Food Allergy Problem

[jgillott]

Well, I started off 2013 with a little trip to the hospital in the middle of the night. My family and I went to dinner at a local place that we have been to many times before. By the time I went to bed, I started having a sore/itchy feeling in my throat. I woke up around 3:45 AM covered head to toe with hives and a really tight feeling in my throat. My wife took me to the ER and they said that I was having a moderate to severe food allergy reaction. A few hours on an IV with the meds they gave me and I'm feeling OK tonight. I'll be following up with another Dr. later this week to find out what it is that I reacted to.

I've never had a problem before and I didn't have anything yesterday that I haven't had dozens of times before. My daughter had a reaction when she was little to peanuts, so she now carries an epi-pen and has to watch her diet very closely. So, I'm familiar with dealing with food allergies. I just didn't expect to be dealing with it myself at my age. Anyone else ever experience anything like this?

 

[Flying_gage]

Think of it this way, your vehicles show wear and tear; they change over time while still retaining the same overall characteristics. It is not uncommon for a person to develop an allergy as they age. It all has to do with what is called "sensitization".

Little surprised at your description though. Typically a person would not have such a severe reaction to foods you have normally eaten. That is uncommon, yet not unheard of.

As your daughter did, they will test you and you should have a better understanding of your trigger(s). Do your family a favor though in the meantime, seek medical attention as soon as you notice any problems. Reactions can and will progressively get worse after each exposure. I would even go so far as to say dial 911, as medics will have the stuff you need asap. Don't try and drive yourself to the hospital!

 

[BIGNASTY]

Wife had a similar problem with hazelnuts used them in cooking and one Thanksgiving made a pie that used FRESH GROUND HAZELNUTS she looked like she had been in the sun for hours. Used the same recipe for years no problem. Dr said people change!!!



Went to Northern Coast of Calif. I was taking some pictures and approaching from a different direction I wandered into a patch of Poison Oak. Forest ranger asked if I had seen the sign that told of that. Sense coming from a different direction I hadn't. I said no problem anyway im not allergic to any of the 3 poison oak,ivy,or sumac. He had a look on his face and called for medical help YOUR GOING TO NEED IT!!!

The help came and said you ok? Ya im fine im not allergic to any of them. Not one rash, scratch or anything then they wanted to CHARGE ME for the medical help sent out. * F * YOU I DIDNT CALL YOU the ranger did charge him!!



Dad was the same way, but Brother,Sister are BIG TIME ALLERGIC!!!





http://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/guide/understanding-poison-ivy-oak-sumac-basics

 

[GaryOwen]

Probably not related to your allergy, but my nephew developed an allergy to red meat and pork. It is a relatively new allergy caused by being bitten by a Lone Star tick. The University of Virginia is doing a study on the disease. He can eat chicken or fish without a problem. There is no known cure for it, but they think it may gradually go away. This would totally suck! Hopefully not the same.

 

[BIGNASTY]

I know you guy's are going to think BIG'S REALLY GONE OFF ON THIS ONE!!!!

We have been raw milk drinkers for sometime. When a cow gives birth we have to stop drinking the milk for awhile. Reason being is that the cows milk that is intended for her calf has some things in it that are NOT INTENDED FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION colostrum. Same with most other milk fed babies including US. If the babies dont get this they can develop problems in animals, thats from the Veterinarian in our family. Take a look and gee we are not all that different. I know that allergies can still develop some grow into them as I posted above, and some grow out of them. Its some doctors thoughts that the lack of breast feeding moms has dropped in the last 30 years via a study done that more and more childhood problems are existing and by not breast feeding the passing on of the good things that your Great Grandma gave your Grandma gave to your Mom and you didn't get are maybe the cause. JUST SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT



http://www.webmd.com/parenting/baby/news/20080107/breastfeeding-may-lower-allergy-risk

Another thought on it from different source

Breastfeeding protects against allergies in two ways. The first and most obvious reason breastfed babies have fewer allergies is that they are exposed to fewer allergens in the first months of life. They aren't given formula based cow's milk or soy products. Less exposure to these foods means less chance of allergy later on. The other reason breastfed babies have fewer allergies has to do with the development of the immune system. At birth, a baby's immune system is immature. Babies depend heavily on antibodies obtained from their mothers while in the womb. Their digestive systems are not really ready for substances other than their mothers' milk. At about six weeks of age, Peyer's Patches in the intestines begin to produce immunoglobulins or antibodies. At six months of age, a baby has a functional, if immature, immune system that is capable of producing secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA), the antibody found in all body secretions that is the first line of defense against foreign substances.

