should stop and presume this is one of the problems. I just hope there are no more problems.

Now when should I reintroduce the next item, should I wait until the peanut reactions are all gone, like say give it another week to be sure? Chocolate will be difficult, as it seems to have soy in it. So I guess I should try soy milk on its own first. But then I might never get to the chocolate if I can't tolerate soy! I am getting a little bit inconsolable here. And lentils and dried peas etc, could just about wait till next winter, as it is getting warmer, just a tinsy bit.

Another thing, if there are other intolerances, or could they be allergies, even if the reaction is not immediate, does that mean like in gluten I can not eat the product again?

Can anybody give me some good advice on how to proceed next. I thought I might have a peanut slab tonight, and then ditch the peanuts. Are roasted peanuts on their own different in toxicity to peanut butter. Should I give all types of peanuts a good going over?

It is close to tea time, no wonder I am food obssessed and crumpy.

Cathy

Cathy

[gf4life]

Okay, I'll give it a shot here, but forgive me if I forget to answer anything...

You should definitely stop eating the peanut butter and wait until the symptoms stop before trying another food.

It would probably be a good idea to try a soy-only product to test soy. And you might have to have some each day for a few days before you get a reaction. So soy milk might be a good choice, but make sure it is gluten free, since not all are.

You might not notice a reaction from the soy in the chocolate, since it is usually the proteins that cause the allergy/intolerance and many people who can't eat soy protein can tolerate the soy oil and soy lecithin products quite well. I am allergic to soy, but I can tolerate the oil/lecithin, but I still do limit how often I indulge...

As for if you do have other intolerances or food allergies, you wouldn't necessarily have to eliminate that food 100% forever like gluten. Most intolerances do not damage the intestines (like gluten does), so having them occasionally usually isn't a problem unless the reaction you get is so severe that you can't stand it. Then it would be in your best interest not to eat it. Like with the peanut butter. If you had a little bit one day, you might not have any symptoms, but when you eat it everyday it bothers you. So if you had it once or twice a month it might be okay. You have to weigh your own reaction and how severe your symptoms are against how badly you want to eat that food. Sometimes you just have to eat the food! As long as it is gluten free, that is!

I do occasionally eat gluten free soy sauce (in gluten-free chinese food), but I know that I have to follow it up with a dose of Benadryl or I will start itching horribly. I can not eat soy cheese or tofu at all or I get breathing problems, so I don't even go there. I have eliminated all dairy products, but do occasionally allow myself an ounce of cheese with little problems (mostly mild gas and bloating). If I were to sit down and have a big bowl of ice cream or some milk, then I would suffer. So what I am saying is, eliminate the foods that bother you, but you don't have to stress about it. If you get a small amount then it usually isn't a problem.

You should keep a journal of what you eliminated and when you reintroduced it. Keep track of your symptoms each day when trying a new food, and if they go away when you stop eating it again. You should have at least a week or two between trying a new food, and certainly be symptom free or you will not be able to tell if it is old symptoms hanging around or new ones. But a journal will help you remember which foods you have tried and what your reaction was. Months down the line you will be happy you did it. Also your reactions to different foods can change over time and it would be useful to compare in the future.

I hope this helps.

[Ursa Major]

Hi Cathy. Well, it looks like you are on the right path. It actually sounds like you are intolerant to at least some of the lectin groups. And peanuts fall under legumes (like soy, all beans but green beans, lentils, split peas etc.).

If you have problems with peanut butter........and I think I understand your reaction, like just feeling sort of icky, sour burps, stomach feeling sort of off, rumbling in the intestines, feeling bloated, and almost diarrhea which kind of burns on its way out........that is exactly how peanuts make me feel. And no, you should not try all kinds of different ways peanuts can present themselves. They will all give you the same reaction. Admit it, you're intolerant to them (not allergic, its not that deadly allergy, even though it can get there if you keep eating them).

So, it is possible you can't tolerate other legumes, either. Probably especially soy, somehow many people who are intolerant to peanuts can't tolerate soy, either (and some people deathly allergic to peanut also get the same anaphylactic reaction to soy).

The other lectins are: eggs, dairy, all grains (including rice and corn) and nightshades. So, you're really looking at testing (other than eggs) families of things.

To make it easier, try eggs next. In order to make sure you are done with symptoms, even delayed ones, from the peanut challenge, wait a week after all symptoms are gone. Leave at least a week (better two) between different challenges, to make sure you don't miss delayed reactions.

