Post by FMmom on Jul 1, 2012 2:22:36 GMT
I took Kaelin to the allergist this week to see if we could figure out why her nose is constantly swollen (as in, for at least three years now).
I took her to the allergist two years ago, back before she was diagnosed with FM. We concentrated on food allergies, but he did the most common environmental ones as well. No allergies were discoverd.
This time he ran the adult panel (24 scratch tests), all environmental allergens. Still negative. However, with her history of the swollen nasal passages, a "cold" (that no one ever catches) that comes every fall and every spring, the doctor wasn't comfortable with the test results. He decided to do a different type of test where he injected the allergen directly into her arm.
Bingo. Kaelin is allergic to trees, weeds, and dust mites. I remember when Kaelin had such a strong reaction to zucchini -- I had googled "zucchini allergy" and found that someone with an allergy to white birch cannot eat zucchini. So now that I know that Kaelin does indeed have allergies, I decided to google again, looking for foods to avoid with weed or tree allergies.
And, oddly enough, there's a bunch of foods and the list reads a bit like the FM sensitivities.
(from Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oral_allergy_syndrome)
In addition: "Many people have no idea that they have OAS. However, if swelling, tingling or pain develops while eating certain foods, then it is wise to see an allergy specialist." I have been giving Kaelin potatoes (although not recently) and wheat -- maybe this explains the constant stomach pain. I'm not sure if grass pollen falls under either weed or tree allergies, but foods to avoid are melons, tomatoes, and oranges. Plenty of people with FM can eat those items, but they don't work for Kaelin. So maybe I know why now?
She starts allergy shots in a couple of weeks -- the doctor said that there's no cure, per se, but allergy shots comes close. I wonder if, after a series of shots, Kaelin will be able to eat these foods. Interesting thought...
I wish this was the complete answer for Kaelin, but considering how crazed she gets eating sugar and has problems with a lot of foods that don't appear on any of those lists there is obviously more to the story. However, it's one more piece of the puzzle...
I took her to the allergist two years ago, back before she was diagnosed with FM. We concentrated on food allergies, but he did the most common environmental ones as well. No allergies were discoverd.
This time he ran the adult panel (24 scratch tests), all environmental allergens. Still negative. However, with her history of the swollen nasal passages, a "cold" (that no one ever catches) that comes every fall and every spring, the doctor wasn't comfortable with the test results. He decided to do a different type of test where he injected the allergen directly into her arm.
Bingo. Kaelin is allergic to trees, weeds, and dust mites. I remember when Kaelin had such a strong reaction to zucchini -- I had googled "zucchini allergy" and found that someone with an allergy to white birch cannot eat zucchini. So now that I know that Kaelin does indeed have allergies, I decided to google again, looking for foods to avoid with weed or tree allergies.
And, oddly enough, there's a bunch of foods and the list reads a bit like the FM sensitivities.
Allergies to a certain pollen are associated with OAS reactions to certain foods. For instance, an allergy to ragweed is associated with OAS reactions to banana, watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew, zucchini, and cucumber. This does not mean that all sufferers of an allergy to ragweed will experience adverse effects from all or even any of these foods. Reactions may begin with one type of food and with reactions to others developing later. However, reaction to one or more foods in any given category does not necessarily mean a person is allergic to all foods in that group.
Alder pollen: almonds, apples, celery, cherries, hazelnuts, peaches, pears, parsley, strawberry, raspberry
Birch pollen: almonds, apples, apricots, avocados, bananas, carrots, celery, cherries, chicory, coriander, fennel, fig, hazelnuts, kiwifruit, nectarines, parsley, parsnips, peaches, pears, peppers, plums, potatoes, prunes, soy, strawberries, wheat; Potential: walnuts
Grass pollen: fig, melons, tomatoes, oranges
Mugwort pollen : carrots, celery, coriander, fennel, parsley, peppers, sunflower
Ragweed pollen : banana, cantaloupe, cucumber, green pepper, paprika, sunflower seeds/oil, honeydew, watermelon, zucchini, echinacea, artichoke, dandelions, honey (if bees pollinate from wild flowers), hibiscus or chamomile tea
Possible cross-reactions (to any of the above): berries (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, etc), citrus (oranges, lemons, etc), grapes, mango, figs, peanut, pineapple, pomegranates, watermelon
(from Wikipedia en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oral_allergy_syndrome)
In addition: "Many people have no idea that they have OAS. However, if swelling, tingling or pain develops while eating certain foods, then it is wise to see an allergy specialist." I have been giving Kaelin potatoes (although not recently) and wheat -- maybe this explains the constant stomach pain. I'm not sure if grass pollen falls under either weed or tree allergies, but foods to avoid are melons, tomatoes, and oranges. Plenty of people with FM can eat those items, but they don't work for Kaelin. So maybe I know why now?
She starts allergy shots in a couple of weeks -- the doctor said that there's no cure, per se, but allergy shots comes close. I wonder if, after a series of shots, Kaelin will be able to eat these foods. Interesting thought...
I wish this was the complete answer for Kaelin, but considering how crazed she gets eating sugar and has problems with a lot of foods that don't appear on any of those lists there is obviously more to the story. However, it's one more piece of the puzzle...
