Food Allergies and eating "raw"

[ToriInFrance]

Hello Everyone!

I would like to start off by saying how happy I am to have stumbled across Alissa Cohen's website, as well as this forum! After attempting to fight a cough and cold for the past two months, as well as a new acne problem on my normally dry, eczema prone skin, I have decided that a change in my diet is just what I need. I should specify 'positive' and 'beneficial' change of diet, because my change in diet from Canada to France (where I am studying for a year) has not been the kind of change I've needed!
After reading of the numerous health benefits and I thinking of incorporating 'eating raw' into my life. However, I do have some questions (understandibly) before hand. Please feel free to answer with as much or as little information as you have :) Thanks!

A little health history: I am 20 years old and definitely not as healthy as I should be. Thin by luck, no thanks to my current diet. I have asthma, eczema, a heart palpitation that my doctors cannot seem to identify, and an endless list of allergies (seasonal, food, and animal (fur, feathers)), a herniated disk thanks to my few years of competitive cheerleading and have suffered with depression on and off since I was 17 (took Effexor for 1 year) Im sure you can see why I am hoping to experience the health benefits of eating raw.

My main concern with trying the raw food diet is with my allergies. I am allergic to quite a few foods in their raw state (apples, pit fruits, carrots) however I have no reaction to them when they are cooked. Why is my body rejecting the food when it is supposed to be in it's healthiest form?
I am also allergic to peanuts (severly), and try to avoid other nuts at my mom's advice (ingrained in me since I was little) because she is allergic to hazelnuts and my dad to cashews. We just assumed it ran in the family. Anyways, I was just wanting to know if anyone here is allergic to peanuts and if they have had problems with other nuts on this diet.
Same goes for wheatgrass drinks, etc. Anyone with grass pollen allergies have problems with those types of juices?

Well, don't I seem the veritable allergy queen? hah. Any info or advice regarding these issues would be greatly appreciated!

[juliebove]

I am allergic to almonds and only almonds. My mom is allergic to almonds and only almonds. Daughter is allergic to peanuts and only peanuts. In all cases, the main concern for us is cross contamination. This is highly likely when the nuts are sold in bulk. One scoop being used in one container then another. Or a container of one kind of nuts being empty then refilled with another kind of nuts. It's also a concern where the nuts are processed. Most places that process nuts do not process just one kind.

I buy our nuts at the health food store and we have not gotten sick from those yet.

As for being able to eat some things cooked that you can not eat raw, I am not sure it's an actual allergy. I had a link at one time that I posted here about that but it got deleted. So I'm not going to post it again. There is a reason for it. I can't remember exactly but I think it related to seasonal allergies. Not so much a food allergy per se, but related to some other plant allergy. Pineapple is one thing I can not eat raw. It breaks my mouth out in blisters. I *can* eat it cooked, but I never do. I just don't like it that much. If I eat more than a few thin slices or raw apple or pear, I get a stomach ache. I never get that with cooked apple or pear. Oranges are weird for me. If I eat them as is, my mouth breaks out in blisters. Orange juice does not do this to me. I've used them in raw recipes and I do not have a problem with them.

[aliciamatheson]

Bumping this up - I'm interested to hear if anyone has had these experiences or has advice for ToriInFrance.

Alicia

[lydias]

I've had terrible allergies to everything

not sure what causes it

might want to research Bioset techniques
it has helped me some