In the meantime, a baby depends on mother's milk for protection. Fed from his mother's breast, a baby first receives colostrum, the first milk, which is especially rich in antibodies, including sIgA. The sIgA "paints" a protective coating on the inside of a baby's intestines to prevent penetration by potential allergens. Mature milk continues to provide this protection-from-the-inside to help the baby remain healthy and allergy-free. Human milk and colostrum also provide antibodies specifically designed to fight germs to which either the mother or baby has been exposed.

The tendency to be allergic is often inherited from a child's mother or father. Babies with a family history of allergy seem to have different immune responses than those without allergies.


**********On a second note JMO and the Wife's the human diet today is a disaster and the foods source is even worse. The food being processed today is not what it was 40 years ago. With all the pesticides and other growth enhancing products used to grow bigger,faster crops today the things that WERE in the food are NO LONGER THERE. The wife grows as much of our veggies as she can and uses heirloom seeds meaning they are derived from organic sources and other things that I dont know what the HELL she's talking about,we raise our own meat drink UNPROCESSED MILK and are very rarely sick. My Grandmother lived on a farm in NB until she was in her 90's she told us a long long time ago that city folks are killing themselves with all the chemicals sprayed on foods. She also drank a pint of Jim Beam and smoked a pack of Humps a day and died from JUST PLAIN A** BEING TIRED PROBBLEY FROM WORKING IN HER GARDEN!!

Good luck it aint just the Government that killing us!!!
BIG

 

[jgillott]

Thanks everyone. I'm happy to hear that it isn't that uncommon to develop something like this later in life. I will be following up with my family Dr. and an allergist this week and I hope we can find the trigger. I'm running a little scared right now not knowing what to avoid, but I'll be very cautious. I'm going to let the people I work with know what happened just in case something would happen at work.

 

[Simplysmn]

you can also take a benadryl to counter act the itching and thing's if it happen's again were you possibly around or ate something that was cooked with a shell fish ? alot of people have that problem and find out the hard way what they can't eat .

 

[jgillott]

you can also take a benadryl to counter act the itching and thing's if it happen's again were you possibly around or ate something that was cooked with a shell fish ? alot of people have that problem and find out the hard way what they can't eat .

I did have shrimp New Years eve. I've eaten it hundreds of times before, but that doesn't mean that I couldn't have a new reaction to it.



The ER Dr. Gave me IV Benadryl and Solumedrol. The sent me home with a script for Prednisone and Benadryl for the next 5 days. I hate how this medicine makes me feel, but it is what it is I guess. I have an appointment with my family Dr. first thing in the morning to get the tests set up.

 

[Simplysmn]

Yes The Benaryl will make you sleepy just becareful it is also goo for itching and you may have a reaction to something that the shrimp was cooked with ? it happen's

 

[jgillott]

Yes The Benaryl will make you sleepy just becareful it is also goo for itching and you may have a reaction to something that the shrimp was cooked with ? it happen's

I have eaten at that place literally dozens of times. Maybe something changed, but I don't know off hand what it would have been.

Once I know what to avoid, it will be easy. From the time that my daughter was little and we first found out that she had the peanut allergy, every place that we have gone to eat has been extremely careful in cooking food for her. The local mom and pop places are usually easier to work with than the big chains, but all have been great to her.

 

[jgillott]

A quick update. Dr. set me up with an appointment with an allergist next Thursday. They couldn't start the testing today since I am still taking the medication perscribed at the hospital and it will not allow clear results. He did say that it looks to have been a food reaction as they suspected in the ER. Now we just need to find what it was.

 

[jgillott]

Just a quick update. I had the testing done at the allergist on Thursday and it came back not showing an allergy to shell fish, shrip, etc. as we thought it would. The Dr. told me that since I am still reacting (in fact I had some issues this morning) it is more likely a toxin or contaminate in the food that I ate. His gut feeling is that it is Mercury or something similar that takes a very long time for the body to get rid of.

So now I am on a heavy medicine twice a day for a month and then down to once a day if the hives slow down after that. Unfortunately, the medicine makes me extremely tired, but I guess it is what I am going to have to do for the time being. The Dr. suggested that I be very careful for a few months with what I eat and expose myself to until my system gets a little stronger. I'm so weak that I actually passed out in the Dr's office during my testing, which is the first time that I have ever passed out and the first time that my doctor has ever had someone react that way to the testing. I guess when I do something, I really do it well.

 

[Wayne M.]

Well, I started off 2013 with a little trip to the hospital in the middle of the night. My family and I went to dinner at a local place that we have been to many times before. By the time I went to bed, I started having a sore/itchy feeling in my throat. I woke up around 3:45 AM covered head to toe with hives and a really tight feeling in my throat. My wife took me to the ER and they said that I was having a moderate to severe food allergy reaction. A few hours on an IV with the meds they gave me and I'm feeling OK tonight. I'll be following up with another Dr. later this week to find out what it is that I reacted to.

