For the past several months, I’ve been struggling to figure out what’s been ailing my youngest son, “A”. A vibrant, active boy at 8 years old, and the healthiest eater out of all my kids, “A” suddenly started suffering severe abdominal pains and fatigue, and recently has been found to be allergic to at least 28 environmental/food categories. What caused this to happen all of a sudden? I have no idea. My best guess at this point is that the two bouts of antibiotics he was on last spring killed all the good bacteria in his gastrointestinal system, and bad bacteria grew in its place. Â This imbalance has caused all sorts of havoc on his poor little body.
Meanwhile, “A” continued to experience horrible pains in his stomach, fatigue and strange symptoms like muscle aches in his legs. Several days, he had trouble walking and complained of joint pain. He underwent further testing for anemia, Lyme disease, muscle enzymes, and celiac, all of which he tested negative for. Still a puzzle, I was open to anything and anyone.My next stop was to a nutritionist and a naturopathic doctor. The nutritionist immediately noted that my son appeared “yeasty,” and that his “chicken skin” eczema indicated allergies of some sort. Further testing found my son was allergic to 28 out of 30 tested environmental/food item categories. What could have caused this sudden onset of allergies? I don’t know and no one has been able to give me an answer yet.However, as the nutritionist pointed out, this begs the question of what else “A” might be allergic to. If I test him for 100 items, will he be allergic to 98? I requested a more extensive allergy test from the naturopathic doctor and was told they didn’t have such a test. Rather, if I told him what I wanted to test for, he could test for it. This was not the answer I was looking for.
Eliminating all these foods suddenly from my son’s diet has been extremely challenging and stressful to say the least. For a bread and ice cream lover, this is a killer. “What can I eat??” my son begs. My heart aches because I have no idea. This is new territory for me. I love to cook and experiment, yet I am at a loss. My mind goes blank. No yogurt, fruit smoothies, oatmeal, or eggs for breakfast. No sandwiches for lunch. No milk or juice. “You can have water.” That’s about all I can think of. I stress and cringe every time he comes up to me and says “I’m hungry.” He doesn’t want just anything. He wants something tasty. He wants something appealing to his eye. I’ve searched up and down all the aisles at Whole Foods, reading label after label, looking for gluten/dairy/egg/yeast/sugar free foods. There are almost none to be found. There’s gluten-free bread, but only one pale looking gluten/yeast free option. For now, my son has been satisfying his bread craving with corn tortillas, but I worry that he might become allergic to corn from eating too much of it.
Stay tuned in as I share the stories and foods I am cooking for “A” along what I pray will be a well-guided path to this recovery.
Related Articles:
Food Allergy: Symptoms, Mayo Clinic
Food Allergy Symptoms, Signs, Diagnosis, Treatment by MedicineNet.com
3 Simple Steps to Eliminate Heartburn and Acid Reflux, Dr. Mark Hyman
Is It a Food Allergy or Intolerance, WebMD
Great information. Thank you for sharing!
I haven’t read all the comments so don’t know if anyone has suggested probiotics and turmeric. Fresh turmeric is best, but a good non-irradiated powder from the health store is fine too, and cheap. After steeping the fresh chopped turmeric, see if you can get him to eat the bits in some kind of soup or something, without heating the bits up, just putting it in a bowl of hot soup. If he tolerates this just fine, I suggest you keep giving him turmeric for a year, even if it doesn’t seem to be helping. It can happen suddenly after long term, just like the allergies happened suddenly.
Also, look into meridian tapping, which is free, and can be found on internet. Hope he eventually grows out of it. GMO foods can sometimes be the trigger, and I can’t say if there is any way to reverse that once it’s started, since the body will react to GMO wheat, for example, but then think ALL grains are GMO wheat after that. It’s so wrong that we are being sold these “non-foods” which look like food, but isn’t anymore. I would think soup would be one of the best ways to feed him, the recipes would have to be improvised by you of course.
I have the same problem with my son. I have found that he can eat potatoes, chicken, turkey, pork. I also found he can have rutabagas, but no carrots. I haven’t tried any other root vegetables. Also it can not have anything added to it. The only season I use is salt and pepper. And those can’t have anything added to them. I have to watch those ingredients that prevent caking. But I will try what you suggest.
How sad is it that you had to discover your son's test results for yourself. It's not a very good testament to our health care system. That aside, I'm looking forward to seeing what tasty recipes you'll come up with for your son!
I am so sorry to hear about what is going on with your son. I have a very close friend who's little girl was born with so many food allergies. It is a tough struggle – hopefully he will grow out of some of these allergic reactions soon. xo
That's so tough, I can hardly imagine! Have you tried any coconut flour products? It takes some getting used to when working with it, but you can make pancakes (no dairy if you use coconut milk or water and coconut oil) and such things. Even coconut flour bread!
Maria: I'm hoping that by sharing our experience, that this information helps others in case they come across similar symptoms/allergies suddenly.
Marly: I was so surprised when I found out the test results were misread, especially since the doctor I went to was supposed to be really good. Just goes to show we have to advocate for ourselves. I've learned to ask for copies of all tests results immediately following this mistake.
Marla: Thanks for your support Marla. I'm hoping we'll find out the trigger behind all these allergies.
Carolyn: Thanks for your suggestion on coconut flour. I've actually been experimenting with it and gotten some pretty good results, not always pretty, but they've been passing the taste test, which is encouraging. Would love to see any coconut flour recipes you might have.
These three ladies are amazing and may be able to help.
http://www.simplysugarandglutenfree.com/
http://www.tastyeatsathome.wordpress.com
http://www.healthygreenkitchen.com
I wish you the very best!
Thank you Suzanne! I have looked at a couple of these and will check out tastyeatsathome. It is so wonderful to find a community full of allergy sensitive food blogs.
Hello Jeanette… I am sorry your son is going through this and your struggles. I myself went through the same thing at the age of 43 4 yrs ago. I went through all sorts of testing from being so sick I couldn’t breath. After the allergy testing was done I ended up allergic to so many things I told the doctor to just put me in a bubble and give me water. Finally we found out that I was exposed to black mold that sent my system into overdrive which resulted in numerous health problems that can’t be reversed. I know it is a struggle every day for you and your family the worst for your son and my heart goes out to all of you. Keep researching and I also suggest cross checking all foods with other foods. I have a yeast allergy also and just this year I found that I can not have any foods that may contribute to mold which is a ton that none of us would have ever thought about. Try researching ” foods safe to eat with mold allergies” even though you son may not have tested positive for mold some of the foods you listed are actually under the list to avoid. Also have his tests redone every 2 years to see if they change. May you and yours find peace during this struggle. Blessings
Thanks for sharing your experience Gina. Fortunately, my son has been able to overcome his allergies.
I feel for your son and you also. I am a 55yr old female in great athletic condition, 3 grown children and 2 grandchildren. Woke up 1 year ago and could not eat or drink anything! I was terrified. Went on the Elimination diet 3 times and lost massive weight(I am only 5″2″ and normally weigh 111) 13lbs. Got down to 94 lbs and said this is ridiculous. 10 specialists including 2 allergists and no one could help me. Went to NYC and saw a gastroenterologist at Mount Sinai who diagnosed me with Non Acid reflux Disease. No medication can help it and no cure. Mostly no reasoning on why it happens. The doctors in a year had me on massive PPIs and antibiotics which made it worse and caused H Pylori. I took myself off all meds and found a book by Anthony William called The Medical Medium Mystery Illness and Diseases healed. I drink celery juice now and feel somewhat better but like you and your son I am wheat, dairy, gluten, grain, nuts, eggs, corn, bananas, all melons free. I love organic soymilk because it seems okay at times but I am told it can be an allergy issue. I have become sensitive to so many things it is frightening. I will follow you on your journey so that you can help me too!
I am allergic to most of the things you are.. dairy, peanuts, eggs, bananas, soy. I am not allergic to wheat/gluten but I try to stay away from it as much as possible because it’s not very good for you! If you don’t mind me asking, what foods do you eat on a daily that don’t include your allergens!?
Me too I can’t seem to eat anything., Other than water coffee and Diet Coke. My reactions are so internally severe to me. They are not obvious on the outside and no one seems to believe me.
Kathy,
My 29 year old daughter just got allergy test results and she is allergic to over 100 foods and in every category. She has been struggling with this worsening condition for 6+ years now with little help. The few things she thought she could eat are now among the worst. Any suggestions you or anyone else have would be so appreciated!! She’s getting desperate.
