How many of you have food allergies?

[Endless One]

:grr: I recently had a rude awakening regarding my formerly mild allergy to tree nuts. I didn't know these things could go full blown bad without any prior warning. Fortunately it was a skin reaction to a coconut oil containing body wash (I used to have to ingest it to react). Which the itchy hives didn't feel fortunate, but the alternative is worse...gasp...choke...you get the idea.

But I had no idea that nuts were in so many things, and because coconut has only been recently considered part of this allergy group, most food labels that have warnings don't have to warn you if coconut is present. Nuts are a popular binder in most breads, crackers, cookies etc. Lecithin, unless specifically indicated as soy lecithin may or may not contain coconut oil, also most vegetable oils may contain it unless specifically labeled. Barbecue sauce, worchestershire sauce, dressings, you name it. The fun part is the fact that I'm a hairdresser and shampoos can often contain nut products as well as styling products. And if its part of a fragrance, it doesn't have to list those ingredients specifically. Fortunately its pretty obvious its present.

I get to be that pain in the but customer at every restaurant, or stop eating at them. I don't do Chinese Buffets, Bakeries, Spas, foreign chocolates and candies, vending machine food in general (that's probably a good thing) and movie theatre popcorn in a lot of places...Poor D-Man got more than he bargained for with me :yoy:

I'm sorry I'm pissing and moaning :) its not like I'm deathly ill or something, right? Perhaps some of you can shed some light on how you cope with this crap if you have to.

[bpphantom]

None that I know of at this point in my life. Many other allergies, but nothing food related (yay!).

[Dark AngelHawk]

I used to be really allergic to Ibprofen. After taking enough I got over it. A also used to be very allergic to cats. Once again enough exposure helped it though it did make me suffer to no end in the process lol. I'm sure there are still things I am allergic to that I do not evenknow yet. Foods are posibly one of many things. Don't let it get ya down.

[thebluecanary]

I used to be able to eat fish. Now I can't. I used to not be able to eat chocolate, now I can.

They say thatyour allergies can change every 7 years or so. Getting stronger or lesser. Or even getting entire new ones. And I work for a Soy compnay, so I know all too well about the alliergies thing.

And currently we are fighting to get soy lecithin to be labled different, because there are two uses for lecithin. One as a food aditive, and one as a food lubricant. Basiclly one is added to the food in an amount that would cause you to have a reaction, and the other is just to help move food though a machine, or to greece that machine. And this is important because people who have an alliergy to soy COULD eat a product that was just lubricated with soy.

Also as a note my almost-wife is crazy about sushi, and I get sick from the smell of fish now. And she still loves me.

[Meltman]

What do they use it for in popcorn? Or is it just in the butter flavoring?

[8 Ball]

My Wife has a fairly severe allergy to Sesame Seeds.....now THAT'S a PITA to avoid. They put those damned things on everything, and we can't even go near a chinese resteraunt (Sesame oil). We've managed though, at resteraunts they're usually very accomandating once you mention it's an allergy and not just you trying to be picky.

[razoras]

No clear food allergies, but I got quite sick after trying to eat Crab Puffs for the first time a couple years ago. Might have an allergy of some kind, or it was just some bad Puffs.

Either way, I won't be trying again for a few years.

[Quakester]

I have a few food allergies. Sadly, the only way I know to cope is to read labels and avoid certain foods or products.

[thebluecanary]

What do they use it for in popcorn? Or is it just in the butter flavoring?

its in the cooking oil I would guess.

[Solos]

I'm allergic to most brands of soap. Not that big a deal because i just have to buy the brands i'm not allergic to but there's been a couple of times when i couldn't find any and just have to wash with water which isn't nice.

[Knightward]

While I have plenty of allergies, none of them are food/medicine related. My dad however, is deathly allergic to shellfish. A drop of juice from it causes wherever it hits to rash and swell. In a possible coincidence, I generally don't like shellfish.

[Kozzma]

Where I do not have any allergies, I have a friend that is allergic to peanuts.
And another that is allergic to MSG of all things. Ledgermain knows who I am referring to. Poor guy can be killed by a bag of chips, If he has a small amount he wishes he was dead as it gives him a severe migraine for 2 days.

On a side note, My son is having an allergic reaction to “something” we are trying to find out what… quite possibly something in a lunchable that he had last night.

[Remianen]

Lessee, I'm allergic to aspirin (as a result of G6PD) and I'm lactose intolerant. But if I have a headache and there's only Bayer around, I'm takin' it. And with pizza as one of my favorite foods, I should buy stock in McNeil Nutritionals (makers of Lactaid).

I have several friends who have severe food allergies though. One friend is almost exactly like Knightward's dad in that exposure to shellfish can put him in the hospital for a couple weeks. Damn shame because I am a shellfish FIEND but we all just adjust and switch to red meat when he's around. One friend who is allergic to nuts often says, "I curse you, George Washington Carver! Is there nothing you haven't poisoned?!" or something along those lines. :P

I feel for folks with food allergies though. You have to scrutinize seemingly everything before you can consume it. Makes you seem like a rabid dieter to those of us who just look at the menu and order what sounds good.

[Endless One]

I used to be able to eat fish. Now I can't. I used to not be able to eat chocolate, now I can.

They say thatyour allergies can change every 7 years or so. Getting stronger or lesser. Or even getting entire new ones. And I work for a Soy compnay, so I know all too well about the alliergies thing.

.

Unfortunately nut allergies never go away :( I'm glad your wife still loves you. My kiddo can't eat fish either.

[Nerfed]

I grew up eating & loving fishsticks... with ketchup, yum.

Late in my teens, I discovered I couldn't stomach seafood in general... not even my childhood favorite. It did bad things to my digestive tract.

