Food Sensitivity Masked By Eating It With Other Foods?

[desperateforhealth]

After being gluten and dairy free (and eating almost only unprocessed whole foods, AND taking a probiotic every day) for a month but still experiencing some stomach issues, I am trying to investigate whether I am possibly sensitive to nightshades or something else. I have tested for corn somewhat and I don't think that is it.

I have a question--is it possible that by eating a harmful food with other food (for example, potatoes in a chicken soup vs. baked potato by itself) would cause less of a reaction, therefore skewing my experiments?

[ciamarie]

Possibly, it may depend on what it is and sometimes other things may slow the digestion of the offending item. I think for the most part, the reason you'd want to eat items you want to 'test' by themselves is to be able to isolate what you may be reacting to. For instance, if you react to potato chips you might suspect you have a problem with potatoes, but it may be you have a problem with the oil or something else found in the processing.

Or, if you react to yogurt, you might think that means you have an issue with dairy, when it might be some ingredient in that yogurt (carageenan, corn syrup, etc.) that's giving you the problem. So before you exclude everything dairy, you might need to test just milk, or cheese or both.

However, might you react more strongly to an item by itself than if it's mixed with something else, it's hard to say. Do you have a specific example of that happening for you, that might assist in helping to narrow it down?

[desperateforhealth]

Thank you for the reply! I agree--isolating very specific ingredients is important. I used to drink a lot of straight milk and have problems so I am pretty solid on that.

Mostly my problem is gas, so it's harder to gauge in terms of reactions. It's like, if you have D after eating something specific then you have a pretty good idea that it is a problem, but for me it's like, I have a lot of discomfort and gas LATER ON so that by then I have eaten a lot of different things so I don't know which one it was.

For example--I had some straight potatoes early in the day yesterday and nothing unusual besides that, and then had a lot of problems with gas in the late evening. Today I had some straight potatoes and had similar gas problems a few hours afterwards. Then I had potatoes in chicken soup but my stomach seems totally fine.

(by the way, I don't usually eat so many potatoes--I went several days without any and I had less gas but maybe it's because all I was eating was brown rice, vegetables, and some chicken; NOT because I was avoiding potatoes, necessarily)

BUT also, I think it could be that I have slight intolerance to xantham gum. But I can't figure that out for sure either because there are plenty of ingredients other than that in the gluten-free muffins I make.

Does all that make sense? Let me know if I didn't explain something right, my brain isn't at its best today...

[Lisa]

After being gluten and dairy free (and eating almost only unprocessed whole foods, AND taking a probiotic every day) for a month but still experiencing some stomach issues, I am trying to investigate whether I am possibly sensitive to nightshades or something else. I have tested for corn somewhat and I don't think that is it.

I have a question--is it possible that by eating a harmful food with other food (for example, potatoes in a chicken soup vs. baked potato by itself) would cause less of a reaction, therefore skewing my experiments?

Are your probiotics dairy free? If you have Celiac, it might take several months to heal. Continue on a gluten free diet and after some months if you still have unresolved issues, address other intolerance. One month in not much time to draw conclusions. Eat clean and simply.

[desperateforhealth]

Yes, they are.

Thank you for the advice, it's encouraging to know that I still have a chance of gluten/dairy being my only problem...

[mushroom]

I have long been a proponent of the theory (based entirely, I might add, on personal experience and supposition) that one's degree of tolerance of a particular food can depend upon what it is eaten with. For example, pizza, although gluten laden, was always a comfort food for me because (for me) it was always laden with cheese, pepperoni, mushrooms, olives - a very high fat proposition, which is why I didn't eat it very often For some ingredients, they are very hard to test in isolation because they always go hand in hand with another. I wanted to test mannitol and had to get a prescription for it filled at the hospital pharmacy because it was impossible to obtain in isolation. (In fact, it was hard to find it in anything, but it had been in a sublingual B12 I reacted to, and it was going to be in an injectable med. I take so I wanted to be sure (it was okay so I still don't know what was in the B12 )

I think that sometimes when a food is eaten with a bunch of other things, that it does not come into contact so directly with the intestinal lining before digestion has avanced far enough to keep you from reacting to it. But when consumed alone it has nowhere to hide I am not sure how you would test xanthum gum apart from dissolving in water and drinking it (probably wouldn't dissolve anyway, but the water would get it down)

By the way, my problem is mostly gas too, although nightshades eventually ended up giving me hives and other reactions. It took me a couple of years to work out my intolerances, as I still had a leaky gut and kept developing new ones on top of gluten, corn and soy..

[desperateforhealth]

That makes perfect sense. I will try to test things more thoroughly in isolation in the future. I have to admit that I am terrified to think I might have to avoid nightshades/something else though. I have somehow been able to bear life without wheat and dairy, but potatoes and tomatoes too? Or corn?! Gahh. I can't imagine what I would eat besides rice.

But, mushroom, if you don't mind me asking, how is your gas now? Is gas one of the symptoms that can actually... go away? Maybe that's a weird question. I have hope of decreasing my gas but I can't imagine it going away completely. I guess it's not supposed to--healthy people have gas too.

[GottaSki]

Hi dee ho- just wanted to add to the gassy topic. I had horrible, aweful, increasingly smelly gas over the past five years....I tried in vane to isolate my problem foods until I did full elimination.

It is extremely difficult at first, yet finding everything that was causing my failing health is priceless -- added bonus - I've been gas free for months!

Good luck to you!

