Diagnosed W/ Too Many Food Allergies?

[jsb727]

I got tested for food allergies (prior to looking into celiac disease), and the test came back with TONS of food allergies. None of which I had ever noticed a reaction to before. Has anyone else experienced what I would call an "over-diagnosis" where they say you have tons of allergies you don't really have? I had the IgG Antibody Assessment through Genova Diagnostics.

The test showed I was allergic to dairy, alfalfa, broccoli, celery, cucumber, lemon, white potatoes, asparagus, cabbage, gluten, lettuce, spinich, avocado, cane sugar, corn, grapes, pecans, tomatoes, bananas, carrots, green peppers, and pineapple. Not to mention several others that were "low level."

My naturopath even said she'd never seen anyone's test come back with so many allergies. She had me go off all these items for 3 months to see if there was any change. I called her after two months (survived this diet from 12/1/07 to 2/1/08) and told her I couldn't take it any more. I still can't believe I made it through Christmas.

The only thing that concerns me is that even though I know I have celiac now, I have no symptoms if I eat something w/ gluten in it. I've been gluten-free for almost 4 months now (was diagnosed by biopsy in May). I'm sure I have to have had something with gluten in it within that time, either by cross contamination or accidentally. What if I just have no symptoms when I eat food I shouldn't eat?

[Rachel--24]

I got tested for food allergies (prior to looking into celiac disease), and the test came back with TONS of food allergies.

I've been gluten-free for almost 4 months now (was diagnosed by biopsy in May). I'm sure I have to have had something with gluten in it within that time, either by cross contamination or accidentally. What if I just have no symptoms when I eat food I shouldn't eat?

I'm assuming that you must have had symptoms which led you to have the food intolerance testing....and then to be tested for Celiac Disease?

If you are now symptom free...(after having been diagnosed and after 4 months on the diet) I would probably consider that to be a sign that you are doing well on the diet and that you are healing.

If you are concerned that you may still be consuming gluten (without having any noticeable reaction) you can have your bloodwork repeated to be sure that the antibody levels are going down and that they stay down.

The IgG testing is for food intolerances......which are different from food allergies. Allergies are IgE mediated and it would be unusual to have that many "true" allergies.

IgG mediated food intolerances can be temporary and may have been a result of intestinal damage (leaky gut) caused by undiagnosed Celiac Disease.

Food intolerance reactions are typically delayed reactions.....it can be difficult to link a particular food to the symptoms and the symptoms may seem unrelated to diet.

If you are still experiencing symptoms that you think might be caused by accidental glutening or by additional food intolerance....I would recommend keeping a food journal to help figure out what might be causing it.

[jsb727]

The original symptom I had that made me seek help is bone hypersensitivity (sometime around '93). Over the years I got sent to a couple rheumatologists, physical therapy, and a spine/sports specialist, none of which had the answer. I would go through phases where I would tell myself "this is not normal, someone should be able to diagnose this" and then I'd go to a couple doctors and not get any answers. So I'd wait a couple years and then go through the same series again. At one point I was diagnosed with fibromylgia (a diagnosis that didn't seem right to me... but I'm not a doctor). Finally I went to a naturopath, who tested me for food sensitivities, and eventually did the blood test for celiac at which point she referred me to a gastroenterologist for the upper endoscopy.

I have, however, noticed that I no longer get canker sores (which previously I had several of them at a time, and I would have them more often than not). I also don't have the sinus problems I've had for years. Those two symptoms I hadn't previously associated with gluten.

So, I don't get any symptoms from eating gluten or different foods. Although, I've gotten maybe 2 or 3 canker sores over the last several months... I haven't correlated it to eating gluten, but I'll keep an eye on it.

[SGWhiskers]

My testing for food allergies was only for the big 8. I came back positive for Milk and Egg. I had never had what I would consider allergic symptoms before and was surprised by the food allergies. I eliminated every trace of milk and egg in my diet for 1.5 years. The only changes I noticed were elimination of canker sores, and (gross alert) healing of a very small fissure or maybe tiny bleeding hemorroid. This tiny bit of blood came back if I slipped up and ate any milk. Since my other (undiagnosed Celiac) symptoms were not better, I added milk and eggs back with no other problems. 7 weeks ago, I started the Celiac diet and reduced my milk and egg comsumption to just what was in a little milk chocolate. The little blood remained until I again cut out all milk 3 weeks ago. Logic tells me that that tiny speck of blood is indicative of continued damage in my lower digestive system. Not a coincedental hemorroid like my earlier MD thought.

Anyway, my point is that even if you can't see the intestinal damage from food allergies, it may very well be going on inside. My new/good doc has recommended that for the first 6 months of healing, I don't have any allergens. Then I give them a test one by one. I don't think I'm going to challenge for 2 years.

Of course, I don't have as many allergies as you. Or maybe I do and have not been tested. Good luck. I'm sorry about the restricted diet.

SGWhiskers

[Juliebove]

My daughter was initially diagnosed with IgG allergies to wheat, gluten, peanuts, dairy, eggs, soy and banana. About 4 years later she was tested again. Now it is wheat, spelt, peas, lentils, peanuts and almonds.

The Dr. explained that those foods we eat a lot of tend to show as IgG allergies. She said my daughter could resume eating those foods she used to be allergic to, but only twice a week and not on consecutive days.

I was tested once and found to be allergic to dairy, eggs and almonds. I used to get canker sores when I'd get a virus, but have had them only a couple of times since and the last time they went away in a day. The dairy was also causing sinus and ear infections.

[Amyleigh0007]

My son was dx with allergies to corn, wheat, egg whites, clam, soy, walnuts, and peanuts. His dr also told us that he could eat these foods but with limits. We have to watch how much he consumes and if he has any reactions (because he has never had any visible reactions). For example, he can have waffles that contain egg but I would never give him a scrambled egg. So far he has not had any reactions except the hives on his esophagus that was discovered when he had his biopsy. The dr didn't think that was a reason to totally avoid those foods. He said the gluten free diet was hard enough to follow, adding all the above foods to that list would make finding foods that a picky 8 year old would eat nearly impossible.