Decades later, I'm having serious issues on the job. I drive an oil tanker, delivering soy and canola cooking oil in bulk to restaurants for use in their fryers. A month or so into the job, I noticed an occasional skin rash (the itchy hives thing) for what seemed no apparent reason... of course, a pattern emerged and I would always get the rash when leaving certain seafood kitchens... filled with steam and who knows what else in the air.

Basically, I can't even be close to fish anymore. Last week, we had a little "spill" at the office and some of the waste cooking oil (filled with all kinds of food particles, juices, and who knows what else) was splashed on me. Within an hour, I was all puffy & swollen where it made contact, itching like nuts, and desperate for something drastic to make the itch go away... like being cryogenically frozen, maybe.

Currently, my doctor has me on a combination of prednisone (steroid) and an increased dosage of an over the counter antihistimine. It had been working okay up until I was splashed last friday, but the direct contact thing has been a whole lot worse on me. The day after all the swelling and such, the hives spread all over.

My doctor is telling me that I really need to find a new job. :(

But this one pays so well, and they haven't fired me for mouthing off at customers, innocent bystanders, or even the owner of the company. Its hard to find a job with that much freedom!

[Endless One]

Wow, I too have job issues, there's products at work I am no longer able to touch. And I can't use the spa anymore. I work here (http://www.aniusalonandspa.com) as a hairdresser. But I love what I do so I won't change that :)

[Randomus]

I am allergic to gluten and pork sausages.

I just learned to make gluten-free foods and don't eat pork sausages. Going out to eat can be a chore, though. Also most gluten-free food tastes like crap. But that's life.

[Sechmeth]

I dont have allergies, just a nice overreaction on Ibuprofen. But I study throphology, so I know ALOT about food allergies. Since it has to do with the immune system, they can go away (the cells finally get used to that stuffand die), you can get new ones ("oh, ist THAT something I ate before? I dunno...lets react against it) or you can get crossover-allergies, like Milkproteine and curry, or birk and apples (the cells have no clue how to differ between those, why ever).
The Reactions you can get are various: pimples, itchy skin, red marks around the mouth, dry mouth, the runs and vomiting, Coughing, slighty to severe stomach aches, up to what they call "anaphylactic shock" what means your blood stops running because everything inside gets swollen, or your throat swells and you cannot breathe.
Here they changed the laws for the incredient lists, they are very strict now, and everything someone might be allergic against has to be written down.
And Rando, if you want some recipes for gluten-free peach-muffins or crepes, I can send them to you :)

[Moon Jump]

Only Oranges and amoxacillen (can't spell it) for me.

I get bumps like acne when I have Oranges, Orange Juice and even Sunny D

[Sun-Scarab]

I'm Normal with that stuff, tho a few of my friends have it bad, one with shrimp, one with peanuts , & another with strawberries.
It's almost comic book like knowing people have food kryptonites.

[razoras]

I'm allergic to most brands of soap. Not that big a deal because i just have to buy the brands i'm not allergic to but there's been a couple of times when i couldn't find any and just have to wash with water which isn't nice.
My wife has to use Dove. Anything else causes hives or rashes.

[bpphantom]

Only Oranges and amoxacillen (can't spell it) for me.

I get bumps like acne when I have Oranges, Orange Juice and even Sunny D

But Sunny D is made from Petroleum... :think:

[Bitter Babe]

I'm lucky enough *knocks on wood* that I don't have any food allergies or drug allergies. The only thing that bugs me is Irish Spring soap which I haven't used since I was a kid.

[thebluecanary]

Unfortunately nut allergies never go away :( I'm glad your wife still loves you. My kiddo can't eat fish either.

The funny thing is I used to eat fish all the time when I was a kid. I loved shrimp. Then my brother took me to this history park think in Texas, and they had this science gal talking about fish and shrimp. Yeah, SO glad I can't eat them now. :urp: :barf:

[Knightward]

I was lactose intolorant when I was younger, it wasn't a severe case or anything, but I grew out of it.

[Alumette]

Dang, girl.. didn't realize your allergy had become a skin thing too. :( Guess I'd better be careful and read labels when making the lasagne for this weekend. (Oh yeah, I'm making a lasagne, so all you guys have to do is bring any hooch you want to drink). :)

That's a bummer, although my allergies cropped up randomly in adulthood too. A whole lifetime of eating peanut butter and tofu, then one day, bam... my throat starts closing up from eating peanut butter toast and drinking a soymilk.

That said, in desperation I ate a mini Snickers yesterday and I was fine. I also ate a spring roll with peanuts in it (the restaurant failed to mention that there would be peanuts IN the spring roll, even after I took the trouble to ask about peanuts in the sauce), with no reaction.

Still, I'm not taking my chances. I read ingredients for everything and ask about preparation methods at restaurants all the time. My thought is, the stuff could kill you, so go ahead and be a pain in the ass.

Guess this means you and I are never going to wrestle in coconut pudding now though, eh? That's a shame.

;)

[razoras]

I was lactose intolorant when I was younger, it wasn't a severe case or anything, but I grew out of it.

That's nuts. It's supposed to work the other way... you develop intolerance as you get older.

[The Icy One]

My mom is allergic to MSG it gives her headaches and migraines. Makes chinese food nights harder.. >>

Alot of chips and stuff have it in there to.

[Kinetix]

My mom is allergic to MSG it gives her headaches and migraines. Makes chinese food nights harder.. >>

Alot of chips and stuff have it in there to.


Ooo, thanks for making me crave Chinese food. Tomorrow night will be tasty.

[Nerfed]

That's nuts. It's supposed to work the other way... you develop intolerance as you get older.
Actually, your allergies can just change for better or worse over time.