Allergic to everything

Hi.  I'm new here.  I was tested two years ago for both airborne and food allergies.  I had blood testing done for the food and skin tests for the airborne.  I had positive reactions (some of them really high) to pretty much everything - 27 of 35 skin tests and all 8 items of the food.  I started getting the shots every week, three of them.  I had noticed that this summer, which was exactly two years of shots, that I really am not feeling any better.  So just a couple of weeks ago, I had blood tests run for everything again, plus a few additional items.  Evidently, I'm a "nonresponder" because my tests, with the exception of a few minor things, all came back as bad or worse than they were two years ago before I started the immunotherapy.

So now I'm really frustrated.  I've pretty much wasted all that time and money for nothing.  I've started back on my rotation diet for the food allergies.  But I'm having a really hard time this time giving up everything.  I'm allergic to pretty much all grains, eggs, dairy, soy, corn, yeast, cane and beet sugars, and something else that I can't remember.  And these are just the items that I've been tested for.

Unfortunately, my diet is currently also limited by the braces on my teeth.  And I don't like a lot of vegetables.  I can't stand broccoli, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, kale, turnip greens, or squash.  I can't even be in the house where they're being cooked because I literally gag.  So, again, I'm really frustrated.  And I'm having serious withdrawals from the breads, dairy, and eggs that I love so much. 

So, does anyone have any words of encouragement or suggestions?  I'm trying to keep a positive attitude, but it's really hard right now, especially knowing that I can't work any of the food allergies out of my system.  I'll have to avoid them forever, or feel bad if I eat them.  And I can barely go outside in the summer because of all the grasses and pollens.  Sorry to be so long winded.  But thanks for letting me vent.

Hi,

I'm not sure what all you've tried, but I've been researching for a few months now on allergies and such and I thought I'd share what I found.

I don't know if you are into holistic or natural options, but hey, I think we all get to a point where we're to try anything.

Okay, here we go:

I currently am taking some homepathic remedies for some chronic hives that I have and I am seeing wonderful results. These remedies are from biogetica.com. They have a section just for allergies. They have a few things to offer you. (No I do not work for them, just a really satisifed customer). Anyway, they have remedies for specific allergies or a remedy for people who are either allergic to a lot of things or for people who aren't sure what they are allergic to. You can read about it on their site. It is different than immunotherapy, but I think they have a few things in common. All I know is that these guys are for real and they really do help people who thought that pain and suffering was just going to have to be apart of their lives. Check it out. They also have live support from doctors should you have questions.

Quercitin is a vitamin of sorts that has proven really effective with allergies, especially asthma and hayfever. It is a natural histamine inhibitor and a mass cell stablizer. Studies have shown that with continued use, Quercitin can help your body to stop reacting to different things. You can find it at any health food store. Buy the non-citrus formula. You need to be patient with it though because it has to build up in your system over time. I also take this and I started noticing benefits after about 3 weeks. But then again, it depends on the person. It also has other benefits like being an anti-oxidant.

Also, I would look to your digestive system for some answers to your allergies and how to treat them. Of everything I read, coventional and holistic, it all comes back to the digestive system. Many people develop allergies over time. For instance, I was never allergic to almonds, and I hadn't had one for some time and the next thing I know, I'm eating an almond and my throat starts to itch like crazy and I feel like a can't swallow. It wasn't a serious reaction, I just stopped eating the almonds and made a mental note of that incident. Anyway, the reason that a lot of people develop these allergies is because the digestive system isn't functioning properly. If you have an enzyme deficiency or a lack of hydrochloric acid, food does not get digested well enough. If your intestinal or stomach lining has been damaged in any way(from taking OTC pain killers, overuse of antibotics, etc) then the lining becomes more permeable and the undigested food enters into places it shouldn't go. The body sees it as a pathogen(virus) and attacks it. Histamine is released and BOOM, you've got an allergic reaction. Also, if your colon is backed up (that doesn't have to mean that you are necessarily always constipated) like most Americans, then that can cause problems as well. We all experience bowel problems and irregularities, but over time, it can cause issues. If the colon is not workling like it should, toxins that your body was trying to remove, get absorbed back into the body. Once again, the body attacks it and we get a reaction.