I've never had a problem before and I didn't have anything yesterday that I haven't had dozens of times before. My daughter had a reaction when she was little to peanuts, so she now carries an epi-pen and has to watch her diet very closely. So, I'm familiar with dealing with food allergies. I just didn't expect to be dealing with it myself at my age. Anyone else ever experience anything like this?

One of the guys I work with daily says he has a severe reaction to ALMONDS. I opened a bag of trail mix one day that indeed had almonds. He inquired from across the kitchen what was in there, and when I realized it did have almonds, he bugged outta there. He's in his late 50's in good health. Claims he's had the allergy for a while. Thank goodness we've never seen him react.
Years ago, my friends mom wouldn't eat salad anywhere but at home. She has to wash the lettuce. Said to have a reaction to the pesticides. I know she wound up in the ER once by eating in a restaraunt.

 

[Simplysmn]

Well Wife being a Nurse said to go get your mercury level's tested from your primary Doc . She also asked if you eat a lot of Fish and sea food ? you have to be very careful what n where you eat . Hope you get this solved Be careful and stay Safe .

 

[MChrist]

Well Wife being a Nurse said to go get your mercury level's tested from your primary Doc . She also asked if you eat a lot of Fish and sea food ? you have to be very careful what n where you eat . Hope you get this solved Be careful and stay Safe .

Interesting that you mention mercury levels today... my little nephew is 8 and over the past year started developing tics. Parents took him to Dr. and determined he was allergic to many types of food. Parents modified his diet and he started feeling worse. Dr took a blood and urine sample and got the results last night... MERCURY POISONING!!!
Little guy eats no fish, which was our first question when told about this. Apparently, his body can't discard mercury the way the rest of us can. Seems there is a minute amount of mercury in lots of things, and it has been accumulating over the years. Seems his mercury levels were so elevated, the Dr said he could have dropped dead within 6 months!
He is on a mercury detox program now, so hopefully that can expel the mercury. Then, they need to keep a close eye on things.

Weird, huh?

 

[jgillott]

Well Wife being a Nurse said to go get your mercury level's tested from your primary Doc . She also asked if you eat a lot of Fish and sea food ? you have to be very careful what n where you eat . Hope you get this solved Be careful and stay Safe .

I do/did eat a lot of sea food and fish. The allergist said that I need to lay off for quite a while until this clears, but I don't honestly plan on eating anything like that any time soon. I'm just too nervous. I will ask my Dr. about the testing at my next follow-up. The allergist told me that he has been in practice for 20 years and is seeing more and more of this type of reaction to contaminated food lately. He isn't sure why it is happening, only that it has drastically increased over the last several years.

My wife and I have to go to a dinner party/awards banquet this evening and I am scared to death to eat there. I don't mean to be rude to the host, but I am going to eat dinner at home before we go just in case.

 

[jgillott]

Interesting that you mention mercury levels today... my little nephew is 8 and over the past year started developing tics. Parents took him to Dr. and determined he was allergic to many types of food. Parents modified his diet and he started feeling worse. Dr took a blood and urine sample and got the results last night... MERCURY POISONING!!!

Little guy eats no fish, which was our first question when told about this. Apparently, his body can't discard mercury the way the rest of us can. Seems there is a minute amount of mercury in lots of things, and it has been accumulating over the years. Seems his mercury levels were so elevated, the Dr said he could have dropped dead within 6 months!

He is on a mercury detox program now, so hopefully that can expel the mercury. Then, they need to keep a close eye on things.



Weird, huh?

It's scary how this stuff can occur. Keep us updated on his progress.

 

[MChrist]

It's scary how this stuff can occur. Keep us updated on his progress.

I don't have an update yet, but found an interesting coincidence. My nephew that has the mercury poisoning has a little sister. She was diagnosed with Kawasaki's Disease after a violent reaction last year. She was only maybe 4 at the time, and her skin started peeling, the whites of her eyes were red like peeled tomatoes. . very scary stuff.
So, while trying to learn more about mercury poisoning, I found a link that mentions how there may be a connection between the two, and that sometimes the two get cross-diagnosed sometimes. Since they are brother/sister, there may be a genetic thing going on. The mom, my wife's sister, is going to get tested because she has some odd medical issues as well.
If anybody is interested, I'll keep you posted. You never know what you may learn, or where your next nugget of helpful information may come from.

 

[Wayne M.]

What I know about Kawasaki aka Fifths disease, is that's a virus like chicken pox. One of mine had it , and if I recall, his skin turned red/orange along with the other effects. Closely related are the vaccines the kids get and the possible side effects.

 

[Wayne M.]

While thinking about chicken pox, don't forget about shingles. It hits older folks who have had chicken pox. Meaning you already have the shingles virus.