Tests show many food allergies may not be real

[golfgal]

My ds used to break out with eczema when he was a baby. I also noticed that whenever he had grated parmesan cheese he would get red all around his mouth and face. I stopped giving him dairy and the eczema cleared up. I never had him tested though and now that he's 8, he eats dairy all the time with no problems.

Same with our DS17. Every winter he would get bad patches on his face. He stopped drinking milk and hasn't had any since. He can drink some milk, he usually has some chocolate milk with his school lunch and will have cheese with some foods, etc. but he no longer drinks regular milk. I don't know that it really is an allergic reaction vs just a reaction to milk.

 

[kaytieeldr]

It says about 1/2 the time people didn't react--what about the other half?

Well, but the challenges are being done in a hospital setting, with patient or parental permission. It would be reasonable that if a patient DID have a reaction, immediate medical treatment would be started.

I couldn't imagine telling my son that we are giving him a food that he has tested positive for and then waiting to see if he has a life threatening reaction. What would happen if he reacted and then we needed to inject him twice with an Epi Pen and then send him to the ER with potential difficulty breathing? How scary for us and him!

Nobody's advising a parent or allergic person to do a food challenge on their own, outside a controlled setting.

 

[jodifla]

In the WSJ story, allergists wanted to do the food testing on some patients, but the parents wouldn't believe it and wouldn't allow the testing.

My son was battling some mystery ailment 2 years ago, so our ped sent us to the doctor. He turned up allergic to eggs, shellfish, dust mites and cockroaches.

But while he had gotten sick the only time he at a plate of eggs, he'd been eating them as an ingredient for years in cookies, waffles and other products with no problem. Turns out the bulk of kids with egg allergies are allergic to raw eggs, and eventually outgrown it.

The dust mite and cockroach thing doesn't seem to affect him much. I do have to be careful about insect bites in the summer....they quickly get infected with him already having so much histamine in his body.

And at 8, he's not a shellfish fan anyway. If he gets older and wants to try some, we'll go to food testing route.

 

[monorailsilver]

My 6yo ds has food allergies. He has had them since birth.

And yes they are real.

When he eats anything with dairy in it or say I cook a pizza in the same oven cheeseless for him & with cheese for the rest of us...he will have a reaction-OK that was about 4 years ago but I am not risking it yet.

He still breaks out in hives every so often & his blood work results are not over 100 for dairy like it was when he was 1. It is now in the mid-30's which is great, under 2 is normal, FYI. He just went to the allergist & had the skin test & his welt for dairy is much smaller then it had been in the past.

The allergist mentioned challenging him with cooked milk-like me adding a cup to a recipe like a cupcake & giving it to him but that never happened.

He also had reactions to egg whites & peanuts as well. All his reactions were him vomiting with frothy gooey sputum & swelling & reddness to his face. We avoid tree nuts too sincet he blood tests showed he is allergic to some of them.

He is outgrowing his peanut one so I am hopefully in a few years he will be peanut & dairy non-allergic.

 

[Momvic5]

Our allergist told us that if your child acquires the allergy before the age of 5yrs, there is a pretty high chance that the allergy will be outgrown at some time. If the allergy is acquired after the age of 5yrs, the chances decrease. I would never recommend testing the allergy on your own as my son did, but I would definitely retest with a doctor. My son was eager to be retested because he remembered the Dr's words about outgrowing his allergy. I just did not act quick enough on his request.

 

[U2_rocks!]

A lot of what people think of as "allergies" are actually intolerances, and unlike allergies, those can vary in terms of response. Those behave like a jug that's being filled up - you can tolerate the food until it reaches that critical point where the body has just had enough - then you react. For intolerances, that means limiting the amount and frequency of that food, and watching that you don't combine it with another food that you are sensitive to. For intolerances, you also react less when you're under less stress, or when you're in very good health. Our family deals with this all the time, and it's very obvious when that "critical point" has been reached. If we are careful, we can get away with eating certain things that we know we are sensitive to, but if we're not careful, we'll react. And our reactions are all different.

I think a lot of allergy test "failures" are simply that it wasn't really a "true" allergy to begin with, and although on that day the body reacted to it when tested, it might not react every time that food is ingested, depending on quantity/frequency/general state of health.

