Food Allergies

[sanantone]

If someone is to stay away from foods "for a time" I would expect it is to see if it makes a difference.
When my doctor recommended I stay away from ALL sugar (Keto type diet), it was to see if it made a difference with autoimmune pain.
Sure enough, I was able to get off of all prescription pain meds and anti-inflammatories within 6 weeks of starting the diet.

Often people label things as allergies because that is easier than explaining why you avoid certain foods.
My son doesn't have anaphylactic response to eggs, but he sure will violently vomit it up!
Saying he is allergic to eggs is simply easier than to give the explanation.

My 2 cents...

A good physician would give you a specific and accurate diagnosis and explain to you what is going on. It's great to have informed patients because they can do their own research on what they want to do and even obtain second opinions. Just as an example, there is a huge difference between a dairy allergy and lactose intolerance. Just about every physician will tell you that you are lactose intolerant if that is what you are; they aren't going to tell you that you're allergic to milk. If that were the case, people with lactose intolerance wouldn't be able to drink lactose-free milk. A dairy allergy is something life-threatening. In the age of Google, you don't want to tell someone that they have a life-threatening condition if they don't have one.

Everyone knows what lactose intolerance is. I tell people all the time that I have a high sensitivity to caffeine without any confused responses. Those aren't any more difficult to understand than allergies. You definitely don't want to ask anyone for dietary advice if they don't know the difference between an allergy, intolerance, and sensitivity.

[Ideas]

Double check on foods, because soy (and even dairy, gluten, and sugar) can be under other names in the ingredient lists. For example if it says "textured vegetable protein", that is soy, at least usually. Supposedly "hydrolysates" contains cow's milk.

[bjcheung77]

Every spring I get allergies. It's horrible! I've seen countless specialists and nothing works for me so far. It's the strangest thing though, the only way - for the last decade to a dozen years, I had to move away on vacation during spring. The location is a less-than-ideal city, with undesirable air quality, but my nasal passage adores it! My body needs to get healthier so it can auto-fend off these nasty nasal allergens.

Update: Oh forgot to mention, you should seek secondary or another specialist to make sure what type of allergies and see what their recommendations are. Sometimes getting a second checkup will find more details or give more concise answers to why your body is reacting this way to those allergies. Go and get that second opinion, if it's exactly or very similar to the first, you've got peace of mind there were no mistakes made in diagnosis.

[cookderosa]

Thanks for taking the time to explain. I asked, not because I can help, but because I have a Masters of Science in Nutrition and will be the first to tell you that I could NEVER give you advice this way. Allergies are life-threatening, very serious, and if one was suspected, no licensed professional you would send you off on your own to figure it out. I suspected by the type of advice that it was a non-licensed professional giving it to you. Given the source (and I'm not anti-acupuncturist) I would strongly suggest getting a medical opinion for several reasons.

Food science and biochemistry are very complex. To give you an example, if you look at a loaf of bread- think of it like a large city - New York City. It consists of buildings, cars, people, animals, etc. Now think of a small city - Boon Dock Iowa. It consists of buildings, cars, people, animals, etc., Saying you're allergic to "New York City" but not "Boon Dock Iowa" is kinda the same thing that gets passed around for "nutrition education" in pop culture and media. Science wouldn't look at the city as a collective, they'd tear it down into the molecules (buildings, car, people, animals, etc) and they'd give you specific indicators of exactly what molecules and immune responses are causing your body to react. (in this hypothetical, let's say it is determined that it is the "building" that is causing your reacting) Saying to someone not to eat bread is like telling them to avoid one city because it has buildings, but the other cities with small buildings are fine. It's scientifically inconsistent. Most lay people talk about nutrition in terms of food groups or categories, which is their "tell." In the most basic of terms, food is polluted with too many other molecules to figure out what the problem is. An elimination diet is a little like saying "no" to New York City and trying Chicago instead. - this is chasing your tail.

