Allergic To Too Much And Don't Know What To Eat Anymore

[Sandi575]

I am having a very difficult time finding things to eat. I have been gluten-free since March but also just found out recently that I am allergic to most fish, chicken, beef, pork, cinnamon, cows mild, and i am very highly fructose intolerant. I don't know what to eat anymore! Anyone have any recipes they can share with me? I was just getting used to eating gluten-free and trying my hardest to not feel cheated by what i can't eat anymore and now this. I want some kind of variety. And to top it off, I am not feeling any better after eliminating all of this. I honestly feel just as i did when i first went for testing back in February. The only difference is that i am no longer "starving" ALL the time. I am still so tired and sluggish, my stomach is always cramped up. Yesterday i sat at work and cried it hurt so bad. Any suggestions and/or recipes would be greatly appreciated!

[masterjen]

I have no suggestions, unfortunately, as I am still battling food issues, too. I have a question for you, though: how was it determined that you were allergic and/or sensitive to all these foods? What sort of tests were done? I'm wanting to find out what else might be bothering me, but my Dr. just says that additional food sensitivities (in addition to gluten, that is) are not common, and uses that as a rational for me to not be tested . . .

[sb2178]

I'd suggest sitting down and making a list of what you CAN eat by food group. It's far more encouraging than a list of what you can't eat. Maybe even start in a grocery store or from wikipedia or a cookbook so you don't forget the things you don't usually eat. Caveat: I don't really know what you have to avoid for the fructose issues, so don't actually follow these lists!

For example:

Protein: turkey, egg, lamb, duck, goat, (nuts?, soy?, beans?, shellfish?, peanuts?)

Dairy: Goat's milk, sheep's milk and their yogurts and cheeses

Vegetables: sweet potato, summer squash, green beans, spinach, chard, kale, collards, winter squash, broccoli, cauliflower, turnips, rutabaga, beets, bok choy, cabbage, etc

Herbs: oregano, thyme, sage, mint, dill...

Spices: cumin, chili pepper, black pepper, coriander, etc

Oil: olive, canola, walnut...

Then you have a list that you can build meals from. Aim for half of your plate being fruit and vegetables, one quarter grain or starchy veg like potatoes, and one quarter protein. Dairy can sub in for protein or being added for a drink or dessert. If not, take a calcium supplement.

And sometimes, you just have to sit down and be mad at the world that you can't have that chocolate bar or piece of pizza you *really* want. I think everyone on here gets that.

quote name='Sandi575' date='19 May 2010 - 04:37 AM' timestamp='1274272651' post='611564']

I am having a very difficult time finding things to eat. I have been gluten-free since March but also just found out recently that I am allergic to most fish, chicken, beef, pork, cinnamon, cows mild, and i am very highly fructose intolerant. I don't know what to eat anymore! Anyone have any recipes they can share with me? I was just getting used to eating gluten-free and trying my hardest to not feel cheated by what i can't eat anymore and now this. I want some kind of variety. And to top it off, I am not feeling any better after eliminating all of this. I honestly feel just as i did when i first went for testing back in February. The only difference is that i am no longer "starving" ALL the time. I am still so tired and sluggish, my stomach is always cramped up. Yesterday i sat at work and cried it hurt so bad. Any suggestions and/or recipes would be greatly appreciated!

[sb2178]

Oh and you may be able to add things back in over time-- dairy usually comes after a few months, but sometimes it can take years. I have a friend who is finally able to eat legumes after about five years.

Ditto that on making sure that the blood tests correlate with internal misery via an elimination diet or variation. They don't always.

[Sandi575]

Oh and you may be able to add things back in over time-- dairy usually comes after a few months, but sometimes it can take years. I have a friend who is finally able to eat legumes after about five years.

Ditto that on making sure that the blood tests correlate with internal misery via an elimination diet or variation. They don't always.

Thanks! I will try that. And to MasterJen: I took it upon myself to have an allergy test done just to make sure there wasn't anything else I shouldn't have that I was eating. When I talked to the allergist after hearing what i had to say, he suggested I also get a breath test done to determine if I was also Fructose Intolerant too.

[mommida]

sb gave you some great advice there!

We had to do some extreme diet restrictions in our house for the last 2 years. Some of those restrictions have been challenge approved and are being added back in. Guess what? We have found we have some "new" favorite foods. Never even tried hummus before~ love it! Liz Lovely cookies no gluten, casein, egg don't have the package to tell you what else wasn't in there~ AWESOME! (They still have the CYA made in a facillity statement and carefull you get/order the right gluten free cookies.)

[missy'smom]

I'd suggest sitting down and making a list of what you CAN eat by food group. It's far more encouraging than a list of what you can't eat.

This is the advice I usually give as well. In addition, I took all my spices and put the ones I currently can't have and stuck them in the back of the cabinet so that I am not having to visually sort through them every time. Did the same with the freezer stash-moved them to the freezer in the garage so that only the things with ingredients that we CAN have are in the main fridge and freezer in the house. There are some easy subs for milk, which one you use depends on what you are making-chicken broth, pureed potato or caiflower, conunut milk, almond or rice milk etc.