 

[Momvic5]

A lot of what people think of as "allergies" are actually intolerances, and unlike allergies, those can vary in terms of response. Those behave like a jug that's being filled up - you can tolerate the food until it reaches that critical point where the body has just had enough - then you react. For intolerances, that means limiting the amount and frequency of that food, and watching that you don't combine it with another food that you are sensitive to. For intolerances, you also react less when you're under less stress, or when you're in very good health. Our family deals with this all the time, and it's very obvious when that "critical point" has been reached. If we are careful, we can get away with eating certain things that we know we are sensitive to, but if we're not careful, we'll react. And our reactions are all different.

I think a lot of allergy test "failures" are simply that it wasn't really a "true" allergy to begin with, and although on that day the body reacted to it when tested, it might not react every time that food is ingested, depending on quantity/frequency/general state of health.

I agree...I think that many of us are tested for allergies when we are in the middle of a reaction to something. Our bodies are already under stress so we appear to have a stronger reaction to some things.

 

[WeLoveLilo05]

DD reacted the first time she every tried PB and she was almost 3. Her whole face broke out in hives, her neck, her back, all hives, she had a huge one on her lip. It was so sad I was getting ready to go to class and my mom gave her a little lick from a fork she spit it out, I put her in the car and noticed it. I called ped's office right away, we ran to get benadryl, gave it to her ASAP. She was complaining that her ears were hurting, it was just terrible. She wasn't complaining that she couldn't breathe or anything. I just stayed home with her and monitored her. She was acting ok after the benadryl but the hives were still present. I took her to ped's office for check up soon after and her RXed the epipen. We then found a ped. allergist who did the skin prick test. He did peanuts and a series of tree nuts as well as eggs (b/c I told him that she HATED eggs and he thought maybe b/c she was allergic to them). Within seconds her back blew up from where they put the peanut protiens, and then only slightly with the almonds. I just keep her away from all nuts period! Our home is nut free. Her back was actually all swollen looking for about a week after that skin test.
I am planning on bringing her back to be tested this summer, before she starts kindergarten, as he said there is about a 20-30% chance she may grow out of it.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

A lot of what people think of as "allergies" are actually intolerances, and unlike allergies, those can vary in terms of response. Those behave like a jug that's being filled up - you can tolerate the food until it reaches that critical point where the body has just had enough - then you react. For intolerances, that means limiting the amount and frequency of that food, and watching that you don't combine it with another food that you are sensitive to. For intolerances, you also react less when you're under less stress, or when you're in very good health. Our family deals with this all the time, and it's very obvious when that "critical point" has been reached. If we are careful, we can get away with eating certain things that we know we are sensitive to, but if we're not careful, we'll react. And our reactions are all different.

I think a lot of allergy test "failures" are simply that it wasn't really a "true" allergy to begin with, and although on that day the body reacted to it when tested, it might not react every time that food is ingested, depending on quantity/frequency/general state of health.

That is such a great explanation.

I'm not "allergic" to synthetic floral scents (according to my allergist--though I wasn't actually test). He described me as just sensitive to it.

The teensiest amount won't bother me--but the more concentrated--BAM!!

Not a food reaction, but definetly an exposure reaction. Avoidance works for me.

I didn't understand why I would react if I weren't allergic and what you have stated makes perfect sense.

 

[james'mommy]

I have tons of food allergies. Pretty much all have them have been diagnosed by blood tests. I am allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, some fruits and veggies, oat, soy, rice, almost all shellfish. I believe I have all of these allergies. I won't even come close to these foods. Most of the categories we discovered I was allergic because I actually had a reaction eating them. I had a real nice wait in the hospital in Celebration after eating Dungeness crabs at Fulton's. I grew into all these food allergies. They were a reaction to moving to a different part of the country and my system being overloaded by the new pollens. I'm starting to grow out of them. Turns out I can now eat almonds.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I have tons of food allergies. Pretty much all have them have been diagnosed by blood tests. I am allergic to peanuts, tree nuts, some fruits and veggies, oat, soy, rice, almost all shellfish. I believe I have all of these allergies. I won't even come close to these foods. Most of the categories we discovered I was allergic because I actually had a reaction eating them. I had a real nice wait in the hospital in Celebration after eating Dungeness crabs at Fulton's. I grew into all these food allergies. They were a reaction to moving to a different part of the country and my system being overloaded by the new pollens. I'm starting to grow out of them. Turns out I can now eat almonds.

