Food Sensitivities: Limit or Avoid Completely?

[Lotus97]

I would like to know how often people eat foods their sensitive to. Even though this thread has a poll, I would like to hear detailed responses from everyone. I wasn't able to do this in the poll, but in the responses I would like to hear if people differentiate between consuming large amounts or small amounts. For example, if someone is sensitive to dairy (I'm not talking about lactose intolerance) there might be a distinction between having ice cream or adding a little bit of Parmesan cheese to your pasta. Also, what about very small quantities in supplements such as under 100 mg?

 

[Sparrow]

Caesin and gluten I avoid pretty much entirely (though after being very very strict for the last couple of years, I'll admit I recently started to eat a little once in a blue moon - gluten in soy sauce or a tiny bit of goat cheese on a special occasion, for example). Other food sensitivities I cut out entirely for about a year, but now eat every once in a while. Cutting out everything I was sensitive to in any way meant eating a very limited diet for that time, and I figured in the long run it was probably the lesser of two evils to put them back in sometimes.

I think there are pros and cons on both sides, and I've heard both from experts (avoid completely for at least six months, or rotate and just don't have them more than every 4 days). On the one hand, if you're still triggering that immune response sometimes, you may not give it a chance to calm down and get better. On the other hand, if you go without a food entirely, instead of calming down your body could freak out more dramatically when you try to eat it again.

I've experienced both. Giving my body some time off of eggs, for example, means that I can eat an egg without too much trouble once in a while. But going off of milk meant that my body lost the desensitization it apparently had and now I have a full blown allergic reaction to it with hives, etc. Maybe there is no great solution.

 

[Lotus97]

According to a food sensitivity blood test I'm not sensitive to eggs, but since it's a common allergen I only have my egg protein powder every other day and usually only 1/3 a scoop. I've gone over a year without eating dairy or gluten, but that didn't seem to help any of my symptoms so I do eat them occasionally. Even though dairy showed up as reactive on my sensitivity test, I eat dairy more than gluten because there are plenty of alternatives to gluten. I also have beef a couple times a week even though I'm sensitive to it. I tried being very strict and I'm not sure how much that helped. I just try to do everything in moderation now.

 

[Sushi]

I think the usual advice is to avoid completely for at least 3 months in order to not continue to "provoke" the sensitivity. Sometimes you can get over it this way.

Sushi

 

[Lotus97]

I've heard the same thing about reducing foods completely. The reasoning is that when you do introduce the food back into the diet your reaction will be more pronounced if you are indeed sensitive. This way you can test foods to see if they can be tolerated. I think this information is important to mention, but I started this thread mainly because I was curious how people were handling their food sensitivities. I know some doctors tell all their patients to avoid common allergens such gluten, soy, dairy, eggs, peanuts, and corn. Others have had their blood tested for food sensitivities. Either way, a person doesn't know for sure whether they're sensitive or not until they test it. About gluten, I've heard that there are certain proteins in oats and rice that can cause problems for people who are very sensitive to gluten even if it 100% gluten free. Since I don't have Celiacs nor am I convinced that I have a serious gluten problem I don't limit rice or oats too much, but I do try to eat a diverse amount of grains.

 

[taniaaust1]

Avoid I'd say. I though dont have good will power so tend to at times eat things I know Im sensitive too. I have found thou in the past that food sensitivities can improve if one can avoid long term (and then a year or two later Ive found I can eat those foods without issue). eg I can have dairy again nowdays without it giving me a headache... I avoided it for a long time.

 

[Lotus97]

I've heard of someone reducing or eliminating their food sensitivities by taking colostrum. I assume this is because of its immunoglobulins. Since I'm sensitive to dairy, I'm taking a supplement that has immunoglobulins extracted from bovine serum. I'm actually taking it for overall immune health. I'm not expecting it to cure me of my food allergies.