What toxins? you might ask. Well, no one can pretend anymore that our earth is all peachy keen and that all the water is clean and the plants are in great fertile soil. Sadly, we seem to be poisoning ourselves. A big source of toxins are in some of the things we eat. Processed food is a great thing because it is fast and easy and usually tastes great. Unfortunately, it's not all good. The processing adds things like perservatives, additives, and dyes to our food. Our body does its best to try and handle these unnatural things, but since we all, at times, overload our bodies with this processed stuff, the body can't keep up (especially if the digestive system isn't doing well) and toxins buildup and cause allergic-like reactions. A lot of people find that they've become allergic to certain perservatives or dyes.

What to do then? Some people find a great deal of relief from taking enzyme supplements. One enzyme that you probably want to take is called amalyse. Studies have found that people with allergies, especially ones with a lot of allergies, are short on amalyse. Most supplements give you all the needed digestive enzymes, including amalyse. You can also up your enzyme intake by eating more raw foods. Cooking takes a lot out of our foods, so eat whatever raw food that you can. Since you don't like a lot of vegetables, you might want to get the supplements and eat fruit. These same supplements usually also contain a hydrochloric acid supplement that will help your acid levels in the stomach so that food can be properly digested.

You might consider some kind of detox program that would remove colon buildup, parasites, and heavy metals. Some people have found relief doing liver flushes as well. Research carefully and thoroughly before you buy anything.



One last thing to consider. For some people with allergies, yeast overgrowth (Candida) is the ultimate cause. We all have a certain amount of yeast sprinkled throughout the digestive system. They don't bother us and we don't bother them. But the yeast can rapidly get out of control. Use of antibotics, steriods, and some other medications destroy the good bacteria is our system and this lets the yeast grow unchallenged. Also, yeast loves sugar. Guess what we all consume too much of. Yeah, sugar. Stress can also weaken our ability to control the yeast. Anyway, if the yeast gets out of hand it can grow into a fungus that causes a lot of different problems. In fact a lot of chronic diseases have been linked to Candida. IBS, Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Depression, Arthritis, Leaky Gut Syndrome, etc. Allergies are also on that list. People with yeast issues might experience any one of the diseases I mentioned, but also yeast infections, athletes' foot, and thrush (oral infection). There are a lot of other symptoms as well. It is hard to test for Candida, but you might want to speak with a doctor about the possibility. However, you might want to do some research on it before you speak with your doctor because some doctors doubt the very existence of Candida. You'll need to be informed.

Usually, treatments for Candida consists of a certain diet and a treatment with antifungals and the taking of probiotics and prebiotics to help the good bacteria to grow. The diet you seem to be on seems to almost be the anti-Candida diet already. The most important thing about the anti-Candida diet is to avoid sugar. They even say to avoid fruit, especially high sugar fruits like bananas and grapes for a while and then you can work them back in. You'll probably want to avoid anything with yeast, wheat or gluten as well. There are many ways you can do this diet, so do some research and find something you think you could live with for a while if you decide to treat yourself for Candida. Antifungals can come in prescription or natural form. Research your options. Candida can be quite stubborn and since the diet is somewhat restrictive, a lot of people can't take it and go back to normal eating habits. They also realize that their symptoms are back as well. They say the how long it take to recover coincides with a much of an imbalance you have. A lot of people find success in staying on the regiment for at least 6-8 months. Some people even discover that after six months, they don't want to go back to eating the way they did because they feel so great after the treatment.



I'm not saying you have Candida, but most Americans do have some imbalance with yeast, so it is not all that far-fetched.