I found focusing on what my son could eat, rather than on what he couldn’t eat, helped. Eliminating foods that she is allergic to for a period of time will hopefully help heal her gut, so that at some point in the future she can start reintroducing these foods back into her diet. Exploring other cuisines also helped as often there are ingredients that you may not normally use, but can be enjoyed.
Do you feeel better now I have the same problem
May I ask how he overcame them ? I’m going through the and things now and have no idea which direction to turn
We eliminated all the foods my son was allergic to from his diet for about 6 months. Then, we gradually added back one food at a time.
that is the challenge my family is facing ryt now its not quite long when my mother had severe allergies , shes not done yet with doctors apointments, and she worries what to eat everyday, becuase the symptoms are showin almost everyday.
Thanks Grace. I love cannelle et vanille's blog. I'll check it out more thoroughly and hope to find some yeast free/sugar free recipes.
Jeanette my heart goes out to your little one and to you too, it's so hard for a Mom to see her little one in so much pain. I frequent a blog that has amazing gluten free recipes, ice cream , brownies, cakes, savoury dishes, puddings. She suffers I believe with an auto-immune disease and she had to change her way of eating. She is a trained pastry chef, her name is Aran and her blog is cannelle et vanille, here is the url – http://cannelle-vanille.blogspot.com/. Aran is actually the reason I started blogging, she is a true inspiration. Her recipes are always full of flavour and she starts always with fresh ingredients. Hope you can find some inspiration. She is very nice and I am sure if you reach out to hear with questions she would assist. I was lucky enough to meet her in person at the BlogHer conference in October.
I'm so sorry about your son! I hope you're able to find the answers you're looking for, and I'm going to pass this on to some of my friends who are dealing with similar situations with their children.
Also, you probably already have him on probiotics or have considered it. But they can be very helpful if you haven't done so yet. I have my girls on Garden of Life Primal Defense for kids plus a chewable acidophilus (it may have one other culture in it) every day on top of their vitamins. I've been very happy with Primal Defense, but it does utilize milk and tuna for cultures so another one more allergy-friendly may be more appropriate.
Good luck!
Thanks Caneel, would greatly appreciate any information you or your friends come across. My son is taking some pretty strong probiotics. I just found out someone's daughter had similar allergies and it took a year on a strict diet before her allergies went away or were significantly reduced. Your blog has some great gluten-free recipes!
Thank you! And I'll let you know if I find out any helpful info. Do you subscribe to Living Without magazine? It's a great resource for not only GF recipes and news, but many other allergies as well.
Thanks for letting me know about Living Without, I just subscribed!
My son (6) has had extremely severe eczema … We've had very positive results by seeing a digestion specialist (ND). Although my son didn't test positively for food allergies (through his pediatrician), the ND said that often food allergy symptoms will appear in the body when digestion is compromised (yes, thanks to antibiotics!!) As we already had him on an very restricted diet, I was certain that the program wouldn't help, but it has. VERY, very extreme diet. But, amazing results for us. I have a few ideas. Let me know if you are interested…
Hi Jen, I am so encouraged by your experience. I would love to hear your ideas. Please let me know how I can contact you. My email is jeanette@jeanetteshealthyliving.com. Thanks!
Okay… just sent you an email. Good luck!
Jen, I can't thank you enough for all your suggestions and insight!
It's been such a long road for us… hope you have a quick turn-around for your son!
Just curious about how your son is doing? =)
Thanks for asking Jen. Just got back some results and he has some bad bacteria in his stomach that needs to be treated. Also, I am starting the fermented foods (sauerkraut) as you suggested – thanks :).
Restricted life … But still thats good to feel symptoms earlier.
i have a ton of food intolerances and allergies and it's been a never ending battle. but over the past 2.5 years, eating a clean plant based diet has helped me so much. your blog inspires me to know that i'm not fighting this alone. a hug for you and your son!
I am at the end of my rope with our medical system – my daughter has been ill with chronic headaches, sore throat and upset stomach (nausea and diarrhea) for about 5 months. At first I thought the symptoms were so vague that she just didn't want to go to school, but after missing a considerable amount of school, they told me they needed a doctor's note. So I took her to our family doctor, and she told me it was allergies. They've done a CT scan of her sinuses, she's been to the pediatrician and the ENT, all say she has allergies, and have shown me concha bullosa that is impairing her breathing due to allergic swelling. (Never mind how badly I felt that I had been dismissing my daughter's symptoms for months). They also told me that it was quite common for allergies to appear or be exacerbated during "changes", i.e., puberty, pregnancy and menopause. Since my daughter is moving into puberty, that made sense. They also told me that the fact that she had so many ear infections as an infant gave her a predisposition to allergies – something I wish they would have told me when the were putting in one of the three sets of ear tubes, so that I could be looking for it. She responded well to Zyrtek, nasal corticosteroids, etc.
Now, for the frustration. I took her to the allergist, and they tested for environmental allergens, and told me she's not allergic to anything. This absolutely doesn't make sense to me, however, I'm not surprised b/c the same allergy clinic told me several years ago that I have no allergies, and I know of at least three contact & ingestion allergies that I have. I was so at my wits end, and taking into consideration that they did no food allergy testing on her, I took it upon myself to eliminate dairy and gluten from her diet. I've had some advise from family members that have celiac or that have gone GF for other reasons, and they said if it is a gluten allergy, I should know within about a week of eliminating it from her diet. Well, she went 24 hours without dairy and gluten, and woke up without a headache and no stomach problems. She wanted an uncrustable for lunch, so I let her have it, but told her to pay attention to how she felt afterwards. She said that she got a stomach ache after eating it.
Now I'm searching the web for anything to support my theory that is is one of these two food allergies that have been causing her problems, and also any sources or recipes that will help her not feel like she is being completely deprived of everything she likes. So far she's found some things that she loves, and others that are on the "do not buy again" list.
I guess I'm just glad to see that I'm not the only mom who has these frustrations, and that we have to remember that there are times when Mom truly does know best, and that we have to advocate and fight for our kids. Hang in there – I've got hope now after just two days.
Terri
Hi Terri,
I was just reading your reply and it resounded so well with me. By the way, it’s been a few years since you wrote, how’s your daughter doing?
I had a similar experience. For the past 10 years or so, I’ve struggled with a constant never ending stomach cramp specially after eating. I also had the worst case of bloating to a point that a lady asked me if I was having twins!!. Many visits to the doctors, many rx’s filled with hope and the problem still persited. Then about 5 years ago, I developed a rash on my arm that would not go away. Back to the Dr, Dermatologists, biopsies, filled rx’s and the rash was just getting bigger. One night, trying to be “healthy”, I cooked wheat pasta and after about the 5th bite, I started itching. Within minutes, the rash on my arms became welts. Not suffering from any previous allergies, I had no antihistamine at home except for a Alka-seltzer which contained some antihistamine which I gulped down in desperation (yes, desperate is how I describe that moment. Felt like I had a million ants biting me all at once!). To make long story short, its’ been almost a year and for once in my life, my stomach is not expanded as if I was 9 months pregnant, the never ending cramp has gone away and the rash in my arms is just about gone… I say just about because I think I may also be intolerant to tomatoes!! seems like every time i eat tomatoes the rash comes back. I sympathize with all here, prior to me discovering my intolerance to wheat, I thougth it was a “fad”.. boy, was I wrong!!
Good luck to all helping yourselves and your families. I know and understand the frustration it is when you have to change gears all of a sudden!!
Food allergies can be so frustrating – I hear your pain. I have brought my son to three different places to have him tested. His IgE results have been consistent, but his IgG results have been different (as expected based on what I've read). After putting my son on a strict diet eliminating all the foods that showed up on his IgE test and his combined IgG test, his abdominal pain started to get better. Now, almost three months later, I am still keeping him off of the foods he tested allergic to on his IgE test and once in a while allowing him to have some foods that showed up positive on his IgG test to see if he has a reaction. So far so good. Another thing I have tried is eliminating all grains whenever his stomach hurts and he seems to help too. It's a long process (I've been told it may take up to a year), but I'm hopeful he will outgrow the majority of his food allergies.
Check out this website: http://jugalbandi.info/
They've recently converted to a paleo diet which eliminates grains and sugar, but they do eat eggs and dairy. Nevertheless they might have some recipes you might be able to try.