 

[alex3619]

I tried total avoidance of salicylates for a year. On one occasion I came into accidental minor contact (with vaporub actually, not food) and had a very very severe reaction. Avoidance (for some substances but probably not all) means the enzyme systems that cope with the problem have reduced capacity, and so the reaction is more severe. This is the case for salicylate sensitivity at least. I am not so sure about other chemicals. Low regular dosing, with an emphasis on regular, is probably better than avoidance for salicylates, combined with some kind of glutathione protocol which could be a methylation protocol. The enzymes the salicylates primarily attack are also sensitive to alcohol and insufficient glutathione.

I will hazard a guess that this will vary chemical type by chemical type. Some chemicals are probably best avoided completely. Salicylates however are in a wide range of very useful plant foods, and often occur with natural polyphenols that are highly beneficial, not to mention a range of vitamins.

Amines on the other hand are at higher levels in a range of foods that are not necessary, including aged cheese. I also have no experience of hyper-senstitivity to amines if I avoid them - however this might be because my amine reaction is very weak, but my salicylate reaction is moderate (and severe if I avoid them).

 

[taniaaust1]

I tried total avoidance of salicylates for a year. On one occasion I came into accidental minor contact (with vaporub actually, not food) and had a very very severe reaction. Avoidance (for some substances but probably not all) means the enzyme systems that cope with the problem have reduced capacity, and so the reaction is more severe. This is the case for salicylate sensitivity at least. I am not so sure about other chemicals. Low regular dosing, with an emphasis on regular, is probably better than avoidance for salicylates, combined with some kind of glutathione protocol which could be a methylation protocol. The enzymes the salicylates primarily attack are also sensitive to alcohol and insufficient glutathione.

I think getting a bigger reaction when it comes to ANY food intollerances (no matter what time) often is worst after avoidance for a "short time". This is why when it comes to food intollerance testing they say to not have the suspected offending thing for a couple of weeks before doing a food challenge.

Obviously thou the long term avoidance didnt work or your case or dont work for salicylates.

 

[alex3619]

I dont think, in all probability, that chemical intolerance is disease itself but rather a side effect of an underlying and not understood medical condition. Its a symptom/s not the disease. Salicylate sensitivity requires a bunch of things going wrong, but the ultimate target are two desaturase enzymes needed for eicosanoid hormone synthesis. These are very vulnerable if glutathione status is poor, and also if alcohol is consumed.

The initial reaction from alcohol is a boost to eicosanoids, a sudden and powerful boost that can kill. This however is followed by a depletion of eicosanoid synthesis resulting in prolonged recovery times (up to weeks, not the overnight hangover).

 

[Valentijn]

I have to avoid egg, gluten, and soy completely. Otherwise my entire body gets notably swollen (visually and by poking), which can be quite painful in my back joints and such. It's just not worth it to risk the pain from even infrequent exposure, or the risk of damage from constant swelling.

I also discovered cranberries trigger a very bad reaction, even though I only ate them once per year at Thanksgiving previously. I managed to freak out a doctor pretty good with that one when I went to the US for a visit and started getting so swollen that sitting with my legs up hurt because the pressure of my legs on the couch! Fortunately food testing results came in a week later and my mom stopped feeding me salads with dried cranberries on top The doctor's terminology was "non-pitting soft tissue swelling".

Sometimes my stomach seems to itch a bit after eating other foods (also happens with the swelling foods), but doesn't seem to cause any other problems. So really it comes down to the symptoms associated with eating the food.

 

[alex3619]

I used to be not able to handle egg yolk, but on my recent protocol changes (including resveratrol) I found I can eat eggs again. I have been making up for lost time, and eat eggs several times a week now. However if I am off resveratrol for a bit my intolerance starts coming back. Against this I do not want to take resveratrol all the time as it could have unpredictable and nasty side effects at too high a dose or for too long a time.

 

[Dmitri]

I avoid aspartame, artificial coloring, sodium benzoate, etc. at all costs. Any of the more sinister additives.