As for symptoms/ how you are feeling I got my list of avoids through allergy testing too. However, when I eliminated all of them for 4 weeks, I felt so much better. That's what convinced me that I really did have a problem with them. The big "BUT" in this is that I did it after 2 years gluten-free. I wonder if you still haven't healed enough on gluten-free to notice a difference when you removed the allergens. Are you extra careful with CC and really anal about checking every little thing to be SURE it doesn't have gluten in it before it goes down the hatch? Per allergists instructions, I am reintroducing foods one at a time about one per week to see if or what symptoms present. However, I have a happy GI tract to start with now so that helps to give me something to compare to. If something shows symptoms, back out it goes and in time I'll retry at the end of the rotation if the symptoms were unclear or mild. Others may stay out permanently or be out for a year, then retried. So far, some of them have been out long enough(because I have a LONG list to go through) that I am no longer reacting. It can be done and there is hope. Have you reported back to your allergist as to how it's going so far? Maybe they can give some support and direction? Hang in there. All the best to you on this journey.

[T.H.]

Oh goodness, I feel your pain!

Same thing happened to me. I went gluten free last August and soon after I started reacting to all sorts of thing. Miserable, sick all the time. Sluggish, exhausted, gut pain and cramping, the whole deal. It got worse, as well.

So...here's what I did, in case it helps, and some ideas for other stuff it might be, that I was tested for.

WHAT I DID:

- I stopped eating food for a day or two. This was mostly because at the time I thought maybe I had a stomach flu, but after I stopped food, I felt better (hungry, but better).

- As soon as I started eating again, I was sick as a dog, so I ended up Keeping a food log, and eating 1-2 foods a day, adding them back in very, very slowly. For the food log, I wrote down what I ate (ingredients, brand name, cooking tools used) and how I felt.

- Within a few days, I noticed a pattern. Some reactions with within seconds to minutes after I ate. I also had some thing happen 24 hours later, too. Some things I found out later I was allergic to, and some don't test as a problem, but I feel terrible if I eat them.

I have found foods to eat that don't make me sick, but it's been a slow road, and I have to try things slowly, one new food every few days. Looking up anything I know I react to, and avoiding the entire family of foods, has helped narrow down my choices. I've only got 8 I can eat right now without getting ill. Sometimes I can eat a new food for a few weeks, and then I start reacting, but I'm aware now and I drop it and feel better once I do.

Some stuff that might be worth checking for you?

- Have you checked out all the foods to avoid for fructose malabsorption? There's a good site that has the fruits, veggies, grains to avoid for people with this, and since you have problems with fructose, I thought it might relate? Open Original Shared Link

- Has anyone checked you for Chron's Disease? That also makes you react to lots of foods.

if you are just very sensitive, hyper-reacting to foods like I am, then these might apply (My doc thinks that within 2 years, if I keep avoiding bad foods and slowly adding ones in, the reactivity to go down).

--Being very sensitive, foods 'made on equipment that also processes....' is enough to get me.

--If you are very sensitive, food that is derived from something, even if 'there are no detectable levels of so-and-so' in it, could be a problem. Partially because if it is derived from something, it can still be contaminated by it AFTER processing.

--It's amazing what can make you react. Your water softener (corn sensitive people can react to that), your shampoo (if it touches your lips or gets in your mouth), chapstick, lipstick, construction nearby (dry wall dust has gluten in it), paper plates (starch is often added to keep them from sticking together), salt (they usually add an anti-caking agent, usually corn), vitamins (they have TONS of ingredients that can do you in), oils (often contaminated with nuts and seeds). I literally had to check everything that went into my mouth.

--If you are really sensitive, you may need your own set of pans, cooking utensils, plates, etc.... I continued reacting to food cooked in pans that I cooked for the family in, no matter how much I cleaned them. Now that I have my own pans, I do okay.

That's all I can think of. I wish you luck!

I am having a very difficult time finding things to eat. I have been gluten-free since March but also just found out recently that I am allergic to most fish, chicken, beef, pork, cinnamon, cows mild, and i am very highly fructose intolerant. I don't know what to eat anymore! Anyone have any recipes they can share with me? I was just getting used to eating gluten-free and trying my hardest to not feel cheated by what i can't eat anymore and now this. I want some kind of variety. And to top it off, I am not feeling any better after eliminating all of this. I honestly feel just as i did when i first went for testing back in February. The only difference is that i am no longer "starving" ALL the time. I am still so tired and sluggish, my stomach is always cramped up. Yesterday i sat at work and cried it hurt so bad. Any suggestions and/or recipes would be greatly appreciated!

[Mari]

I have had some relief by using the Specific Carbohydrate Diet and there is a recepie book you can buy. The diet is gluten-free and their list of legal and illegal foods is online. The book that describes the diet goes into more detail than the website. I have been able to add a number of foods back to my diet - I couldn't eat carrots but now I eat lots of them.

[Coolclimates]

I can relate. I also am allergic to foods that are high in oxalic acid. These include spinach, beets, sweet potatoes, dark green leafy vegetables, berries, nuts, spices, soy, chocolate, tea, coffee and more. With me, the oxalic acid forms tiny crystals in my bladder and then peeing is very painful and I get all irritated afterwards. I felt like this was bad enough but now with all this gluten stuff, I feel rather overwhelmed. I just hope to hell I don't have dairy allergies or anything else.

[luvs2eat]

I can relate. I also am allergic to foods that are high in oxalic acid. These include spinach, beets, sweet potatoes, dark green leafy vegetables, berries, nuts, spices, soy, chocolate, tea, coffee and more. With me, the oxalic acid forms tiny crystals in my bladder and then peeing is very painful and I get all irritated afterwards. I felt like this was bad enough but now with all this gluten stuff, I feel rather overwhelmed. I just hope to hell I don't have dairy allergies or anything else.

That's exactly what my daughter's going thru (the 3rd in our family to be diagnosed). She's also cut out dairy and spices and so many things... she's down to about 5-6 kinds of protein and few veggies... no fruits, etc. She's getting too thin!!