? Possibly re-visit the Gastroenterologist and ask them about Eosinophilic Esophagitis…
Over the past eight months, I've found that eliminating gluten, dairy, eggs, soy from my son's diet has helped enormously. I also took out other foods he tested allergic to on the IgG panel such as tomatoes and oranges. In addition to this elimination diet, supplements seemed to have helped, including probiotics, vitamin D (he tested low), omega-3, and l-glutamine. These were all suggested by the various naturopathic nutritionists/doctors we saw.
Gradually, I have been able to add back foods without any reaction, although we have kept to a gluten free diet and largely dairy/egg free diet.
I recently found out that I was allergic to the following foods. Apples, avocados,basil, bay leaf, blueberrry ,cheese cheddar, swiss, cottage, chicken, clam, coconut, garlic, gluten, haddock, lamb, milk cow, mustard, nutrasweet, oregano, safflower, scallops, sesame, sole, tea black, turkey, walnut, yeast bakers and brewers, and yogurt. looking for foods that I can eat and recipes that I can use. I work shift work which makes it hard for me to prepare food. I also have a excessive candida overgrowth. any help you give will help I am 46 years old and lives in Alaska.
Hi Charmaine, so sorry to hear about all your allergies and candida overgrowth. I would recommend you find a good holistic nutritionist and come up with an individualized plan as you may also benefit from supplements. In addition to strong probiotics and lots of omega-3 supplements, my son was found to be low in vitamin D. We believe he had leaky gut syndrome, which caused him to be allergic to a laundry list of foods. To help treat that, a holistic nutritionist suggested we try L-Glutamine powder to help heal his gut. Every person is different, so it’s important to seek professional help and find out what your body is lacking. As far as the diet, what we found worked was to go on a super strict elimination diet, completely eliminating all processed foods, sugars, breads (yeast), gluten/dairy/egg and eliminating everything he was found to be allergic to. We also rotated the foods he ate to prevent additional allergies from developing. I’m not sure what tests you did – we did both IgE (immediate allergic reaction) and IgG (delayed allergic response). After 6 months on a strict diet, we have been able to re-introduce foods that he was found to have an IgG response to. I would recommend looking at an anti-candida blog: Diet, Dessert and Dogs (http://www.dietdessertndogs.com/candida-faq-2/) and the WholeApproach Candida Diet (http://www.wholeapproach.com/diet/foodlist.php). The WholeApproach Candida Diet uses a staged approach and suggests a list of foods you can eat at each stage for eliminating candida. Although I know how frustrating this can be in the beginning, once you focus on what you can eat, you will find there are lots of things. I will email you with some ideas.
Hi Jeanette,
my 8 year old girl has allergy to eggs and tree nuts. Her symptoms after accidental injestion are feeling sick to the stomach, itchy throat/mouth, feeling weak, nausea and sometimes even vomiting. Can you please tell me if Glutamine supplement will be of any help to her and in what dose? What other supplements should she take?
thanks
Hi San, I would suggest you talk to a naturopathic nutritionist to see if Glutamine is appropriate for your daughter. Each person is different. My son was on vitamin D (he tested low), strong probiotics, omega-3 pills and L-glutamine, but his symptoms were different from your daughters.
Hi, I am in the same situation as you. My son too 8 years old has went through different type of allergy reaction. When he was 7 month old , he started to have eczema on his neck. Complete skinless neck. All doctors refused to do any allergy test as all think he will outgrow it. However, the eczema got worst every day to a point he was almost skinless throughtout his body. He could not bath/shower properly because his skin will be so stinging and burning. Then, we managed to get one GP in Perth who is willing to test him on food sensitivities. Like you son, he is sensitivies to almost 29 food. He could not have dairy, egg, rice, soy, chicken, beef in fact most of the food. Luckily he could have lots of vegetable and fruits except Kiwi. But he was given lots of vitamins(10 different types) to eat everyday. We felt so bad like you to see him having to eat so many vitamins and consisent blood testing. We decided to stop it and try to give him wholesome food instead. He was really good for 2 years with a bit eczema. Suddenly this year, he develops hive and swell overall. He was hospitalised various time and has done all the blood test for all kinds of diseases like your son. Then, he was allergic to different type of insect bites. His hand or leg where the insect has bitten him will swell and heated up to a point that it double the size of the other. More antibotic on skin and oral. I bet this must have caused further allergies. The Immunologist almost “gave up” and just instruction us to give him antihistamine daily to stop the hive. My husband and I did not give up. We tried stopping even more foods and stop using all kinds of soap, cream and shampoo. Now, all of us at home can only shower with water no cream no soap or moisturerer. Use 95C hot water to wash clothes. Finally, we now think it is the baking soda in the dishwashing tablets and laundry ball that cause his swollen hives. We stop the antihistamine and he was all good.
However, while he was using antihistamine, his lip and skin above lip were dried. we thought it was due to the antihistamine. however since we have stop the antihistamine, his skin around his mouth and lip has dried up and become skinless again. What new!!!!! another allergies. The GP refused to give him anything except even more powerful steriod cream. it must us really sick because now he cannot even go to the park to play. the wind and sun will make it worst.
Like you, we are now trying yeast free diet and applied anti fungual cream and steriod to control the inflammation. But not sure will this cause any further damage.
But my son is full of courage and cheers. He supports whatever we give him and always tell us that he will be the strongest boy when he grows up because he is eating all the good food. Recently, the outbreak around his mouth has emotional affected him. Sometimes, i wish i could take his place.
Hey, both our sons is better than the boy who can only have water. Be positive. Wish you and us all the best………………our son will outgrow it and will definitely be stronger. He is not alone.
We think that the anithistamin and antibotic has killed all good bacteria and cause the gut to leak. So, we are trying to heal the gut and hope for the best.
Yen, so sorry to hear about all your son has been going through. It must so frustrating. I do believe the gut can be healed by eliminating foods that we are allergic to and restoring a healthy balance of the right bacteria in our gut.
Oh sweet Jeanette … I am sorry to hear that things are going slow. I will just dump my brain here … hope you don’t mind.
First thing that comes to mind with the tummy aches and muscle cramps is oxalate … just something you may want to look into or may already have—the calcium/oxalate crystals that can form and fail to be broken down b/c of dysbiosis (imbalanced gut) can cause inflammation. It is also a cause of kidney stones … so people with kidney stones are often put on a low ox diet (LOD):
“Oxalate is an antinutrient that is present at higher levels in some plant foods like spinach, nuts, and chocolate, but it is also a mitochondrial toxin and neurotoxin, and impairs calcium and iron regulation, all biotin-dependent enzymes, and many other enzymes.” — Susan Costen Owens (she’s an expert in this arena)
You may want to trial that. On top of what you are avoiding it will be real challenging, but at least start with the BIG high-ox containing foods. Almonds of which are king. Funny, all these great super foods are super high in oxalates, agghhh.
Miles is doing REAL well. Last summer his allergy tests came back with 20 (IgE). We have healed up his gut and I would say it’s at 90%. And I really feel that once the gut heals up … some of the foods that appeared to be causing issues will be okay to reintroduce and enjoy on occasion.
Today our NO-NO list includes:
Dairy (but ghee has worked well — certified casein free that is.
Nuts (except coconut)
Grains (except for, rice, some sorghum, some millet, some corn — which he does okay with)
Eggs
Gluten
Fruit (except for cherries and some blueberries) and fructose … absolutely NO juice see tea link below
Spinach (high oxalate), but do lots of steamed kale
Very limited sugar (cane, honey, coconut), but use stevia
LIMITED Carbs (like brown rice pasta or Saturday Pancakes (wink) twice a day)
MY TOP TIPS:
1. Tea: We drink a gallon of this a day! Celestial Seasonings Peach is yummy. The Apple Cider Vinegar helps balance the ph of the body and gut and the addition of stevia gives it a sweet juice taste. http://www.lexieskitchen.com/lexies_kitchen/2011/11/29/healing-sugar-free-apple-cider-recipe.html
2. Digestive enzymes: Standard Process (bottle says it may contain gluten, dairy, etc so try at your own risk … ) Multizyme and Zymex. Our son W/O all the issues started having pale poo and bumpy skin and Zymex seemed to be what turned that around coupled with avoiding dairy and gluten.
3. Avoiding the very high oxalate foods. We tried it for 3 months and I think it helped in the healing process. I still avoid most of the “high foods” … but do do some berries. Here is a brief on the topic: http://bodyecology.com/articles/boiling-your-vegetables-low-oxalate-solution-reduce-pain.php AND Here is one list of foods: http://www.ohf.org/docs/OxalateContent092003.pdf There are many and some are conflicting. If you use a list that refers to kale being high. That is now old info. According to Julie Matthews (www.nourshinghope.com) it’s on the okay list. And don’t kill yourself trying to remove every bit of oxalate. Just do your best. We noticed changes in miles GI symptoms within 3 months, so I think you will know if it is helping by then.