For stimulative sensitivities; I cannot eat acidic foods like many fruits, black bread, yogurt, etc. They leave visible burn marks on my tongue and "hit me on the head". Any food capable of mechanical damage via scratching like chips and toast is best avoided too. The first effect from scratching that I notice is excess salivation. Spicy foods are avoided of course. The sensitivity depends on my condition, time of the year, weather etc. My stomach has trouble processing liquid foods and fruit, but this is not always the case.

I will avoid foods that are obvious irritation triggers unless I am unsure or trying an experiment, I think this abstinence is worth however much willpower it takes. The brief pleasure I will feel in my mouth won't be worth the degradation I will feel afterwards.

 

[Lotus97]

Anyone find quercetin helpful for food sensitivities?

 

[dannybex]

I used to be not able to handle egg yolk, but on my recent protocol changes (including resveratrol) I found I can eat eggs again. I have been making up for lost time, and eat eggs several times a week now. However if I am off resveratrol for a bit my intolerance starts coming back. Against this I do not want to take resveratrol all the time as it could have unpredictable and nasty side effects at too high a dose or for too long a time.

Very interesting Alex. I can't tolerate yolks, or any higher fat foods right now (although am starting evening primrose oil, which is helping, and is probably low due to my salicylate issues). I've always assumed that resveratrol is high in salicylates...do you know if that's true?

Thanks in advance,

d.

 

[Lotus97]

According to my food sensitivity blood test I'm non-reactive to salicylic acid. Does that mean I won't have a salicylate issue?

 

[alex3619]

Very interesting Alex. I can't tolerate yolks, or any higher fat foods right now (although am starting evening primrose oil, which is helping, and is probably low due to my salicylate issues). I've always assumed that resveratrol is high in salicylates...do you know if that's true?

Thanks in advance,

d.

I don't know if this is true. However there are high grade resveratrol products that are almost pure - I don't think resveratrol itself will be an issue. However, and I could be wrong about this, many of these compounds have phenolic rings. The only way to be sure is to test it I suspect.

Evening primrose oil can help in the short term, but my experience and that of others like Barry Sears is that its not of stable benefit in the long term. In my analysis we are both deficient in omega-6 prostaglandins, and over-use them. We can switch between the two patterns, but what we really need is to normalize these pathways. That will require controlling oxidative stress and non-eicosanoid inflammation at the very least (eg. NFKB).

 

[alex3619]

According to my food sensitivity blood test I'm non-reactive to salicylic acid. Does that mean I won't have a salicylate issue?

I am not sure of the basis of such a test. From my understanding it might not be reliable. Further, when there is talk of salicylates, its a family of chemicals. Salicylic acid is only one in the family.These are all phenolic compounds.

 

[dannybex]

I don't know if this is true. However there are high grade resveratrol products that are almost pure - I don't think resveratrol itself will be an issue. However, and I could be wrong about this, many of these compounds have phenolic rings. The only way to be sure is to test it I suspect.

Evening primrose oil can help in the short term, but my experience and that of others like Barry Sears is that its not of stable benefit in the long term. In my analysis we are both deficient in omega-6 prostaglandins, and over-use them. We can switch between the two patterns, but what we really need is to normalize these pathways. That will require controlling oxidative stress and non-eicosanoid inflammation at the very least (eg. NFKB).

Thanks Alex -- I agree -- the problem won't really be corrected until the pathways are restored. (Aside from the salicylate issue, I think the EPO may help me due to a possible pyroluria problem, but I haven't tested for it. I do feel "better" taking it -- especially helps my dry eyes lately, but also irritability...)

I'm not sure if you have seen this, but the GLA in EPO (and other oils) helped lower NFKB in this study:

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10753-009-9157-8

Thanks Alex.

 

[alex3619]

Thanks for that reference dannybex, it fits with blog I am writing for later this year on lipopolysaccharide.