Medical doctors took chemistry and biochemistry as an undergrad, and in med school, most took 1 nutrition course - which is why they'll refer you to an RD in a heartbeat. If you've heard the expression "you don't know what you don't know" it applies. Doctors will refer you because they DO know what they don't know regarding medical nutrition therapy. Doctors or RDs all consider food and medicine at the molecular level, not at the "food" level. Whole body practitioners, nutritionists, wellness coaches, healthy eating books, etc. are all targeting well people. If you're well, then you can eat whatever you want. If you're ill, you need a clinician.

So, none of this is to say you should eat everything, that you don't have an allergy, or that there isn't a food that bothers you- all can be true. Healthy people can make good / better/ best food choices to stay in front of lifestyle disease. BUT if you do an elimination protocol before having your initial bloodwork done, you're going to interfere with their ability to form an accurate diagnosis. You want to be fully symptomatic when you present to your apt for blood and or skin testing.

[sanantone]

Acupuncturists are licensed professionals in about 30 states, if they're working legally, but they aren't the most qualified to diagnose allergies. It's better to get a diagnosis from a physician and then go to any recommended specialist.

[cookderosa]

Acupuncturists are licensed professionals in about 30 states, if they're working legally, but they aren't the most qualified to diagnose allergies. It's better to get a diagnosis from a physician and then go to any recommended specialist.

They're not licensed to practice medicine in any state. Diagnosing an allergy requires a license to practice medicine.

I'm a licensed driver and my friend has a license to practice cosmetology, I think we all know that's not the same thing as a medical license.

[radconjohn]

Hey guys , today I went to my doctor and had some test taken , apparently I can't have soy , gluten , dairy or sugar for a while . I'm trying to put together a list of things to eat and I'm having trouble with it if it doesn't have dairy it has gluten and if it doesn't have soy it has dairy! Any of you guys got food allergies and do you have specific diets or recipes that you eat?

I have gluten, dairy, eggs, almonds allergies/sensitivities. I was diagnosed with a blood test. Were you given the option of having a blood test? That way you can be sure. There are alot of alternatives out there these days. Back just a few years ago when I was diagnosed, there were not many options. I have become a label reader now, just read the labels on the packages. 
For my dairy options, I use alot of SO Delicious products, they make some awesome coconut yogurt. The cashew milk ice cream is very creamy!! Udi's rolls are good too.
You just have to do your grocery shopping in a whole new way, it took me a while to get used to it. I also lost 20 pounds when I changed my diet!

[sanantone]

Acupuncturists are licensed professionals in about 30 states, if they're working legally, but they aren't the most qualified to diagnose allergies. It's better to get a diagnosis from a physician and then go to any recommended specialist.

They're not licensed to practice medicine in any state.  Diagnosing an allergy requires a license to practice medicine.  

I'm a licensed driver and my friend has a license to practice cosmetology, I think we all know that's not the same thing as a medical license.

You did not say that they were not licensed to practice medicine. You just said that they are "non-licensed professionals." I was just clarifying that they usually are licensed.

[cookderosa]

Acupuncturists are licensed professionals in about 30 states, if they're working legally, but they aren't the most qualified to diagnose allergies. It's better to get a diagnosis from a physician and then go to any recommended specialist.

They're not licensed to practice medicine in any state.  Diagnosing an allergy requires a license to practice medicine.  

I'm a licensed driver and my friend has a license to practice cosmetology, I think we all know that's not the same thing as a medical license.

You did not say that they were not licensed to practice medicine. You just said that they are "non-licensed professionals." I was just clarifying that they usually are licensed.

Got it. Thank you for the clarification.

[keepsingin]

Check out Pinterest for meal ideas/recipes for allergy diets, it has a lot of info by GF/DF/SF veterans who are very good at that whole diet thing. There's a wealth of allergy-free information, resources, and food available that wasn't available even 5 years ago. Good luck!