4. Making coconut yogurt: This has been a lifesaver. Very low sugar compared to the commerical products. The only sugar added is to feed the bacteria as it cultures the milk. Sweeten with stevia. Recipe here: http://www.lexieskitchen.com/lexies_kitchen/2011/10/4/dairy-free-coconut-milk-yogurt-recipe.html
5. The RIGHT doc and the RIGHT supplements: I encourage going to a DAN! or autism doc … not that your son is autistic, but these docs know what urine and blood tests to run. And the markers in these tests can help confirm likelihood of “yeast” overgrowth and/or processes in your kiddos system that are not functioning optimally. For example, markers pointed to our son having some mitochondrial dysfunction. So now we have customized a supplement cocktail that includes CoQ10, Acteyl-L-Carnitine, Folacal, GI support cap, Probiotics, … to name a few. Your child may be totally different in what he needs and it is critical to find a doc you can identify exactly what his/her needs are. Additionally, toxin and heavy metals tests were high so we have been administering B-12 shots for six months now and just did our first round of DMSA (heavy metal chelation). We also did HBOT last summer and would love to do more … : ) Now I am not saying that all this is for your kiddo. Just sayin’ that the route to healing is different for each child.
6. Threshold: I would love to do a post on this, but still am wrapping my mind around it. So food intolerances are so prevalent. Once there is healing of the gut, I feel there is hope to reintro some of them. That said, I think it is so important to understand each individuals’ “threshold” with particular foods … some people can eat 1/4 cup blueberries with no problems and another person can enjoy a full cup. My “gut” tells me that we need to pay attention to what our GI can tolerate. I can tell you that Miles can eat 4 grapes. Any more than that and his body just can’t break it all down.
Our aim is to restore Miles’ gut to top condition so that he will be able to tolerate a drop of dairy or gluten (the only foods his IgG test showed). And that HOPEFULLY we can do eggs with him one day. They are such a power food. I believe this will happen. But it will take time. We’ve been at this for 3 years now and it has gotten soooo much better. It’s a lot of trial and error. Even if you have an allergy test to work with I think it is still all about elimination of those offenders and more (like high oxalate foods). Stay on that diet for a while to allow the gut to rest and heal. One thing, though that we found and what our doc shared is that you’ve got to do some preliminary healing (with food removal) before starting in heavy on the supplements … as it can be a waste of money. With a leaky gut, some of those supplements will not be absorbed. Our doc has a very methodical approach which left me impatient sometimes. But HE has been the one to get us the furthest : )
Oh I hope this hasn’t been too much. I just may have to copy this comment and make it a post on my blog, ha! I’ve been meaning to post an update and here I have, right on your site : ) LOL.
Big hug to you, you are doing great Jeanette and am so in love with your blog : )
xoLexie
I’ve had chronic sore, painful throat with tightness, hoarse and weak voice to where at the end of the day I’m down to almost no voice – for about 3 years. I’ve been desperately trying to figure out what’s going on. I have excessive mucous most of the time but especially after eating and feel like I have to clear my throat a lot. No lump feeling in the throat, however. And at times, my throat feels like pins are sticking it – upper soft palate areas. I do have GERD, but I avoid spicey foods and don’t eat late at night, so I don’t think that’s the problem. I have developed hyper sensitivities to chemicals to include scented products, which causes shortness of breath, nausea, sore throat, headaches and fatigue. That issue in and of itself has been impossible to endure, so much so that I’m feeling I will have to work from home due to the perfumes and deodorizers in the workplace. I find it curious that the suspected food allergies and known chemical sensitivites are occurring at the same time. Could I have an auto immune deficiency? I have been under enormous stress for several years and maybe I’ve been worn down? I don’t know how to fix the chronic painful upper throat and hoarseness and am desperate for answers. Also, I tried a gluten-free diet for about a week with no change. Was one week long enough to make a difference? And now I’m afraid to eat anything because I don’t know which foods MIGHT be causing the sore/hoarse throat. Can I eat anything?! BTW, I ate only carrots yesterday morning and my throat almost immediately started hurting. I’m also thinking green tea has enough caffeine in it to cause throat pain.
Sara, so sorry to hear that you’re not well. I would definitely seek advice from a medical doctor. They could recommend addition testing as needed.
Hi Jeanette,
I came across your blog while looking for new reciepes as I have severe food allergies. Being a woman and trying to stay fit and healthy is a big challenge for me since I am extremely limited in what I can eat. Like your son my food allergies really hit when I was 8 years old (I won’t go into the back ground story but will note that I also suffer with asthma which make my allergies worse). My mother took me to see an allergist and found out at that time the only thing I was not allergic to was mold. The doctor actually warned my mother that my allergies would get worse the older I became (great right). Fast forward to today and I am now in my early thirties and the doctor was right my food allergies have gotten worse and as you know the symptoms vary greatly. I will admit it is very difficult to eat healthy and expand your food horizons when you are allergic to almost every healthy food out there and like your son I want my food to be tasty.
For me it has been figuring out what I am willing to deal with so getting headache from dairy products is not a big deal. However, recently I found out my fruit allergies have progressed to vomiting and diahrea where in the past my lips and throat would swell now it is a combination.
You an your son will find away to work around his food allergies it will be annoying for him while he is younger, but as an adult he will probably spend more time reassuring those around him that he will be fine. Since, many people tend to be unaware that there are people who are allergic to more than just peanuts and seafood your son and you will find yourselves in a position of educating other people.
Thanks for your note Norah and for sharing your experience. It’s always encouraging to hear from others who have food allergies as most people don’t understand the day to day inconveniences it can cause. Fortunately, there are people like you who have words of support and are an example of someone who has learned how to cope with food allergies with a positive outlook.
I feel like god brought me to this website.long long story short i have been going through this for the last three yrs myself.and my kids are all suffering tooMy 8yr old was diagnosed with eosinophilic esophogitis at age 3 which all they did was take him off dairy and give him steroids, my 7 yr daughter just test extreme positive on all the environmental skin test and my 2 yr old has a dairy allergy but has never been tested for anything else.they all have eczema and diarehea.my daughter has started having head aches.i feel so helpless and overwhelmed. This has given me new hope for us and our future.thank you to all the great info. Jen i would love some of your information too please my email is kylib2013@gmail.com. and i was wonderring if the Ieg and IgG tests were blood tests?
S
Kyll, I brought my son to see a naturopathic doctor and also several naturopathic nutritionists. The IgG tests were blood tests. After we found out what my son was allergic to or intolerant of, I put him on an elimination diet, which meant removing all the foods he tested allergic/intolerant to from his diet for 6 months. In addition, the nutritionists suggested certain supplements based on seeing him. These included vitamin D, lots of omega-3 pills, strong probiotics and L-glutamine. Of course, every person is different, so you will need to see what your nutritionist/doctor says. The traditional medical doctors do not believe in IgG testing so I would suggest going the naturopathic route. Best wishes.
Hi Jeanette,
Reading about your son, mirrors my own experience with my son. What I wanted to know was how has this affected his school life? My son doesn’t want to go to school at all and when I see him suffering, I feel so bad to force him but then worry if I’m making thing worse. Not sure what to do for the best as it seems his life is at a standstill.
Dionne, my son was home for almost a month when he wasn’t feeling well. It was hard to get him back to school on a full day schedule, so we did it gradually. Life does seem like it comes to a standstill, but it will get better.
can i still have peppermints
Anna, I don’t know the answer – it depends on what the ingredients are.