Write down any reactions you have, even minor ones, for each food. That includes neurological ones, like sudden depression, insomnia, being angry without cause (or reacting with rage to minor annoyances), weepiness, tingling in extremeties, numbness etc., as well as gastro-intestinal ones, or rashes, hives, anything at all out of the ordinary.

I believe you would do well to follow the lectin link in my signature. The owner of the site explains things in great detail. Also, she says that after being gluten-free for about a year, most people with lectin intolerance end up just being intolerant to one or two of the lectin groups for life, but will be able to have the other ones again. I am saying most people, because obviously, that means that some may have to stay off all lectins for life.

From the reactions I still get to grains, gluten or not (especially rice gives me almost the same reaction as gluten grains), I don't think I'll ever be able to have grains again. I seem to be able to have small amounts once in a while of the other ones, but if I keep eating them I start getting really achy and tired and irritable.

As for the chocolate, you will have to try to find one without soy lecithin (which will be a challenge, of course), to try it.

[kabowman]

Enjoy Life Foods has dairy, soy, corn, gluten free chocolate chips!!! Work great, taste great. Maybe you can order online if you can't find anything locally.

Now, I cannot have most legumes but some are still OK for me - you have to try each one to see if it bothers you. For a long time, I could still eat peas and have only recently given those up. Peanuts and soy I had to give up right away. Also, I can have regular lettuce but cannot have spinach. Who knows - but I know what my body tells me and it doesn't care if it doesn't make sense to my head.

Keep the food diary with all symptoms, even if they seem unrelated (sore joints, swollen glands, plus tummy troubles, D., etc.) - it is a royal pain but boy does it help.

I used to eat bananas but found they were bothering me no matter how ripe or green they were (yeast is an issue for me) but I can eat strawberries as long as they are not too ripe. It just depends.

Like they have said, wait until your tummy is better before introducing a new food, it may take 2-3 days, it may take a week - only you know your body. I only have to wait about 4 days personally. It is a slow process but in the end, totally worth it.

[Kaycee]

Thank you for your replies, they have been helpful, and I think I was heading in that direction.

True it is long and time consuming, but I have to do it, or else I will bore everybody by complaining about my intolerances.

gf4life, you did answer my questions, by just reaffirming how I thought I should go about it. I do keep that food journal, it is my life line. I started it when dieting, nearly two years ago, which I still am, grumble grumble. So at first it was just a list of food and calories consumed, then it changed and included symptoms, and then I went gluten free and I still had the symptoms. Now it is mentioning bowel movements, moods, reactions, plus all foods eaten, brand names would go in there, if I ever ate anything with a brand name on it. But then peanut butter had a brand name on it. Now that peanut is off the menu, I will highlight and make a note of when to try the next thing. and soy be it. Lol.

Ursula I have thought about lectins, I do read what you say, and you have been the one to put the idea in my mind about other things, I knew it couldn't be the gluten still causing all the problems as as far as I knew I was not eating it. But as I have continued to eat potatoes and corn and eggs, rice and milk, over the last few weeks and they don't seem to bother me, I won't be testing them just yet. But there is always the maybe later on they will bug me.

Yes Ursula, I hadn't thought to mention the slight burning on the way out. Funny how we focus on different things when we present our symptoms. For chocolate I could always make home made fudge or some devillish caramel fudge! It seems I cook more and more now, only thankful the family is getting smaller (did I say thankful, I didn't mean it that way) and there are not as many mouths to feed. What I was trying to say, if I still had all four sons (instead of two) at home and the husband, I would not find the time to work nearly full time and do all of my other things, let alone browse through this forum. Cooking does mean time, but the time factor is not such a problem now. I think I am learning how to manage my time better.

Kabowoman, how did the bananas bother you? I seem to be fine with one banana a day, but now it is about two a week, as long as it is ripe, they taste better. But occassionally I would have two in one day, and then I would end up with a mouth sore, I blamed them, as there was that pattern, of too much banana, have sore. Same thing happened with the green kiwi I was eating a few weeks back. The yellow, or gold kiwis are to die for. They are sweeter and not so tart. Don't know if you can get them over there but look out for them, of course they have be new zealand made.

Kiwi cath

[mle-ii]

Also, peanuts are hard for the digestive system to digest. Perhaps a digestive enzyme might help if your body is having a hard time with it and it's not an intolerance/allergy.

[kabowman]

My banana problem just affects my GI. However, tomatoes I have to limit, I can eat them a few days a week but more than that and I am in trouble.

I notice one of my first symtoms now is my sore knees, if they are acting up then maybe it isn't something funky, something doesn't like me any more and I need to figure it out.