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If I may offer some little-known info -- sometimes the tests do not indicate a food sensitivity or allergy when there is one.
I developed night asthma due to eating wheat. It didn't happen until I was older. Doctors gave me inhalers, but waking up every two hours every night to use an inhaler wasn't something I was willing to do -- or would have survived in the long run. I turned to "Dr. Google" and found someone on a discussion group(!) who said he had night asthma from a gluten allergy.
I stopped gluten, and that night and from then on, I had no asthma. I haven't used any asthma inhaler in years. The Celiac test I took came back negative. Makes me wonder about others, including kids, who have asthma, and they're just given inhalers. Maybe it's the gluten.
Then another time, not long ago, I had a severe heart and lung issues due to an allergy, of all things, a new gel mattress. Took me three months to figure that one out. Gave away the mattress -- no more symptoms. Because it was within three months, the store very quickly gave me my money back, and it was up to me to dispose of the mattress.
Sorry to go off-topic but lovebrentwood, have you ever heard of MCAS? If you're having allergic reactions to random things it may be something you'd be interested in reading.
If I may offer some little-known info -- sometimes the tests do not indicate a food sensitivity or allergy when there is one.
I developed night asthma due to eating wheat. It didn't happen until I was older. Doctors gave me inhalers, but waking up every two hours every night to use an inhaler wasn't something I was willing to do -- or would have survived in the long run. I turned to "Dr. Google" and found someone on a discussion group(!) who said he had night asthma from a gluten allergy.
I stopped gluten, and that night and from then on, I had no asthma. I haven't used any asthma inhaler in years. The Celiac test I took came back negative. Makes me wonder about others, including kids, who have asthma, and they're just given inhalers. Maybe it's the gluten.
Then another time, not long ago, I had a severe heart and lung issues due to an allergy, of all things, a new gel mattress. Took me three months to figure that one out. Gave away the mattress -- no more symptoms. Because it was within three months, the store very quickly gave me my money back, and it was up to me to dispose of the mattress.
I had a very similar experience - even with skin testing, I've been tested multiple times. Once was told no allergy, next time came back allergic to 21 different things. The blood test also gave negative results to foods I eliminated and then felt better. Though I suppose they could all be 'sensitivities', but either way
I am the OP. Thank you everyone for your suggesitons - I really appreciate all the responses. Especially Tabster and NRaleigh Mom for the doctor suggestions! And thank you to lovebrentwood for gluten allergy info. I hadn't thought of that.
My husband at the time decided our girls needed to go to his Dr. to be tested for allergies. They did the scratch stuff on their back and said they were allergic to a ton of stuff including Dogs, Cats, Milk and many things I don't remember. This Dr. said they had to be put on shots or they would be sterile and couldn't have children. At the time this Dr. had my husband on shots and he was passing out frequently from them. I put my foot down and said NO SHOTS as the triplets were only 3 years old and saying they would be sterile was just nuts. I told their pediatrician what had gone on and he drew blood and sent it off and it came back they were only sensitive to Airborne allergens. Not Dogs, Cats or milk. I later met two people that had been told their daughters also needed shots so they wouldn't be sterile. This was supposed to be the best allergy Dr. in Austin, what a joke.
No, I hadn't heard of that. I googled it and don't have all those symptoms and feel fine -- except for some sensitivities to food and medicines such as penicillin (and, of course, gel mattresses).
It was interesting to read about MCAS -- it was named only in 2007. There is so much we DON'T know about so many things as far as health.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tabster
Sorry to go off-topic but lovebrentwood, have you ever heard of MCAS? If you're having allergic reactions to random things it may be something you'd be interested in reading.
I had this same issue many years ago. No doctor could figure out what was wrong with me. I never associated any of it with foods until I fell onto the floor after eating a simple slice of pizza with mushrooms. Went to an allergist who told me I didn't have any allergies!
Thank goodness someone told me about a good allergist. I got a blood test that produced fast results and found that I was allergic to dairy and wheat (grains) and they found that I was allergic to mold--that explained the near fainting from eating mushrooms. Then they did allergy testing with needles but it was much more in depth testing than the first allergist had done.
The really good allergists are hard to find for some reason. They test you thoroughly and often can give you drops that you take at home instead of shots. I have a feeling that those thorough allergists are being put out of business because there only seems to be one in my state and they are hard to find. There are lots of the kind of allergists that test you for a bunch of things and then that's it. Then they give you shots, which may or may not be enough.
You can find these really good and rare allergists by word of mouth or by searching online. Oftentimes not all of their services are covered though. They used to be covered but now it seems that the insurance companies get out of it by calling the tests "experimental." What I do is find an allergist who sounds good and call to see if my insurance covers them.
BTW, there's a big difference between gluten intolerance and wheat (which usually includes all grains since they are related) allergy. If you can't eat wheat, you'll probably have problems with rye, barley, and any other related grass. Gluten intolerance isn't an allergy.
And, for the problems with something like the smell of a mattress, that's not an allergy and I don't think there are any tests. That's called a chemical sensitivity. There's nothing you can do except avoid and try to avoid any other chemicals that cause people problems, like smelly detergents, fabric softeners, food additives, etc. I don't know how it works but my allergist said that once you get sensitized to chemicals, it can just keep on going and you could become sensitive to more and more chemicals.
Good luck! I hope there are still some really thorough allergists out there and one of them who will accept your insurance.
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