Hi Jeanette,
I applaud you for your efforts and how you listen to your instincts on what is best for you and your family. Your son (and other children) are lucky to have you as their mother. Since it sounds like you are still trying to determine all the foods that may be causing these symptoms in your son, I thought I would bring to your attention the Immuno 1 Bloodprint. I have suffered from migraines and migraine auras since at least elementary school. I have eliminated all the typical “triggers” and identifed certain foods/ingredients that I have to avoid, and always do. But I still have migraines- too many to keep up the demands of mothering toddler. I recently went to a doctor that took a blood sample that he sent to Immuno Laboratories to run an IgG Standard Food Family Sensitvity Assay (115). They test your blood serum with 115 common foods antigens, including baker’s yeast and brewer’s yeast to see if there is a reaction. This was enlightening for me, as it identified 12 food antigens that my blood serum reacted to- most of which I eat often, if not daily. These are all rated as having no reaction, +1, +2, +3, or +4. The +3 and +4 are the ones my blood serum reacted to the most. I am 3 weeks into eliminating all these antigens from my diet (not easy since they include cow’s milk, goat’s milk, brewer’s yeast, and baker’s yeast). I am cautiously optimistic, as my migraines have decreased (only one since I started this), and other seemingly random symptoms that I never thought to tie to food sensitivities are gone (e.g., incredibly itchy eyes which I cannot tie to any environmental factor), after months/years of just thinking they were just symptoms I was going to have to live with forever. The cool thing for me to learn is that they identify food sensitivities, not just allergies- so food antigens that may otherwise test negative on an allergy test. Maybe this test may help you identify food antigens affecting you son as well? I thought I would bring it to your attention, just in case it can help. There is a website associated with the packet of information I received from my doctor with my blood assay test results: http://www.betterhealthUSA.com. I honestly haven’t explored it much, but it should have more details on who to call for more information, etc. if you are interested. I hope this helps. Good luck!
Sorry- I just realized the date on your post was January 2011…Hope you and your family are all thriving and doing well!
Great write up. I found out when I was 19 that I was allergic to Sulphites which is in a lot of foods btw. As well as Silver Birch when they pollinate I had been diagnosed with pink eye the same time of year 4 years in a row only to find out it was not pink eye but an allergy. Also I read a childs bedwetting is also linked to allergies.
I share all mothers ‘sensations. I have a son 3 y old who developed an acute multiple food allergy ( milk egg wheat cocoa soy) . I pray God that by empowering the GIT he can resume eating wheat, eggs, and we have to thank God as this is milder somehow than others.
My son can not eat any food as he is allergic to all food. We went to great ormond street and they are unable to help him as he reacts toall medicines as well. We are now going to the breakspear clinic in hemel Hampstead. Since starting there in december and receiving treatment he can now eat turkey salmon onion and cabbage. I completely recommend this centre as they do know what they are doing. They have people travel from all round the world to visit them.
Hi Jeanette, thanks so much for sharing your experiences. I see this was written a few years back – have you found that your son has been able to reintroduce some of these things as he has gotten older? I have read in a few places that with intolerance some people are able to slowly reintroduce certain foods after completely eliminating them for a period of time.
We have been battling with ongoing ‘sore tummy and throat’ with my six year old daughter and not having much luck with doctors! Having exhausted all else we have recently been experimenting with dietary restrictions (allergy test not available, only one we could have was lactose, which was negative) – she has been gluten and dairy free for six weeks but it didn’t seem to be making any difference. Then last Sunday the next thing we cut out was bananas – as of today, six days, no sore tummy! Early days to draw any conclusions but when I started looking into bananas it seems it’s not an uncommon intolerance amongst people who are wheat / gluten sensitive. But so now that’s wheat / gluten, dairy and bananas… suffice to say the title of this post resonated with me, and did the description of the crippling tummy pains and the potential link to antibiotics, which I also suspect in our case (5 courses in one year due to severe ear infections…)
Anyway, I hope your son has seen some improvements in his health – it’s not easy seeing them suffer and not being able to help!
Hi Justine,
I am happy to report that my son is doing very well these days. After the elimination diet where we removed 20+ foods from his diet for a period of 6 months, we gradually reintroduced almost everything back into his daily diet. I believe his body/gut needed to heal itself after all the good gut bacteria was destroyed from the antibiotics he was taking. He did take strong probiotics, a large amount of omega-3 fish pills and glutamine during this process, which I think also helped considerably.
Hi Jeanette, so kind of you to reply. And great news that your son is doing so well, and encouraging to know that once the gut is healed there is a possibility of reintroducing foods … all very encouraging. I’ve spend hours, days really, searching anything and everything relating to what my daughter is experiencing – the first paragraph of your post sounded SO familiar to me. It is always a relief to find others who are experiencing similar things, and more so to hear that they have successfully dealt with the issues, AND without drugs!!!
Justine, I absolutely believe we can heal our gut by making healthy choices that work for us. Each person has their own unique food sensitivities, so I encourage you to keep trying to heal your daughter without drugs. Best wishes.
I know this blog is old but if you get this, could you please email me? I’m having similar trouble. I have life threatening allergies to tree nuts and fish and have had since I was a teenager. I’m use to all that…. fast forward agood 14 years and now after my son was born I started having trouble eating any fruits or eggs. Bad stomach aches that last for hours. It got so bad I couldn’t even do dried fruit or coconut milk. Gave it time without the foods and thought I was doing better with being able to eat eggs and raisins again at least. Now I just had my daughter 2 ‘months ago and am having skin problems (constant pimply like itchy rash) but doesn’t look like eczema and back to no eggs, peanut butter is now a problem, soy sometimes and other foods I’m not even sure of. Would love to chat if you get this.
– A
Anna – just sent you an email.
At the age of 28, I became allergic to various food groups. The culprit? I went to Africa for work, but before I left, I had received 6 vaccines. After two weeks in Africa, I became sick and was give Amoxicillin, as per a doctor in Houston, which did nothing. I remained sick for two more weeks. A month later, I started have reactions to several food items.
I’ve heard of many kids getting the same result after certain vaccines and antibiotics. So, if you get sick, tough it out if it’s flu or a cold. Ask if you can do without antibiotics or penicillin. Most people don’t know, but young adults rarely need antibiotics.
On another note, allergists will recommend desensitization. It is a 50/50 shot. Nobody is certain why or if it will work. If you don’t see an improvement after a year, it is not working. Food allergy tests can detect allergies to food, but ONLY if you have recently eaten the allergen food. I’m allergic to caffeine. The first time I took the food allergy test, it pointed it out along with several other food items. Two years later I took the test, again, and it said I was not allergic but intolerant. Well, I started drinking tea once a day for about two weeks before getting the same reactions again. I waited a month without drinking tea and I tried again. The same results appeared; I was able to drink tea for about two weeks before the reactions were severe.
There is no push for research into this disease which, I believe, will become an epidemic in the future. I’m better off diagnosing myself and finding a treatment if not a cure.
Good luck everyone.
Hi, I realize this was written awhile ago, and I really hope your son has has great improvement, and you have solved this mystery. I was wondering, that if you have solved what was going on, of you’d be willing to share it with me? I have been going though some very similar symptoms.. For a long while now. Stomach pains, excema, joint pain (this went away). And am also allergic to a lot, basically everything you stated more or less. Nobody has been able to really figure it out. It’s gotten a lot better, but it’s still there. I eat really healthy, and have always been a very active girl. Just, please, if you have any insight, please let me know. Again, I really hope he is better now! It is not fun to live in pain.
Hi Grace, I put my son on an elimination diet, meaning I removed all the foods he tested intolerant or allergic to from his diet. I did this for 6 months. Sometimes, removing products/foods with gluten, dairy and eggs can resolve a lot of issues. I also removed anything with sugar or sweeteners, including sweet fruits (e.g., bananas) for a while. I believe eating organic foods whenever possible is also helpful because our bodies need to have time to rebuild and recover after any stress has been put on it. Finally, I gave him supplements including probiotics, glutamine (helps heal gut), omega-3 pills and vitamin D (which he tested low in).
I’m feeling your pain!! We struggle to find foods for our youngest. He is “okay” with wheat/gluten at this point but I worry about him developing intolerance to that as well. I feel like all he eats most days is ground beef, rice, and crackers. Some fruits/veggies. He is starting to notice that he always has special food at restaurants & family meals. Did your son get an overall IGE test done with bloodwork? My main goal is to get our sons down to almost 0. He has several Class 6 allergies, including peanuts. It is SO difficult to find foods! Even Whole Foods/Trader Joes don’t have much. We found a few things from Enjoy Life Foods! (cookies, cereals, etc). Hope that helps a little!