[desperateforhealth]

If I may ask, GottaSki--what did your problem end up being? Oh, nevermind, I just read your signature.

Did your gas actually get worse after going gluten-free? At first, I mean.

By the way, love the Switchfoot reference, I am actually listening to them right now.

[mushroom]

My gas is mostly pretty good, but I am battling it at the moment (see my doc tomorrow) after a course of IV antibiotics, and I suspect a resulting small intestine bacterial overgrowth or even c.diff I have been living on probiotics and digestive enzymes but I think I need to be tested. I hate antibiotics!!! (but sometimes we need them).

[desperateforhealth]

Aww! I can empathize. Every single one of my problems began two years ago when I started taking antibiotics for my acne. I will never stop regretting that--it screwed up my gut so bad. I remember back when I thought my stomach would get better on its own after quitting them...

[GottaSki]

Mushroom-

Yes my gas actually got worse after going gluten-free. I am not sure what caused this - although I suspect it was corn as I increased the amount of corn as our diet evolved away from gluten.

Ps the swithfoot guys are great to uplift us all and happen to hail from san diego - north county coastal.

Best...Lisa

[desperateforhealth]

That's interesting, thank you for letting me know. I can definitely see how it would work out that way.

And yes, they are absolutely fantastic.

[GottaSki]

Oops posting from cell and missed the question was from desp4health...nice to chat with you!

Best, Lisa

[mushroom]

That's okay Who are the Switchfoot guys?? Were they on the Oscars? I was glad Bret McKenzie won for Man or Muppets But I haven't see it yet - just coming on now.

[GottaSki]

Switchfoot is one of my favorite bands - great music & message - not os.car worthy YET!

Funny I had no idea there was a new muppet adventure until I watched the oscars - huge muppet fan here!

[desperateforhealth]

Haha, Switchfoot is a great rock band! I didn't get to see the oscars.. too busy with a stupid biology experiment

BUT I JUST FOUND OUT MY COUSIN IS GLUTEN-SENSITIVE! I am very excited about this because I have high suspicions that my dad's entire side of the family has gluten issues and that would mean that gluten is probably my problem too (I have not been formally tested yet because of the expense inconvenience). So this is a little victory for finding out what is wrong with me. Hallelujah.

[mushroom]

Haha, Switchfoot is a great rock band! I didn't get to see the oscars.. too busy with a stupid biology experiment

BUT I JUST FOUND OUT MY COUSIN IS GLUTEN-SENSITIVE! I am very excited about this because I have high suspicions that my dad's entire side of the family has gluten issues and that would mean that gluten is probably my problem too (I have not been formally tested yet because of the expense inconvenience). So this is a little victory for finding out what is wrong with me. Hallelujah.

Sometimes it works that way. I think my entire biological family has/had "gluten issues", including my SID (sister-in-denial)

[desperateforhealth]

Sister-in-denial... nice. I definitely have a dad in denial. I will be so happy once I just figure this all out. I can do with a restricted diet--I can even have fun with it. But NOT KNOWING is terrible. I'll survive once I just KNOW what to do to get better.

Thank you guys so much for all your help and support! You are indispensable.

[GottaSki]

I'm adopted so I don't know the up legs of the biological tree for me -- but I certainly do know Celiac is genetically linked. All three of my kids and two grands have Celiac or severe gluten intolerance. Two kids have other food intolerances -- not quite as severe as mine...but quantity of problem foods runs in direct correlation to age we removed gluten.

I was 42 when I went gluten-free and have the most food intolerance.

Daughter was 25 (now 28) when she went gluten-free and has many of the same intolerances as me...she is currently trialing with strict elimination diet as I did.

Son was 15 (now 18) when he went gluten-free and has had some other problems with food since...he has only removed a few other foods that seem to bother him.

Son was 13 (now 16) never went completely gluten-free -- but has had increasingly improved health since our home migrated to 100% gluten free over the past 3 years.

Grandson was 18 months (now 4) when he went gluten-free -- being so young he had the most obvious improvement and has remained gluten-free.

Granddaughter now 2 years old has never had gluten -- interestingly she has had minor problems with some other foods which leads me to wonder if I had other food intolerances my whole life OR if the 42 years of gluten damaged my digestive system causing the other food intolerances...hmmm

[mushroom]

Granddaughter now 2 years old has never had gluten -- interestingly she has had minor problems with some other foods which leads me to wonder if I had other food intolerances my whole life OR if the 42 years of gluten damaged my digestive system causing the other food intolerances...hmmm

I believe it is the permeability of the intestinal lining (leaky gut syndrome) caused by the gluten which creates the other food intolerances by allowing too large particles to enter the blood stream. These are recognized as 'foreign' by the body, which mounts an attack against them, too. Nightshades, lemons, legumes, all came later for me, long after gluten was gone but while my gut was still leaky.

[GottaSki]

I believe it is the permeability of the intestinal lining (leaky gut syndrome) caused by the gluten which creates the other food intolerances by allowing too large particles to enter the blood stream. These are recognized as 'foreign' by the body, which mounts an attack against them, too. Nightshades, lemons, legumes, all came later for me, long after gluten was gone but while my gut was still leaky.

Me as well -- that is exactly what I believe too...just found it strange that our little one had a few reactions having never had gluten in her system. They were to other grains so may be they were just hard for her to digest

[desperateforhealth]

Mushroom and GottaSki, that's really interesting, thank you for letting me know. Any kind of information on the matter is helpful.