ok I have a problem I think I know what it is any suggestions?

[ksabe98]

Hi everyone I have not been posting much lately but have been here reading everyday. Ok here is my problem. For the last 3 ot 4 weeks I have been waking up in the morning, not everyday mind you but often enough with my lips swollen sometimes only one or the other or the inside of my mouth near the lips and into my face. I have also been getting hives. Big bad ones and I am allergic to my underwear. Anything with elastic that comes in contact with my skin makes huge welts that last for more than 24 hours in some cases. I have had to take benadryl to combat the symptoms. I was not doing well on the raw food diet eating alot of cooked but with the symptoms getting more frequent I turned immediately to raw 100% and started detoxing but still having the symptoms. My point is this is not detox. So then out of sheer frustration I went and started searching the net to find the answers to try to deal with this before I go to the doctor. So I found this website that identified it as possibly Oral Allergy syndrome. Ok the offending foods are cross reactive foods that the body mistakes for pollens. Guess what foods these are? Fresh raw fruits and vegetables. I have never had this problem before and now it is here and I am going out of my mind as to what to do now. I would love any imput anyone has to give. Here is the link to the article that I found. It is like the 4th or 5th thing I found but seems to be the most comprehensive. http://allergy.healthcentersonline.com/foodallergyintolerance/oralallergysyndrome.cfm
Thanks everyone for your help. Up to now I have been terrified to eat almost everything. So now when I find this information I am devistated. I hope that it is not going to mean the end of raw food for me as it has been to best thing that has happened to me and has helped me to really heal my body of so many things. well hopefully I can get to the bottom of this.
Lisa

[Rawkinlocs]

Ksabe,

I'm so sorry to hear of what you're going through. My husband went through this PRIOR to going raw. He would get hives, his underwear, socks, anything tight-fitting against him like elastic bands would cause welts and he had the worse episode when his lip swole up extremely huge!

I know you don't think it is, but it IS a form of detoxing. It is a way that your body is clearing out something and using your skin as the vehicle.

You are not allergic to your underwear, your underwear or rather the elastic just aggrevates it. My husband, during the time of his episodes with hives, thought he was allergic to cats, to strawberries and a host of other things.

Once we went raw, he hasn't had a hive since. Fruits and veggies will not cause you to break out, but eating cleansing foods may cause your body to cleanse and clear of things that have been there all along but just never manifested.

Doctors have a name for everything. Any symptom you can think of has some kind of name given to it and it really all means nothing. Any symptom that your body triggers off is an indication that either something is wrong inside or something is being cleared out.

But until this passes, maybe you need to identify what foods may be aggrevating the situation and temporarily eliminate them until you get cleaned out.

Anything the doctors prescribe will suppress what your body is attempting to do and only cause it to have to surface later on.

Maybe a good cleansing fast is in order at this time.

[rawpriestess]

Just to let you know you aren't allergic to these foods, you are reacting to these foods, there is a big difference, what were you eating before? I mean when you were eating the cooked food? If it was dairy, then NOT eating any dairy will allow you to eat the fruits and veggies again.

the reason I say this, is I had this, I used to react to any kind of lettuce, onion, tomatoes, citrus fruits celery, etc. My throat actually swole shut enough that my family was going to take me to the emergency room. But they and gave me benedryl, first, and it was okay, but it was really scary as I couldn't breath. they also started me on B12 shots, this is how they knew what it was, because I got massively sick with that, again this is many many years ago.

I never knew to stop eating dairy, until I went to a naturpath years later, once I understood what was making me react to the fruits and veggies, I quit eating dairy, and then I could eat all the fruits and veggies I wanted.

So, you may either try cutting out dairy, or if you know that wasn't the challenge, then you might try a naturpath who can tell you what you are really allergic to and what you are reacting to.

Also, this came on very sudden for me, one day no reaction, the next day my throat closed, sounds a little like your mouth situation.

Hope this helps.