By the way– our 19 month old is allergic to:
apple
apricot
avocado
banana
barley
black bean
cashew
chickpea
coconut
corn
egg
garlic
kidney bean
mango
milk
onion
papaya
pea
peanut
pineapple
sesame
soy
squash
strawberry
sunflower
tomato
watermelon
After giving birth last year, I discovered I had a bunch of food allergies, which was due to the extra hormones I was given to ensure the pregnancy went full term, and because of the antacids they gave me. If possible, don’t give your son antacids which will only make his issues worse. People think they have too much acid when they have reflux problems, when in reality they’re not producing enough, so taking something to decrease it only makes matters worse. As soon as I went organic my reflux problems went away. Give your son Organic Kefir, Kombucha Tea(Yogi brand is good,) bone broth (from grass fed animals if possible, but it’s still beneficial if you can’t get them.) Bone broth actually has components which will heal your son’s leaky gut, which is what has caused his food sensitivities. Here’s a link about how beneficial bone broth is: http://www.primallyinspired.com/bone-broth-health-benefits/
Cook with coconut butter and olive oil and incorporate raw garlic to take care of the bad bacteria. Ginger root, spearmint, and peppermint will help with acid reflux. If your son wants something sweet, fix him some steal cut oats with honey or a banana mashed up, pumpkin pie spice, and organic butter (which has a sweetness by itself.) You can also put the oats in a skillet (or bake them) with the honey and butter and make granola.
A lot of people who show a sensitivity to milk find they can consume organic butter and goat’s milk/cheese. I actually thought I had issues with milk, but upon eating a 3 cheese organic pizza I discovered that I had no issues, which leads me to believe it must be the antibiotics and hormones in the regular milk that is causing the sensitivity. I’ve read where even people who do not make the enzyme to digest lactose can tolerate some, so more than likely it’s not a full blown allergy to milk; still cutting it out as much as possible is useful. I’ve also read where increasing yogurt (good bacteria) can actually help a person tolerate milk more. Greek yogurt has less lactose in it than other yogurts. Soupier=more lactose, thicker/creamier=less. Organic Kefir is 99% lactose free. Cut out as much processed foods as possible. A lot of gluten free products use starches, which are not that good for a person health-wise either. Cut out table sugar and use raw honey or cane sugar, as table sugar has high fructose corn syrup in it. Look up the negative effects of it- you’ll be astonished!
I read this and tears come to my eyes. I am going through a similar thing with my 11 year old son. We put him on an elimination diet as he was having facial tics (involuntary muscle movements) and we cured the tics but he has had terrible food sensitivities since re-introducing foods. On a daily basis he has upset stomach, cramps, diarrhea (or feeling like he has to go to the bathroom and cannot). Depending on what he has eaten he sometimes get headaches and feels weak as well. We know he reacts to dairy, corn, wheat, soy, oats (even wheat free). He basically eats nothing but meat, eggs, fruit and vegetables, white rice and nuts. This past week he reacted to either rice or peanuts or peanut butter. We could not identify which so removed both. This really limits his meals. Even when he only eats good for him foods he has pains after eating. He has lost 8 lbs since January and we are so worried about him. We did the allergy tests and nothing showed up. We are having food sensitivity testing done tomorrow. I am just worried there is more going on that food sensitivities but to get anyone to recognize this without automatically resorting to medication is really difficult. We have a follow up appointment with our naturopath tomorrow. My son has not been his regular outgoing self this summer and has been staying close to home due to how he feels. He missed a lot of school in May and June and I am worried about how things will be in a couple of weeks when he returns in September.
It is nice to know we are not alone and there are other kids who are going through the same thing. Thanks so much for sharing your stories.
My 3 year old son suddenly started to have allergic reactions to all fruits and items containing tree nuts. Blood test came back negative but when he eat these items he breaks out in giant hives from head to toe with in a minute or 2…..still trying to figure out what is happening.
On another note, I had horrible stomach issues growing up. Always going potty, cramps, dizziness after eating, weight loss/gain, pain, bloating, etc. I went to doctors for 15 years and I kept getting told it was IBS. In 2012 after my 2nd son was born I decided to get endoscopy/colonoscopy since it had been several years, nothing prompted this was feeling like I always did. When the doctor discuss preliminary results he said I had a lot of inflammation…… Biopsies came back…. I had raging Celiac Sprue…very important note to ALL—–I had been blood tested for this multiple times throughout the years and results were always NEGATIVE!!!!
I have now had a genetic screen on all 3 of my children to know if they carry the gene. Celiacs can present in many different ways including places other than gastrointestinal. As I was reading another moms plight in one of the above comments I immediately thought of gluten ataxia—– this is where gluten attacks the brain.
Best wishes to all… FYI love this bakery, their sweets have really helped me when I need real gluten tasting comfort foods. http://www.unrefinedbakery.com
Hello,
My name is Marisa and I am 42 years old. I am sorry to hear everyone’s stories and the suffering you all have gone through. I too started having many food intolerances agpfter three rounds of amoxicillin. I had heart burn and burning of ears and throat. I’ve tried to cut out the foods that I think bother me but still react to almost everything. I have lost a lot of weight due to all I eat is veges, eggs, and meat. I went to a naturopath that said I had leaky gut and yeast. I was wondering how do I go about getting a food sensitivity test done? I have seen many of you talk about it. I am looking for any help one can give. I also have been drinking bone broth and trying the l glutimane. Hopefully I will see some progress. Good luck to everyone. My heart goes out to people struggling with this.
OW MY WORD!!!
Your son sounds just like my lg for nearly a year she has suffered from tummy pains, we have been to and fro to the doctors being told young children get unexplained tummy pains it will pass, still waiting for that too happen! we where sent to the pedeatrition who discharged us on our first visit with the same answer young children get unexplained tummy pains but will test for chrones, my lg had bloods done but all came back negative. Getting no where from doctors and my daughter in pain I took her to a kinesiologist who said her body didnt like refined sugar, now my lg has. Sweet tooth and I could get her to do anything for a lolly pop lol (not that I fed them to her every day!) so we went away and cut out refined sugar! Reading so many food labels HOW MUCH STUFF CAN THEY STUFF SUGER INTO EVERYTHING! Her tummy was better still hurting but a bit better, my mum had allergic asthma and was very food intolerant so I started cutting different things out one at a time, we have got to a point where I can tell quite quickly what is upsetting her. S at this time she cannot eat: sugar, dairy, gluten, oranges, sweetener, honey and any drinks with bubbles in!!!!! Our symptoms range from tummy pains, bloating, wind, diarea. Our school are great at providing hot meals we have regular meeting to discuss their menu. My lg is so good she knows these thing s hurt her tummy but she still misses things i found her sniffing a chocolate wrapper the other day as she put it “mummy smell this it smells sooooo nice!” :,( we have a special box which has her special snacks in it and no one else is aloud anything out of it (I have four children in total she is my youngest the other a so great with her). I have been back to my doctor and asked to be sent somewhere else as there are still things upsetting her, as although I can tell what does upset her she still isn’t 100% and im not sure what to cut out next I am praying for a day we can get through right till bedtime with NO tummy pains! My doctor sent us to a paediatric gastroenterologist but the appointment came through for a regular paediatric doctor! I phoned and got told if its wrong i will be changed low and behold I had the appointment canceled (for next week!) and another one made for her at the end of January which frustrates me so much.
To find your blog is AMAZING my lg isn’t the only one with such complex food needs!!!!! Does you lad get to go round others to play? I find my lg doesn’t get invited round her friends houses to play i think parents are a little scared of what to feed her and the fact she had delayed speech means I have a complicated lg who is now brave enough to speak and say what she cannot eat.
Hi Marisa, I’m 45 & started suffering something similar to yourself. I got symptoms suddenly & spontaneously in beginning of Sept this year. Previous to it happening I had taken royal jelly liquid in orange juice & previous nights had taken cinnamon so it may be due to one of those triggers. Since then I’ve had an extremely sore irritated mouth & tongue, heat in throat and chest area. I cant eat most foods since. I’ve cut out gluten since. My diet is very restricted. I used to be able to eat everything. At my request my gp took blood test for allergy testing, not sure was it IgG or IgE but it came back negative so they didnt send it for further testing for certain foods. I still believe it was an allergic reaction, it was so sudden and instant when it happened. I dont know who to go to next. I’m attending a herbalist, shes the one who put me off gluten. Is a naturopath different?
Shirley, so sorry to hear about your health issues. I don’t think an herbalist is the same as a naturopath. Our naturopath used supplements, not herbs, and suggested a specific carbohydrate diet.
You should feed him bacon, burgers, chicken. I have ulcerative colitis and it’s all I’ve eaten for 11 months. And I’ve achived remission twice. Only flared up due to stress and cheese. After relaxing and not eating any cheese. Then did my body relax and stop attacking itself. So that’s what you should feed your son. Look Into the book primal body primal mind by Nora Gedgaudaus. Itl answer all your questions. Like me, your son has leaky gut syndrome.