My mom kept getting food poisoning for years---at restaurants all over the East coast. Surprisingly only when she ate fish. Her accusations got to be so much that I wondered if it was humanly possible for all this establishments to not handle food--especially fish over a multi-year period. Then she got "food poisoning" at home from fish.

I'm not sure if she finally went to a doc, but she did declare herself allergic to fish (not shellfish) and coincidentally, she hasn't had food poisoning since.

I'm not sure if it is an intolerance or allergy, since her reaction is very similar to food poisoning (gets very sick). None of the standard "allergy" type reactions. I just know that she hasn't had problems ever since she stopped ordering it. She still eats out frequently (and yes, cancels checks in her spare time ).

 

[Wonderlandmom]

That is such a great explanation.

I'm not "allergic" to synthetic floral scents (according to my allergist--though I wasn't actually test). He described me as just sensitive to it.

The teensiest amount won't bother me--but the more concentrated--BAM!!

Not a food reaction, but definetly an exposure reaction. Avoidance works for me.

I didn't understand why I would react if I weren't allergic and what you have stated makes perfect sense.

I think this is actually non-allergic rhinitis or vasomotor rhinitis. You can't be allergic to things without a protein. Smoke and synthetic scents are not an allergen. More a sensitivity as stated above.

http://allergies.about.com/od/noseandsinusallergies/a/pnar.htm

 

[Shelton123]

I can relate. I tested positive for peanut allergy when I was two. We retested when I was 8, turns out I was never able to eat a PB&J sandwich, and there was no reason for that restrictment from an essential (IMO) part of childhood =/

 

[bkoehl]

For us we had our son tested for an allergy to milk, so I guess they ran a whole allergy test, (don't really know how they work) Anyway, Dr's office called me a week later and told me, "no allergy to milk but allergic to eggs> I laughed and asked her if she had the right kid, she said yes and asked why. I told her that my son became very ill when he consumed dairy products but that he ate eggs all the time and never had a problem. I said it was crazy and she got a little huffy and said well these tests are accurate, I asked her to check with the dr. She put me on hold and came back and said. Guess what the Dr said, that's crazy, same word I used. DS still has no problems with eggs or wheat,(another thing they said he was allergic to) and he still can't handle dairy.

You said he became "ill". Like stomach pains, diarrhea, etc? Could be he's lactose intolerant. This is NOT an allergy, you just don't make the enzyme to break down the lactose sugar in milk, it's very common. Causes stomach pains, nausea, diarrhea, etc. Just a thought.....

 

[dizneygurl007]

Gotta love allergies. I know when I was tested, they found out that I can't have a skin test done. I react to everything even if I'm not allergic. My dermatologist said that it's some skin condition where it reacts to a scratch of any kind. I think blood tests are a far more accurate way of diagnosing allergies.

 

[shelly3girls]

We were just at the allergist today for a regular check-up. The allergist told us that about 1/3 of people who test positive on a skin test are actually allergic to the food. Like a PP mentioned, if you are not allergic but test positive you probably are just intolerant meaning there will not be a reaction if ingested.

If we decide to do a food challenge on DD we will know for sure if she is allergic to walnuts and crab. We already know that she is allergic to apples and olives due to reactions. The doctor said he would do another test and if her levels were low then he would do a food challenge. If blood levels are high he will not do them. DD also has asthma so the allergist is much more hesitant to offer the food challenge. Asthmatics tend to have more severe breathing issues if they have an allergic reaction.

