I Got Sick After Eating Out Yesterday

[Sandi*]

I got sick yesterday after eating out in a Mexican restaurant. I tried to be very careful with my selection but got really bloated after dinner. It's still going on today, after 14 hours since the meal. Could anyone help me figure out what' went wrong?

I ate about 2 corn chips with salsa

Had chicken fajitas with corn tortillas, mexican rice (it was yellow but didn't have solid foods mixed in it), refried beans, tomato relish, and guacamole

The fajitas we made almost dry and I requested no fat. I only ate about half of the beans, and rice. The one culprit might be the fact that the guacamole was made with avocado plus sour cream. I didn't realize this as at home I never put sour cream into it. I can't tolerate dairy so that could be it, although I only ate maybe a teaspoon of this before realizing my mistake. So that could be it but usually dairy takes a while to affect me so I'm thinking it was something else. Anyone can help me figure this out?

[Nyxie63]

There could have been gluten in the seasoning for the rice or on the chicken. That's the only thing I could come up with.

[cruelshoes]

I got sick yesterday after eating out in a Mexican restaurant. I tried to be very careful with my selection but got really bloated after dinner. It's still going on today, after 14 hours since the meal. Could anyone help me figure out what' went wrong?

Here's my take in looking at what you ate:

corn chips with salsa - if they were made in a shared fryer that was used to fry gluten items, they would be contaminated. Did you ask if the fryer was dedicated to the chips or shared?

chicken fajitas with corn tortillas - Fajita seasoning can have wheat flour in it to make it stick to the chicken. Did you ask what was in the seasoning?

mexican rice (it was yellow but didn't have solid foods mixed in it) - seasonings and broth can be wheat based. Did you ask what was in the broth or seasoning?

refried beans - some refried beans have wheat flour in them to make them thicker. I have seen it with my own eyes at the grocery store.

It could be the dairy as you mention you have a problem with that. It could also be something other than gluten. There is also the obvious cross contamination to be factored in. Mexican food is trickier than people think, IMO. The shared fryer trips people up all the time. I hope you feel beter soon.

[kenlove]

We have 5 types of corn tortillas in Hawaii and only 1 of them is 100% corn. The rest are mixed with wheat. True of many of the chips too.

It's really a pain to eat out sometimes without asking to check the labels.

Hope your feeling better soon

Ken

I got sick yesterday after eating out in a Mexican restaurant. I tried to be very careful with my selection but got really bloated after dinner. It's still going on today, after 14 hours since the meal. Could anyone help me figure out what' went wrong?

I ate about 2 corn chips with salsa

Had chicken fajitas with corn tortillas, mexican rice (it was yellow but didn't have solid foods mixed in it), refried beans, tomato relish, and guacamole

The fajitas we made almost dry and I requested no fat. I only ate about half of the beans, and rice. The one culprit might be the fact that the guacamole was made with avocado plus sour cream. I didn't realize this as at home I never put sour cream into it. I can't tolerate dairy so that could be it, although I only ate maybe a teaspoon of this before realizing my mistake. So that could be it but usually dairy takes a while to affect me so I'm thinking it was something else. Anyone can help me figure this out?

[Mango04]

It could have been gluten, but mexican food often causes bloating (actually it almost always causes bloating) even for people who can tolerate all of those foods.

If you can't tolerate dairy, keep in mind that guacamole can sometimes contain dairy (a really great little authentic, local hole-in-the wall taco shop near my house in San Diego adds straight milk to theirs). You never know what could have ended up in the refried beans or the rice either. Hope you feel better soon.

[cyberprof]

Here's what I do at Mexican restaurants that you might try next time:

I don't eat the chips, which makes me sad but I bring a baggie of plain Doritos in my purse if I know in advance.

If it's a new restaurant, I order a "shell-less" tostado with beans, chicken, tomato and lettuce. I make sure that they know that if a wheat tortilla touches the plate, I'll get sick. (Language is an issue here, and you can get cards that say this in Spanish or have a Spanish-speaking friend write it down for you.) I've never gotten sick from the beans but I do ask what they put in the beans. The chicken is usually stewed but I ask about that too.

With fajitas, I would worry about the grill being contaminated along with the spices, as someone else mentioned. I don't eat the tortillas - just another risk.

I've also had good luck with carne asada (plain grilled beef) but I ask them to put aluminum foil on the grill. Seems to work.

And then a plain taco salad with no shell is good too. No beans, just veggies and chicken or beef.

Good luck!

~Laura

I've also had shrimp wrapped with bacon and grilled veggies.

[Sandi*]

Thank you everyone for your help! It just sounds so complicated (the diet) :-(. I try and be more careful/specific next time. However, I'm feeling better now.