Help! My 8 year old daughter suddenly developed an allergy to egg a few weeks ago. At first it was just the yolk but now she has reactions to any egg (lecithen) which seems to be found in everything! My daughter has always been a good eater. There are no food allergies in the family and my heart breaks as she asks “What can I eat?” We are waiting for her blood tests to come back but I am just puzzled by all this. My children are all very healthy and rarely get sick. The only time we go to doctor is to get immunizations/flu shot. Does anyone else think that the flu shot could possibly be the culprit? I would love feedback from parents whose children are healthy recieve flu shots etc and have suddenly developed food allergies. I am determined to find what has caused this as well as a cure. Her symtoms after ingestion of egg product are immediate vomitting followed by throat pain/itch and swollen lips. This is very scary for both of us and do not want it to get worse so I read ingredients very closely. This just doesnt make sense and I refuse to accept that people just suddenly develop food allergies. The fact that food allergies has increased so dramatically in the last decade is not a coincidence! There is something causing this whether it be environmental pollutants or something being placed in our foods (Genetically Modified). I wrote a research paper in college about GE foods and think everyone should open their eyes and realize that we are not as “safe” as they think. Our government does not necessarily look out for “our” best interest. We must unite and demand better because now our kids are paying the price!
We have found some great items from the brand “enjoy life”. Our 3 yr old son is allergic to soy,milk,eggs,yeast and tree nuts. Yeast has been the tricky one since it is not part of “the top 8 common allergens”. Our sons blood test came back with a true Ige allergy to yeast which I’ve heard is rare. Yet the removal of yeast has had the greatest impact on his health. The withdrawal of all of the above allergens has not been fun, yet it’s taught us many life lessons. We are thankful for were we are versus where we have been. Don’t give up and hold your head up, for your child. Your way of dealing with this is teaching your child how to face challenges in life. After all we all have challenges we are facing. God bless
Sarah, thanks so much for sharing your experience and your insights.
For all parents looking to understand the gut immune system and food sensitivities I would hugely recommend ‘gut and psychology syndrome’ by dr Natasha mcbride. It’s not just for autistic kids – it’s for all children/adults with food intolerances.
Primal body primal mind is also a wonderful read.
The best thing we can do for ourselves is be passionate advocates for our own health. You will realise how much more you know that conventional dr’s once you start gathering this knowledge.
Many mant great naturopaths and functional medicine docs out there now to support you in this.
You and your children can and will get better but it takes work. On the other side though you will have the tools to keep the whole family healthy and understand the importance of the gut immune system and limiting environmental toxins.
If anybody eat something on regular basis on their own country why not that person eat the same thing in here? After all my thoroughly research I find out that due to the pesticides they put in each and every food in here is the main reason of all problems. Everything in here made it toxic just name it. Even in meat created man made “mad cow disease” . Though try everything organic, but remember organic doesn’t mean that it is completely free of pesticides, it has pesticides, but in less amount as compared to regular food. If you find out any product comes out from Europe try that one. It will much better as compared to product in here.
Add me to the list. I’m 56, and I’m in the same boat as your 8yo. In hindsight, I’ve had this problem since I was a kid, but the various manifestations only became intolerable after I turned 50. Doctors have so far been useless. At this point, I don’t care whether the ultimate cause is pesticides, triticale wheat, too many carbs in the American diet, antibiotics or spacemen from Planet X. I just want a cookbook of bland, healthy foods that won’t set off the fireworks. Meat, probiotics, gluten-free animal crackers and leafy greens can’t be a good long-term menu… or can it? LOL.
Thanks for the blog, and I’ll be reading all these replies in detail.
Jeanette,
It’s been awhile so I hope your son and you have gotten the hang of things. I had a bunch of food allergies until I was about 9 when I “grew out” of most of them. Added a bunch more at 57. If you haven’t taken him to an allergist yet please do so. It may take a few to find the right one, like any other doctor, hair stylist, etc. Have them do the skin prick test, first for food and in six months or so for pollens, etc. That’s so his system can clear out a bit between them. Environmental and food allergies can easily mask each other.
If you move to another area a new test will be needed in a few years after his body adjusts to the new mix.
A new blood test is coming to market which may be better.
Other posters: The comment that food allergies won’t show up in tests unless recently eaten is dead wrong. Desensitizing shots don’t work against food allergies. They’re just now beginning to have some good results in Europe in clinical trials against peanuts.
Many areas of the world have a different food mix, so look around. For example, the Jains of India don’t eat garlic, onions, or other root vegetables. It’s often a little easier for me and my garlic allergy to eat in an Indian restaurant because they’re used to requests to delete garlic. In contrast, I ate lots of corn tortillas in south Texas because of wheat allergy. When we moved to Illinois at 5 I couldn’t believe anybody could eat without tortillas. I also had a much harder time eating in the heart of the Midwestern wheat and dairy belt.
TEACH your children to STAND THEIR ground against well-meaning but ignorant grownups who try to get they to eat food to which they’re allergic. Have them explain to the adult what happens in specific terms. For example, If I eat that salmon teacher I’ll start throwing up in 30 seconds and will keep throwing up for 3-4 hours.”
best of luck to all
I appreciate you posting all of these things. Our family has had many same experiences. As your son is older by now, if he’s still having food allergies you may want to consider a colonoscopy. We found there’s something called Microscopic Colitis, more specifically called Lymphocytic or Cologeanous Colitis. It’s a microscopic layer of protein that develops along the lining of the GI tract. Some scientific journals from studies showed that the genetically modified foods can have transferable DNA, which can transfer DNA into your intestinal lining. This would mean that it would continue to produce the sensitive proteins that trigger the lymph system to respond. It can respond differently in everyone, but over all, there are sick symptoms. And it would continue to reproduce and dwell in you. There’s no cure yet, save it be abstaining from the foods that trigger the lining. Processed foods and other modified foods…you know, everything in America!
My daughter 15 was just diagnosed with Microscopic Colitis. It is a mast cell disease. It took about six months of countless doctor visits and an endoscope and colonoscopy to finally get a diagnosis. She had a rash, achy joints and muscles, stomach pain, headaches, chest pain, numbness, no energy and twitchy nerves to name a few symptoms. We thought at first it was lupus or some type of autoimmune, and 2 doctors said it was in her head since all bloodwork was normal. She was literally in bed for 2 months and no one could help us. I literally begged a doctor to admit her to the hospital to no avail. Even an ER at a childrens hospital told us nothing was wrong with her. She lost 25 lbs in 3 months. Her gastroenterologist listened and ordered the endoscope and colonoscopy and diagnosed her last week. She goes for food allergy testing this week. We eliminated gluten about 6 weeks ago and that has helped but other foods bother her as well. It is hard to believe that food allergy can make someone so ill! Mast Cell disorders are rare and not all doctors know to test for it.
Wowo, wow, wow… I can’t believe all the entries. Just heartbreaking to read. My 3 year old was just diagnosed with allergies to dairy, wheat, potato, yeast. We were already following a gluten and dairy free diet because other family members have allergies to them. As Sarah said, I am thankful my son’s situation is not as bad as others. I have been to several nutritionists and all were useless and had no info on yeast allergy. I have read every site online about yeast allergies, asked at health food stores, pediatricians, allergist, but I can’t not find a consistent credible list for foods to eat and or avoid on yeast allergy diet. I have found lots of carb filled fiods that are his allergies free – a great source is Namaste products and Orgran, but I am still at a loss of what to give him to keep carbs under 15grams per meal. Some sites say it’s ok to have fruit others say no. Some say apple cider vinegar is ok others say no. Some sits say anything thing that has sugar (natural or otherwise) can create yeast in the body so avoid, others say to keep carbs under 15grams.
My son has anxiety, poor impulse control, ADD, sensory issues and so on. Last week the two days he had no foods that had any of his allergies, were amazing days at preschool and home. The best days in over a year. But on the other days he had small amount of fruit or cheese or sugar and he had issues and complete meltdowns. Even though he doesn’t go into anaphylactic shock when eating yeast, it certainly negatively impacts his behavior greatly.
I really need a list of foods that can be eaten on a yeast free diet. Any suggestions would greatly be appreciated. Thank you!! Hope others have been able to find solutions that work for them or their child.