[ksabe98]

Rawpriestess so what you are saying is that something cooked I have been eating is causing me to react to the raw food? Also is there any substance to the information that I have found that the reactions are caused by a pollen allergy? So what do you suggest I do to find the culprit? Just eat only some foods? And if so which ones? I am sorry if I sound so incapable right now but truly I am sitting here in tears.
Lisa

[Sharon in Colorado]

Have you had any wheat or dairy at all? I'm just wondering, because I've been going fairly steady with raw, but once I have some grains/dairy I get really itchy too (sin, roof of mouth, membranes, etc.).

A suggestion would be to keep a daily log of what you are eating, along with your symtoms so you can find a correlation.

[racheljj]

As others have mentioned, gluten (wheat, oats, barley) and dairy are two foods to watch out for in regards to allergies and food intolerances. Also, soy can be a problem for some people as can corn. Are you eating any of these foods? Were you eating them? It can take a few weeks to clear your body of these foods. I've even heard that it can take six months to get dairy completely out of your system which is why I never want to have dairy again!

Our bodies are all different and you have to find what works for you. It might help you to do a four day elimination diet. You can do this all raw, if you want. Choose two foods that you know don't bother you (or that are least allergenic) and eat ONLY those foods for two days. For example, pears are supposed to be ok for most people as are turnips. After the four days, you can start adding other foods back in one at a time to see if you have any reactions.

Sorry you're going through this. I hope you get it figured out soon.

Rachel Johnson

[BDraw]

Oh Lisa, I do feel for you. I am so sorry you have to go through this and I have no experience to offer you. But feel compelled to suggest a water fast.

I do hope you find releif soon!

Blessings!

[Sweet lips]

I too, am sorry to hear this, and I do agree with Rawkinlocs and R.P, as your body attempst to heal it self - those are the symptoms. I broke out in hives this past spring and same symptoms, although my mouth was swollen from the inside - went on green juices and it abated, took a moment though.

[ksabe98]

Thanks everyone for you suggestions. I am afraid that all of the things you listed are things that I was eating. Soy I discovered also in one of the products my mom gave me, as well as wheat, dairy, corn. So I guess what I am going to do is narrow my diet down to 2 or 3 foods for a 4 or 5 days and then incorporate foods back in. If that is unsuccessful then I am going to fast for 12 to 14 days and then add foods in one by one after an appropriate juice stage and then small amounts of food. I would think after that I could at least identify what it is that I am reacting to. If dairy is going to take 6 months to get out of my system, I guess I will try to eat the offending foods again 6 months later one by one to see if they are ok at that point. Well I am not looking forward to this but what can I do? If I start to get better I will be so happy that it won't matter what I am eating as long as I feel good. Thanks again everyone. Well here we go wish me luck.
Lisa

[Carlene]

Lisa, I know this is stupid, like did you plug the computer in, but have you looked at other sources than food. Like laundry detergent, soap, etc. Just a though, as a progammer I find many people don't look at the obvious once they have decided what the problem is.

Best of luck. Listen to Rawcinlocks.

[Arky]

I don't subscribe to that website, so I can't read past page 1, but I would suggest you experiment with eliminating foods from the nightshade family (cherries, tomatoes, potatoes <sweet potatoes are not nightshades>, bell peppers, capsicum pepper, aubergine/eggplant etc.). Also avoid sorbated dried fruits, as these are commonly known to cause severe alergic reactions.

Also check out this link:

http://www.allergy-clinic.co.uk/food_allergy_for_public.htm

Good luck, I really hope you fond a solution here.


All the best.

J.

[rawpriestess]

Dear Lisa,

Hi, I will simply relate my situation, and you can see what part fits with you.

I THOUGHT I was allergic (and all the doctors I went to substantiated this) to
fruit
vegetables
hair products
cleaners
laundry soaps,
cats
dogs
flees
bugs
insects
shampoo
rayon
nylon
stockings
leather
etc. the list was endless,

but this is because I was reacting to all of these.

I did NOT react to dairy or wheat or gluten.

