For Those Of You With A Wheat Allergy

[passionfruit877]

I react to gluten or wheat, and I was starting to think that I might actually have an allergy. My doctor didn't think so, but I'm starting to doubt it. The longer I am off gluten the more severely I react to it (Ive gotten dizzy and thrown up). I usually react within 15 minutes. Can those of you who have wheat allergy tell me what your symptoms are like?

[missy'smom]

Why don't you try allergy testing and see what shows up. My son ate a frozen pizza and vomited and got tiny itchy red rash on his hand so I took him in for blood and skin allergy testing and wheat showed a reaction so we tried gluten-free and his eczema cleared up. Came back when gluten was re-introduced so he's gluten-free now. It's not clear what is going on but we know that gluten/wheat bothers him. He was recently re-tested with skin testing for food allergies and wheat was negative this time-it's been a year since the last time and since he went gluten-free. We are looking at the genes to see if that gives us any clarification. We may not get a clear cut DX but he will remain gluten-free. It is possible to have both allergy and celiac disease from what I understand. If you get severe, immediate symptoms it may be important for you to know if it is an allergy that could become anaphalactic and require you to carry an epi-pen.

[passionfruit877]

I was going to request an allergy test, I was just wondering if I am on the right track. My doctor said an allergy would have been more obvious before now. I have been on a gluten free diet for almost 3 months now with good results, but now when I accidentally get wheat my reactions are worse. I have thrown up twice and got very dizzy one time, I didn't know if gluten could cause such quick reactions or not. I also sneeze if there is something like pizza cooking, and I already have sinus allergies. I think I want to try and get an allergy test done.

[missy'smom]

We've found allergy testing to be very beneficial and our new allergist is current on celiac disease and gluten issues so we've been very fortunate in finding him. You should call around and see if you can find someone like that. Ask if they do testing for food allergies and how they approach it. Our previous allergist was completely uninterested in dietary changes unless an anaphalactic allergy was diagnosed. Our current allergist is much more interested in exploring food issues and making dietary changes and does the testing differently as well-unlike our previous one, they test more cautiously-just puddle first, then prick, do some things in small numbers/groups first and then add more so that they know exactly what we react to. You might want to ask questions like that before deciding on who you will go to, and unless you insurance requires it, you don't need to go through your doctor. You can just go on your own and fill him in on the results later. I mentioned some possible allergic reaction to my doc. and he kind of avoided it too. I think generally he's a good doc. but it just isn't his area of expertise and allergies can change and symptoms can vary.

My sinuses cleared up quite a bit when I took out dairy. I was suprized as I didn't realize there was a link. Testing has revealed other strong alleries that are contributing so I'm working on addressing that and will see if that clears it up further.

Good luck to you! I hope that you'll be able to find a good health care team member and get the answers that will help you.

[passionfruit877]

Thanks! I didn't realize you didn't have to go through your doctor. Even if I don't have a wheat allergy, perhaps they know a little about gluten then.