My name is Carla I am 51 yrs young n have very recently had some problems tht lead me to a food allergist my results were shocking to me . eggs, fish, apples, peaches, pears, strawberries and Lima beans and lactose intolerant after eating whatever I want for 50 years this is very difficult to know what I can and cannot eat so if anyone has any suggestions plz feel free to help me thank you
Carla, so sorry to hear about your recent discovery of food allergies. Fortunately, there are many lactose-free and dairy-free alternatives these days so going lactose free isn’t as difficult as it once was. I found that writing down a list of foods you can have, rather than focusing on the foods you can’t have sometimes helps so you can come up with ideas on what to cook.
I having all these problems listed above. I’m 23 years old woman living in the Uk, I have suffered all my life from asthma and mild eczema but it was controllable. Untill I gave birth, a few months after I started getting severe eczema on my face which looks like Im sunburt which made me depressed and upset! Feeling tired and really bad stomach camps. I tried everything and I could’nt understand what was going on! I went on the elimination diet this has helped alot and so I relized I need to heal my gut. Before pregnacy I ate sugar processed foods, drank alcohol, had antibotics and during pregnacy I had many course of antibotics. My 10 month old son is now having the same problem, he had colic as a baby and now has bad eczema. He is to on the elimation diet, also on special milk from the doctor, also Im giving vitamin D, coconut oil to line his gut and I feel it’s all my fault. I’m also having coconut oil, L Glutamine, probotics, omega 3,6 and 9 and digest enzymes to see if it will heal my gut :/.
Thanks for sharing your story Yasmin. I know several people who have put themselves on an elimination diet and it has helped tremendously. Best wishes for you and your son.
Red dye is a major culprit in so many foods, and medications. It can be used under multiple names such as: Allura Red AC, FD&C Red. No. 40 Calcium Lake, FD&C Red. No. 40 Aluminum Lake…and many others. Its even used with other dyes to make prescription and over the counter drugs “white” which is stunning. I figured this out after years of anaphylaxis and between 4 and 5 thousand doses of Prednisone. Most of the red dye consumed was actually from medications. Also little things like being allergic to porcine gelatin (but not bovine gelatin) in meds that come in Gel-Caps.
I’m allergic to 100s of foods so I get how it takes over your whole life.
Thanks so much for sharing this information and your experience TR.
I found chewing on catnip works for me.
It’s possible to heal the gut and to be able to eat more foods. CEADAR WOOD NATURAL HEALTH CENTER
Guided wellness solutions in Burlington VT.
Kelley Muraro helped me a eat deal
Thank you for posting this information. I am a 45 year old male that has been through absolute hell the last 3 years. I started having severe stomach problems. I wound up having my gall ballder taken out as supposedly it was literally almost 100% full of stones, but that didnt help my overall stomach situation. I was literally in constant stomach pain and anytime I ate anything, I would get terrible bloating and gas. Some nights I was so bloated that I literally couldnt get any sleep. I went to stomach doctors, was in the ER on a monthly basis, and nobody could find anything wrong. I had a stomach scope, a colonoscopy, and all they found was that there was a lot of irritation in my stomach. A first he thought it might have been an infection, but the stomach biopsy came back negative. The one thing that showed up regularly in the ER visits was my liver enzymes were high.
I have had hepatits C since I was a baby. I had to have a complete blood transfusion due to my mothers blood killing mine. I have never fully understood that, but again it made it so I had to have a complete blood transfusion at birth (1971) and that wes before they tested for Hep C in the blood supply. I wound up going to a liver specialist and my Hep C was pretty bad. They put me on the new drug Harvoni and that was a pretty rough 3 months as I had a lot of bad side effects from the drug. The good news is that I was cured and the stomach pain that was constantly there has gotten better, but I am still having a terrible time evertime I eat. Still getting bloated, just a general feeling of sickness, no energy, etc. And I recently developed a case of eczema, which is one of the things that really stuck out in your explaination of your sons issues. Nobody can tell me why I have suddenly gotten eczema and I just find it really strange that a 45 year old develops eczema out of nowhere. Food allergies never even crossed my mind. I am literally at my wits end as these last 3 years have just been one big long stretch of suffering. The only time I feel even remotely good is when I have gone like 8-10 hours without eating and then I start getting headaches from not eating. I dont eat any fast food, eat organic 95% of the time, eat zero processed foods (forzen foods, chips, cookies, ice cream, etc). Yogurt and Orgain shakes are 2 things I eat most often as my stomach seems to do better with those than anything else. I am literally completely lost nutritionallly speaking. I just ordered some raw honey from Amazon as I have heard good things about raw honey.
In regards to being tested for food allergies, do you just go to your primary care doctor and ask to be tested for food allergies? And are there any food you could recommend that your son does well with. I figure since he has so many allergies, I could at least try some of the food that have been more successful for him. Any information you can give me would be greatly appreciated. I honestly dont know how people live like this. Its just pure misery and you learn to literally hate food and eating. And I have a bunch of other symptoms as well. I have a bad metallic tatse in my mouth most of the day, I get muscle pains all throughout my body, I have a terrible time sleeping, some mornings I have really bad tinnitus, and as I stated before, I now have eczema as well. Life is great when your feeling well, but it becomes a miserable grind when you can’t even eat without making yourself feel like utter crap. I dont know wether to see my stomach doctor again as he was pretty worthless and didn’t even offer me any other options or advice, go to a nutritionist, etc. I am just completely lost so I finally decided to start doing some research myself online, which is when I ran into your website. But I just started researching yesterday, so I really havent found much and there is so much contradicting info on the internet. Your post on your son however really sparked my interest as again, I never thought of food allergies as I never had any problem with foods for the first 42 years of my life. I am now thinking that maybe my eczema is a sign of something bigger going on, like possible allergies. Again, any info you can give me at this point would be greatly appreciated. I am willing to try anything at this point!!
Hi Michael, thanks for sharing your journey. We saw several different doctors and nutritionists and pulled data from each experience. We had several food allergy tests done (for IgG and IgE allergencs) – we did blood tests; some people do skin pricks. We saw a naturopathic physician (our regular doctor did not seem to support IgG allergy testing – these are the allergies that may have delayed effects so are sometimes considered food intolerances more than food allergies). We found a good naturopathic nutritionist to help us too. After coming up with a list of 20+ IgG allergens, I eliminated all these foods from my son’s diet for 6 months, then one by one reintroduced each food item. Today, he is allergy-free thankfully.
In searching what can I eat with all my food allergies, I came across your blog. I had no idea I was dealing w food allergies. I always thought I had environmental allergies. My symptoms include, but are not limited to eczema, at times severe fatigue, many digestive issues, (reflux), & always feeling like a severe cold is coming on.
I’m allergic to casein, chocolate, codfish, coffee, corn, egg white, peanut, soybean, tomato, wheat, and bakers/brewers yeast.
What can I possible eat if I eliminate all of these from my diet??
I was hoping to find a site where I could punch in my allergies and it would eliminate all the foods I can eat and possibly give me some recipes or foods that I CAN eat. I want to try to eliminate all of them to see if I will get a huge relief and be able to live normal. I really am feeling like I suffering from Lyme disease or something similar. Its debilitating at times. I hope I can find such a site that will give me hope. As most of us busy people, I don’t have time to read every ingredient detail and compare it to such a large list of allergens. Any ideas of such a existing site would be greatly appreciated.
Hi Marie – I don’t know of a site at this point that can do what you’re asking. You might check to see if there’s an app on your phone that can. Meanwhile, after looking at your allergies, you actually can eat a lot of things. To make it easier, focus on whole foods like meat, poultry, fish (except for codfish), and vegetables (except corn and tomato) that are simply prepared (roast, bake or grill with olive oil, herbs, salt and pepper; steaming is another simple method). Instead of bread and pasta, try grains (rice, oats, quinoa). The simpler you keep it, the easier it is to make sure you’re not including ingredients you’re allergic to.
Eat organic and get a stool test done as likely the gut full of bad bacteria and maybe worms as mine was. My allergy testing showed i was allergic to roundup. Despite not testing for gluten intolerance practically every time i eat out i get expolsive diarrhea but if i eat organic can eat most things including bread. I am lactose intolerant and years ago when i had my allergies done list was huge but it has reduced as my recent tests showed only lactose nitrates artificial colours onions and garlic. Modern processed food is making us sick so we need to do what our ancestors do and go organic. No more roundup in the food chain and that means noGMO.
Hi! Did your son take a round of antibiotics around the time he became allergic? My daughter developed allergies after taking antibiotics.
Yes, my son had been on strong round of antibiotics when he developed allergies.
Where are your receipe we have same issue. Please help us with what you’ve learned.
Recipes will depend on what specific allergies you have