It wasn't until I went to a naturpath in 1985, that I found out that I was allergic ONLY to dairy, and wheat, but I was only allergic to wheat IF I was eating any type of sugars within 8 hours of ingesting wheat. and that I was reacting to all of these other things.

When I cut out dairy, MOST of my symptoms went away, I could eat almost anything, and use any chemicals etc, shampoos etc.

I never felt the challenges with the wheat and sugar, what happened with them was If I ate wheat I would crave sugar, so I was overeating.

So, if I stayed away from dairy, then I could tollerate all of the things I thought I was allergic to, and the doctors were absolutely baffled by this, this is when I quit seeing doctors for any reason at all.

So, what I am saying is try cutting out dairy and see how you react to things in your environment, if you still react, then try cutting out wheat, corn, soy, night shade plants, etc.

I wouldn't cut them all out at once, because you want to have something to eat, but it only takes about 3 to 5 days to see if you stop reacting to something.

When I stopped eating dairy, my reactions went away immediately within 24 hours.

I am so sorry you are going through this.

And of course, you could go to a naturepath and have a true allergy test done. If that was your choice, then you would know for sure.

But best wishes to you, and feel free to ask me any questions you may have.

[ksabe98]

Thank you everyone for your responses after such a long day it was nice to sit down and listen to the power of reason. I knew if I brought this problem to you all that I would find answers and I have. Thank you again. Raw Priestess I think that you may be right. I wondered if you knew how I could find a naturopath here in California? I don't want to end up with some quack who just wants to suck my pennies away instead of helping me. I think I will do a search. If anyone here is in the San Fernando Valley and has a good Naturopath that they use I could use a referral PM me if you do thanks. I am going to cut out dairy and wheat first. I suspect them both so I will start there. But I am really going to cut my eating choices down severly starting tomorrow. I have alread done so for the most part. I am also doing a colon cleanse now so that when I start detoxing from this I will have a clear path out for the toxins. Again thank you everyone. Anymore suggestions are always helpful. By the way I also have suspected environmental factors and have been changing, removing these also but I think you are right it is probably an allergy that is causing reactions to other things. Well wish me luck again.
Good night all.
lisa

[racheljj]

Here are some websited to help you if you have any questions about doing the elimination diet. The hard part can be figuring out what's causing you to react once you start adding foods back in because some things cause obvious and immediate reactions whereas others are slower to come and harder to track.

http://allallergy.net/articles/index.cfm/cdeoc/MM

http://www.wholehealthmd.com/refshelf/refshelf_elimination/1,1575,,00.html

http://www.springboard4health.com/notebook/diet_elimination.html

http://homepages.paradise.net.nz/rwgully/action/ediet_howto.htm

http://www.urologychannel.com/prostate/bph/eliminationdiet.html

http://www.ic-network.com/handbook/eliminationdiets.html

PS: I know these all discuss eating cooked foods but you can do the same thing with only raw foods.


Good luck,

Rachel

[ksabe98]

Well after much searching much of the information out there is for meat eating cooked eating individuals. So I am left with trying to eat just a few items I know are not bothering me and I am going to continue with that for awhile and once I think that alot of whatever I have been allergic to that is causing me to react to everything else is hopefully out of my system I am going to add fruits and veggies in one by one stay totally raw and hope for the best. My body is just going to have to heal on a few things and clean itself out and hopefully if something raw is still bothering me then it has to be that item. I am not going to eat nuts, legumes, wheat, dairy, honey, soy, or grains. I suspect them all. So if anyone has suggestions on what raw fruits and veggies tend to be the least bothersome to the majority that would be a great help. Thanks everyone.
lisa

[RawTruth]

I think that if you just stay away from the nightshade family, you should be okay.

Did you ever find a naturopath? If not, why don't you post an appeal for referrals on the Los Angeles Living Foods board? That usually reaps loads of really decent replies immediately. I could refer you to a holistic M.D., but he's in Huntington Beach and, thus, quite a drive for you. But, email me if you'd like any info I might be able to provide. I could refer you to a few people I know in L.A. who use alternative medical practitioners (acupuncturists, etc.) who might know naturapaths in the Valley.