I know I've given you probably more info than you wanted. My own health issues, which are improving greatly, have led me to do a lot of research and I find that there is a lot of help out there, but a lot of the time, we have to go look for it ourselves. I really like this forum, but another forum you might want to look at is curezone.com. I really like it there and they have a lot of people there to speak with and to get advice from. I have more to share, but this reply is long enough already. I feel like my head is just bursting with all of the info I've gathered over the past few months, so come and pick my brain anytime.



Good luck and God bless.

Allergic2All,

   I have horrible allergies too, and I've tried the allergy shots twice; once when I was little and again more recently. I am also a nonresponder. I get dinner plate sized hives ( I wish I was exaggerating ) and severe hayfever, siusitis and mild asthma ( I'm lucky there ) all year long and it just gets worse during high allergy season. I tested positive for all the grasses and pollens, trees, dust mites, cats etc, but my allergist doesn't test for food allergies. I'm thinking of switching to one who does - when anyone has allergies year round it prompts one to suspect foods. Okay, it's definitely overwhelming to be told you're allergic to so many very basic foods ( now what the heck do you eat ? ). Keep in mind, you may not have to completely obliterate all of them from your diet, or at least, not all of the time. For instance, I have noticed that I can tolerate chocolate occasionally, but if I eat it everyday for a week it aggrivates my sinuses and I end up with a sinus infection ( I noticed this when I gave up chocolate for lent one year and felt better off of it and then worse when I resumed consuming it again ). Also, I have less tolerance for chocolate during the spring and summer when my allergies are at their worst. You might be fine with something but then if you are exposed to dust and cats along with it and it's pollen season, forget it. Allergies can be cummulative and you may be able to tollerate some foods in smaller amounts ( sometimes just skipping a couple days inbetween - like having wheat 3 times a week, just not everyday ). It also depends on how strong your allergy is to the food. Just say you are most allergic to dairy, when you eliminate that food group, you may be better able to tolerate some of the others. Unfortunately, this is something you'll have to experiment with to discover what will work for you. I had to be on a very strict diet for 2 years because of severe hypoglycemia ( only vegetables, meat and water - I could tolerate unripe bananas in moderation, for 6 small meals a day ). It sure wasn't fun, but I was actually able to get used to it and stick to it because I felt so much better when I did. Those bananas tasted like candy to me because it was the only sugar I was eating.  I can eat more normally today, but I picked up some good health habits; I can't eat sugar like I used to - it still tastes too sweet, and I still prefer to drink mostly water. As for the veggies, there are some vegetable powder mixes you could mix with fruit juice to sqeeze veggies into your diet since you don't like them much. Some taste really aweful, I found one at GNC that's veggies and fruits and it says best tasting on it and it is. I actually got my husband hooked on smoothies made with it and he doesn't like anything "weird". I saw a lot of good comments in the person who responded to you first. Quercitin works as a natural anti-inflamatory and blocks histimines which is great for allergy sufferers. Also, the point about intestinal and digestive health is a very vallid one. I like Super Papaya Enzyme Plus from Vitamin World and for a probiotic I use Primal Defense from Garden of life. There are anti-Ige shots you can get ( I didn't opt for them because they don't offer allergy shots in conjunction with these and I wanted to try the allergy shots again since they are a long term solution if they help. I may try the anti-Ige in the future). I know of a few people who were helped a lot by anti-Ige shots; they aren't a permanent solution in that you can't stop taking them and keep feeling the results like you eventually can if you are a responder to allergy shots. However, there is supposed to be a shot coming out in the next year or two ( they have tested it on rats and are now testing on humans ) that you can get every 3 months, I think it was, and it blocks the body's response to allergies ( not sure exactly how it differs from the ant-Ige shots, but it's supposed to work better ). I'll be the first in line for that, sign me up!!! So, don't give up hope, but do feel free to vent. Allergies are a real pain in the @$$!!!!!!!!!! Take care and God bless.

Hi Allergic2All

I'm sorry to hear you're having such a bad time of it right now. Although I am unable to offer any real suggestions at this moment in time ... I just want you to know you are far from alone.