 

[golfgal]

DD reacted the first time she every tried PB and she was almost 3. Her whole face broke out in hives, her neck, her back, all hives, she had a huge one on her lip. It was so sad I was getting ready to go to class and my mom gave her a little lick from a fork she spit it out, I put her in the car and noticed it. I called ped's office right away, we ran to get benadryl, gave it to her ASAP. She was complaining that her ears were hurting, it was just terrible. She wasn't complaining that she couldn't breathe or anything. I just stayed home with her and monitored her. She was acting ok after the benadryl but the hives were still present. I took her to ped's office for check up soon after and her RXed the epipen. We then found a ped. allergist who did the skin prick test. He did peanuts and a series of tree nuts as well as eggs (b/c I told him that she HATED eggs and he thought maybe b/c she was allergic to them). Within seconds her back blew up from where they put the peanut protiens, and then only slightly with the almonds. I just keep her away from all nuts period! Our home is nut free. Her back was actually all swollen looking for about a week after that skin test.
I am planning on bringing her back to be tested this summer, before she starts kindergarten, as he said there is about a 20-30% chance she may grow out of it.

Just an FYI, you can't react to something the first time you have it. The reaction is a build up of histamines in the body and if your body was never exposed to something it can't build up histamines. She had to have had some exposure to peanuts before that-either hidden in some other food or someone else gave her some without you knowing.

 

[luvmy3]

That is such a great explanation.

I'm not "allergic" to synthetic floral scents (according to my allergist--though I wasn't actually test). He described me as just sensitive to it.

The teensiest amount won't bother me--but the more concentrated--BAM!!

Not a food reaction, but definetly an exposure reaction. Avoidance works for me.

I didn't understand why I would react if I weren't allergic and what you have stated makes perfect sense.

That would make sense because an allergic reation is a specific thing that the body does. I get headaches when the scent of cinnamon is too strong, however that is not my body releasing histamines, its just an irritation to my nasal passages and sinuses, so I am not truly allergic to it, I'm irritated by it.

I agree...I think that many of us are tested for allergies when we are in the middle of a reaction to something. Our bodies are already under stress so we appear to have a stronger reaction to some things.

I don't know anyone who has been tested in the middle of a reaction.

 

[U2_rocks!]

OK, at the risk of sounding like a crackpot, I will share a third method of testing with you all that was really great at pinpointing intolerances in the 2 kids I had tested. It's called VEGA testing, and it was done by a homeopath. It does not involve taking any blood or pricking the skin. It also does not test specifically for allergies - it is designed to figure out what substances are putting stress on the body, and allergies, intolerances and general sensitivities all do that, so it will pinpoint all.

e.g. my then 6 year old had never been able to tolerate dairy - we kept trying to reintroduce milk, and it just made her stuffy and itchy. She also used to get very stuffy after touching horses, and sometimes her eyes would even swell. The VEGA tests showed those 2 things as very bad for her (putting a large amount of stress on her), and also showed up a few more intolerances that we hadn't picked up on (corn, yeast, chocolate, yellow food dye etc.). We haven't been able to get her fully under control yet, because we are having a hard time getting rid of the dairy completely from her diet. But she's not in a bad way overall.

My then 9 year old son was going through a period where he was getting migraines and throwing up every day at school. It went on too long to be a virus, and was really affecting his life. We had him VEGA tested and discovered that his body didn't like pork (which includes processed ham, bacon etc.), tuna (but other fish was fine), shellfish, coconut, pepper, sugar, and mildly wheat and egg yolks. I realized that we'd been giving him a LOT of ham sandwiches and tuna pasta for school lunches, and he'd obviously hit his limit! When we cut out his intolerant foods and put him on a course of homeopathic allergy pills, it cleared up almost immediately. He was also showing signs of candida, so he underwent treatment for that. He has had only one migraine since, and that was during the Christmas holidays when we let his diet get out of control. It took days of bad eating to bring on that one migraine, but once the diet was cleaned back up he's been fine.

This may all sound crazy, but I've seen it with my own eyes with my children, and I've seen it with my parents as well - they have a lot of food issues which they have been able to sort out homeopathically and via elimination of offending foods and substances. My Mum keeps getting sensitive to new things, so it's a constant struggle for her (she has auto-immune issues, which I think is a big contributor to her reacting to things all the time), but Dad is mostly stable if he sticks to the right diet.

 

[smi727]

Good thing I stumbled upon this thread. I'm finally trying to get my 5 month GI ordeal figured out. I am being allergy tested for lactose on Friday. I've already been cleared of a wheat/gluten allergy. Can anyone provide more info on allergy testing as an adult? I'd also be interested in more info on VEGA testing. I am in a medical field and am not at all into homeopathic medicine but I'm so tired of this, I'll give anything a try.