Talking Allergies

I am very concerned about this. I am new to this forum (just posted a long intro) and just had my first OAS reaction. My doctor thinks that was what it was, and I am waiting for a follow-up with the allergist. I want them to refer me to a nutritionist.

So far, the only problem was an apple that made my mouth swell up and my face start itching. It was so scary! I already carry an epi-pen because I have reacted to food in restaunts twice (they never did figure out from what) but I had been getting lazy about carrying it. Now, I am scared straight! What scares me too is the idea that what was safe today may not be safe tomorrow. I have been eating apples my whole life with no problems! Why is it suddenly an issue? And does this mean other foods I now eat will grow to become problems? It seems like there is no way to know until you have a reaction!

I have no idea what I am going to eat now. I used to take a lot of fruit in my lunches. What will I replace it with? Will I gain a ton of weight? I hope not! Are canned fruits okay? I am not sure what sort of processing they do to get them canned. Is it enough to kill the proteins?

Fwiw I also have: asthma, eczema, allergies to fur animals, tree pollen, grass pollen, tree nuts, the drug succinylcholine (although this is actually a genetic condition and not a biochemical one) and I also react badly to bread and dairy, although those two have not been confirmed by a doctor.

Just came across this forum

Since I was about 12 or so I always got itchy ears, eyes, throat, lips when eating nuts, sunflower seeds and many fruits (apples, pears, sometimes banana, cherry, peach, nectarine and sometimes melon etc etc). I thought it was just something that happened - nothing too serious until I was 21 and whilst eating peanuts I experienced major breathing difficulties (nose completely blocked off and struggling for breath) and a swollen eye the size of a golf ball!!!

Since then I've not been allowed near my favourite foods - snickers, beuno, peanut butter. I am now allowed the fruits in small quantities but must NOT go near nuts. I don't believe I would even react that badly again. I LOVE FRUIT & NUTS.

Can anyone advise on where I can get desensitisation injections in the UK or not too distant Europe and how much it would cost? I frequently get upset at seeing people enjoying a big crispy apple or when I can only sniff the jar of peanut butter.

The memories....


If anyone is interested in contacting me I'd be interested to hear from other OAS sufferers.


23/f/Scotland

Hi MorvLarkin, and welcome to the forum.

I can imagine your frustration at not being able to eat your favourite foods. But I'm afraid that at the moment there is no "cure" for food allergies and no desensitization injections. The only thing to do for severe food allergies at the moment is to avoid the offending food completely.

There are injections for some environmental allergies and insect venom allergies, but not for food allergies.

There are studies going on at the moment that are looking into desensitizing people who are allergic to egg and peanut, but these are studies only. For links to articles about these studies, go to http://www.allergicliving.com/forum/vie ... php?t=1147 .

Please note that this kind of thing is not to be done at home. The studies are being carried out in a controlled environment with medical supervision and help if it is needed.

If I may be honest, I was a bit concerned by your statement "I don't believe I would even react that badly again." I would think it's very possible that you would react that badly again, given your history, and I think you are getting very good advice to avoid the foods that caused your severe reaction. I know it's not fun having to avoid foods that you love, but imagine how much worse it would be to have a severe reaction... I have friends who have lost children to anaphylaxis, and they would do anything to be able to go back in time and ensure their children didn't eat the food they were allergic to. Prevention is so important.

Hopefully you will find some ideas and support here from other adults with FAs about how to cope. My two sons have a lot of allergies between them, and we try to focus on what we can have, rather than on what we can't have. (And I did walk in my youngest son's shoes when he was younger and I was nursing him - we both avoided wheat, barley, dairy, eggs, nuts, and peanuts for 3 years. Luckily he outgrew his wheat and barley allergies!!)

Food allergies can be very overwhelming and challenging at times, and I acknowledge that with my kids, but we also work at accepting the allergies rather than fighting them. Susan posted some great info about the 5 stages of grief at http://www.allergicliving.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=658 . And there was another discussion about how challenging it is to be diagnosed with food allergies as an adult at http://www.allergicliving.com/forum/vie ... php?t=1710 .

Maybe those discussions will help you a bit.

I do sympathize with your situation, and I know others here will as well. I suspect that it is actually much more difficult to suddenly develop allergies (or more severe reactions to existing allergies) than it is to be born with them. My kids don't know any different... but older kids and adults have tasted the forbidden fruit (as it were) and now have to avoid it. That cannot be easy.

K.

P.S. I'm assuming you have been prescribed an EpiPen or Twinject auto-injector?

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Karen, proud Mom of
- DS1 (12 yrs): allergic to cashews, pistachios, Brazil nuts, potatoes, some legumes, some fish, pumpkin seeds; OAS
- DS2 (1o yrs): ana. to dairy, eggs, peanuts; asthma

I carry an epi-pen at all times as well as antihistamines. Fortunately I've never had to use the Epi-pen but the tabs have come in handy on more than one occasion.