I have just recently had a batch of allergy tests done due to a very chronic bout of Ibs ... thought it would be interesting to see what the tests would throw up if anything. Well! It seems I too am allergic to pretty much everything but fresh air.

I am in quite a dilemma as to what I can now eat. Out of all the food products I was tested for ... 36 of them have come back as a high allergic reaction.

Peavea interestingly mentioned Sulfites (there are 7 different types in all with food addictives) ... this is one of my problem area's, along with MSG (monosodium glutamite), Tartrazine and Sacharine ... and it is almost impossible to find any food or drink products which don't contain atleast one of the aforementioned.

I totally understand your frustration. This week trying to put together my grocery order has been a nightmare. Having gone round and round in circles I'm still at a loss as to what I can now eat. Even cleaning my teeth has become a problem as I'm allergic to toothpaste too. At great expense I have managed to find some I can buy online that doesn't contain Flouride or sacharine ...

Having pretty much cut out everything edible I have finally started to feel that little bit better ... albeit hungry!! Very hungry!!! I'm barley existing on the most basic "meals" and having to rapidly accept that atleast for the forseeable future this is the way it's going to have to be. It's going to take a while to get my head around, adjust to and work my way around this.

Talking to a nutritionist may be beneficial to you .. also maybe seeing if you can get a more indepth testing done some place (here in the UK we have a chinese herbalist company whom from a simple sample of your hair can test for a wide range of edibles aswell as the usual airborne allergies) to find out if there are particular additives and preservatives which are especially problematic to you.

I hope that with a little time and patience you can start to feel much better and more positive.

If sacrificing all the stuff I love (even chocolate) I can finally start to feel better, then I guess it will be worth it in the long run.

Keep hanging on in there!

Tizz

Hi Carla

I can't say it has ever hit me that severely ... that I'm aware of! For a long time hardly a day has gone by when I haven't felt sickly or had troublesome tummy's. More often than not shortly after eating. The MSG just happened to show up on these random tests I had ... along with so many other allergies so it's impossible to pinpoint exactly which additive has been causing what, or which of my symptoms. 2 weeks ago I didn't even know what MSG was ... but since then, I have heard that it is very very bad with a wide range of possible side effects .. nausea and vomitting being one of them.

By the way, my tests also showed up an allergy to soy

Must be very difficult eating out when these allergies are involved.

According to the information I found online, MSG is absorbed very quickly in the gastrointestinal tract, thus causing a rapid reaction in those intolerant to it.

Tizz

To those of you with sulfite intolerance/allergy:

Vitamin B12 (get the injectable - can't absorb enough of it orally) will increase your tolerance threshold. Vitamin B12 binds directly to the sulfite and makes it easier for the body to eliminate it before it can do any damage. Also, Vitamin B12, molybdenum, zinc, iron, & magnesium are needed for the sulfite oxidase and molybdenum cofactor enzymes to work correctly. These enzymes are what convert sulfite into sulfate in the body. There are lots and lots of sources of sulfites, including car exhaust (sulfur dioxide) so it is impossible to avoid sulfites but at least with the Vitamin B12 and other minerals it is possible to reduce symptoms and increase tolerance.

Regarding other allergies:

There are other methods of treating allergies besides just allergy shots. Sublingual desensitization done through naturopathic physicians has proven helpful for some with food and inhalant (pollen, dust, etc.) allergies.

Also, chronic allergies can sometimes be related to Celiac Disease or Gluten Sensitivity. Some with gluten tolerance issues find their allergies become less severe when following a gluten-free diet.

Finally, those of you with multiple food allergies may have something called Eosinophilic Gastroenteritis or Eosinophilic Esophagitis. For more information, check out http://www.apfed.org/

I hope this is helpful info. Take care,

-Razzle (sulfite sensitivity, other allergies, etc., & married to a wonderful person who happens to have a lot of allergies because he has Eos. Gastroenteritis)