I'm so glad you've eliminated those other foods, Lisa. I had an image of your body being like a petri dish experiment with all those toxic substances in it!! Aargh.

[racheljj]

I've read that turnips and pears are usually good for most people. Maybe avocadoes as well. From all that I've read, it usually good to choose a few foods that you have NOT been eating much for the past year.

Good luck,

Rachel

[valleyskye]

Hi Lisa,
This is a really old posting I know. But, I am curious if you ever figured this out and it worked to remove the dairy. I am going through this myself after removing Advair ( A steroid inhaler for asthma) from my system. I am afraid to eat. Everything is causing a reaction and I am carrying an Epi Pen everywhere. I was allergic to 57 out of 63 things I was tested for at the allergist.
So I am not sure where to start. I was RAW for 2 years prior. Needless to say I can't eat anything.

So I am curious what happened with you and your diet. If you are still out there, I would love any information you can give me.. Thanks!!

[beelzebubble]

a couple of questions for you...

is it all of your undies or just some of them?
do you react to latex gloves, condoms, etc...?
have you been eating a lot of kiwi, tomatoes...etc...

i ask because some elastic contains latex, a known allergen. people with a latex allergy are sometimes allergic to some fruits that have a similar chemical make-up to latex.

from http://www.users.globalnet.co.uk/~aair/latex.htm


People who are allergic to latex may also react to banana, avocado, kiwi fruit, chestnut, plum, peach, cherry, apricot, fig, papaya, tomato, potato and some other plant foods. The list is still growing. The reason is that these plants contain proteins which are similar enough to latex proteins to react with our allergy-producing antibodies to latex.

you might want to start by eliminating these foods and any latex from your environment and see if you feel better. if you do, add them back one by one every 4 days and see if you react to any of them.

[ambiguous]

To me this is so obvious: It is some product you are using, as Carlene so wisely suggests. Since this post is old, I hope that some conclusion has been reached . . . ?

I know this is a food-related forum, but sometimes people do physically react to things other than food.

I had to stop using "regular" detergent when I was 12 or so because the waistbands of my clothing would make me itch; it took me a little while to figure out the cause, but it turned out I was dead on. I've tried a number of detergents, but I now use Sal Suds to wash my clothes. Plain water also works pretty well.

I also went through a terrible bout with skin irritations about 10 years ago. I went to a slew of doctors, none of whom could figure out what was going on. I had recently had mono, and my immune system was not what it could have been. Anyway, I listened to my intuition and stopped using tea tree oil (which one of my doctors had been recommending I put on my open sores), and my sores healed and the swelling diminished. I then tried staying away from soy, and all redness completely healed. However, had I tried cutting out soy first, I don't think my symptoms would have been helped at all; soy had been worsening my problem, but I didn't feel like it was causing it--if my system hadn't been weakened, I don't think soy would have started causing me problems. Sometimes the obvious is best; if your skin is bothering you, pay attention to what goes on or lies next to your skin. If your mouth is bothering you, consider your toothpaste. I find I do better without sodium lauryl/eth sulfate; I just use baking soda now. I also drool when I sleep :rolleyes:, so I can easily imagine laundry detergent causing me mouth problems. (Note: after a couple years of not eating soy, I was able to eat it again with no reaction, as is often the case with food allergies. And I strongly believe that correctly-prepared soy products are not dangerous.) However, as I learned, food can have an exacerbating effect on any symptom.

Valleyskye, please look at http://www.primapublishing.com/broadway/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780767905855&view=excerpt

Actually, I think everyone should read this excerpt--I think it's really really important before making a decision about one's diet. I eat all raw vegan foods, but I think some people do get too obsessed with purity in their diet, and unfortunately it is often their own health that suffers.

[shadow]

I have no food advice, but can offer undie advice! Just stop wearing them unless you have too (on your period, wearing a short skirt...) Life without undies is so freeing. Seriously, try it. Your vagina will thank you as well as your skin. And if you have to wear undies wear hemp ones that have no elastic. They are SOOOOO much more comfy.