M

Just wondering if anybody has looked at the ingredients of the materials that Dentists have put in their mouths and compared the properties of them with the properties of the food that they have problems with?

Did the symtoms start after dental work was done? I saw the following article and wondered if specific dental materials either cause oral allergy syndrome or make it worse.

http://www.emedicine.com/DERM/topic647.htm

http://www.dentalallergy.com/

Dental Cements etc have Balsam Peru in them and I saw the following.

http://dermnetnz.org/dermatitis/balsam- ... lergy.html

An interesting topic - I think so-called dental allergy largely relates to nickel allergy.

Karen should this get its own thread - really doesn't belong with this discussion on oral food allergy.

Thanks.

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Allergic to soy, peanut, shellfish, penicillin

Hi,

I've not clicked onto those articles yet but you may be interested that because I have oral allergy syndrome I am no longer allowed to donate blood as they suspect I could develop a nickel allergy and therefore would be a liability.


M

Fascinating about the way that bananas are stored and ripened. I wonder if my son "can tell" which bananas have been exposed to the chemical. He's only 11 months old, so it would be purely by instinct. Usually he flat out refuses banana, but occasionally (more often with organics ones) he'll dig in and then he'll eat over half of a banana. I never push him since he seems to have strong feelings about which bananas suite him

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Baby boy with allergies to sesame, egg, dairy, legumes (soy, peanut, peas so far), sunflower. The jury is still out on citrus.

Would my apple/pear allergy be part of that catagory?
Thanks

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allergy to apples, pears, and some fish in australia

Canadian Food Inspection Agency - Food Allergens - Oral Allergy ... at http://www.inspection.gc.ca/english/fss ... rale.shtml has good info.

My daughter often feels she is the *only* person with these allergies:

Apple, Celery, Parsley,
Avocado, Chinese Apple Pear, Peach,
fresh Banana, Eggplant, Pear ,
Bean Sprout Grapes, Peas ,
Blueberry, Green Beans, Pineapple,
Bok Choy, Iceberg lettuce, Romaine Lettuce,
Canteloupe, Kiwi, Spinach,
Carrots, Leaf Lettuce, Strawberries,
Cauliflower, Orange, fresh Tomato,
Papaya

When we tested them we had baggies with fresh samples as well as cooked samples. She was diagnosed with OAS at age 6 and given an epi after having multiple reactions to a carrot. Her allergist said her reaction to romaine lettuce was the worst she had ever seen. She can eat brocolli, potatoes, onions, peppers, mushrooms and corn. She can also eat processed tomatoes and cooked bananas and highly processed apples (some juices and Fruit-to-Gos).

At age 12 her allergies to tree nuts and peanuts began.

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me: allergic to crustaceans plus environmental
teenager: allergic to hazelnuts, some other foods and environmental

Has anyone experienced OAS with chicken or pork. My DD with a dairy and peach allergy complains of sore throat when she eats chicken, bacon and pork, yet she can eat chicken noodle soup, chicken hotdogs without incident.

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dd -- allergic to dairy
ds -- no allergies
dh -- allergic to penicillin
me -- no allergies

I wondered if she was reacting to the gelatin inthe chicken or pork but she can eat beef with no trouble, right?

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Moderator
Daughter: asthma, allergies to egg, milk, peanuts, tree nuts, most legumes (not soy) & penicillin. Developing hayfever type allergies.
Husband: no allergies
Me: allergies to some tree that flowers in May
Cat: allergic to beef, pork and lamb

Yes, she can eat beef ... but doesn't like it! Maybe a silly question, but do you know if there is pork or chicken without gelatin?

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dd -- allergic to dairy
ds -- no allergies
dh -- allergic to penicillin
me -- no allergies

Gelatin is in the conective tissue
JMHO but...I'd think that meats cooked "on the bone" probably have more gelatin that those cooked without the bone (such as bacon) would cause less of a reaction.
I'm not sure about chicken soup (certainly the broth could contain gelatin but I would expect it to be in a gelled state when you open the can and if memory serves me, it generally isn't).
I think most soups and hot dogs contain mechanically de-boned meat I'm not sure if that increases or decreases the likelihood of gelatin.

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Moderator
Daughter: asthma, allergies to egg, milk, peanuts, tree nuts, most legumes (not soy) & penicillin. Developing hayfever type allergies.
Husband: no allergies
Me: allergies to some tree that flowers in May
Cat: allergic to beef, pork and lamb

so IYHO would you stop giving chicken and bacon -- and thereby take away chicken soup and hotdogs? I feel like I'm running out of meats to give her.

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dd -- allergic to dairy
ds -- no allergies
dh -- allergic to penicillin
me -- no allergies