I am extremley allergic to pork! If it touches my tounge at all I am in danger.. By eating pork, my face, lips, all swell up .. So I do not eat pork any more at all.. I can not eat any kind or form of it..

Now I am having problems from cross-contaimnation now!! If something I eat like chicken came across a knife that has touched pork, or a grill that pork was cooked on or even a glove that prepared my turkey sandwich has touched some sort of pork..I break out in really bad hives/welts.. The welts itch but sore at the same time.. Sometimes on my arms they seem to grow.. I mark them with a ink pen and can useally tell when it grows.. It feels very warm to the touch,itchy,and sore all at the same time..

2Days ago I ate a grilled chicken on a salad.. I told the lady no bacon bits on my salad cause I am allergic to them.. Well thinking I am safe I ate this salad.. 10 Min after eating it my thumb felt itchy and red and swelling..I thought that was strange but never thought to much about it.. About a hour later I had hives all over me! Then my lower lip started swelling.. By friday I couldnt talk and missed work! No way im going to work like this!
This has been going on for years.. I have a note book I write reactions and dates down when they happen and what kind of reaction happens.. And what I ate or didnt eat..

My doctor thinks I'm nuts and say no one is allegic to pork.. I dont like this doctor..I think my doctor should believe in his patient.. Is there a doctor out there that knows the kind of pain I go though when I have this happen.. I carry a epin pen with me but never had to use it.. I've actually gone to the emergency room in the past .. But now I really have to watch what I eat.. And most of all the cross catmaination this is the worse part.. Its hard to eat out.. Because people dont care anymore.. And they dont think about others either..
I dont belive it is chemicals in my food either.. I have wrote down every reaction I have ever had realted to pork.. Since 2001!

Is there any help out there anywhere for us people allergic to pork???

If you want to avoid all traces of pork, look for kosher or halal food.

Jews and Muslims have very strict dietary laws. Pork is on the no-go list.

Kosher and halal food is guaranteed to be completely free of any pork

i am allergic to meat and only recently found out. i was diagnosed with lupus, fibromyalgia and other stuff due to symptoms- not actual data- anyway, i had muscle aches, mood swings severe digestive issues- overprduction of saliva, rahses, you name it i had it. i eventually stopped listening to medical science and went holistic and was given a food allergy test. i am allergic to meat (protien), eggs, b12 and sugar. once i cut most of this out my symptoms disappeared.
my point is you can be allergic to meat.

I am very interested to find so many others with the beef and pork allergy. I just started to research this on the internet because I am very allergic to beef, pork and other 4-legged meats.

I grew up eating all meats, including organs and feet. In my late 20's after doing a meat fast for 40 days, I began to have the severe symptoms and could not eat it again. I had the ezcema prior to the fast.
I can experience severe intestional distress within 10 minutes to 2 hours, depending on the accidental source and amount. Beef seems to produce the most dramatic symptoms. I will have cold sweats, a metallic taste in the back of my throat, and diarrhea erruptions that cannot be controlled. I do eat some small amounts of cow milk products normally. I have varying degrees of intestional reactions to milk products, depending on the country I am visiting. I have the skin rashes and erruptions that can follow the events after about 1 week. The pimples that occur are deeper under the skin and are extremely sore. They can appear in odd places like inside my ears, scalp and private parts. It takes about 1 week for them to settle down and they never "come to a head."

I have to be very careful about vitamin supplements like iron that can be derrived from beef or have a meat base. Vegetable iron supplements are available.

I just happened across this while doing an internet search for pork allergies. I have been dealing with this allergy for 10 years now. It started when I was pregnant with my youngest. Every time I eat pork, pork product or anything that has touched pork within 30 minutes I am miserable. It is like having an extremely bad case of the flu - chills, stomach cramps and lots of time in the restroom. It usually take 2 days before I am back to normal. I do not have a problem with any other meats - beef, venision, etc just the pork.

Dining out has become almost impossible. There are a few places near us that we frequent and they are kind enough to make considerations but there is always the chance of getting sick.

I am currently looking for a doctor in my area that will look at this as an allergy and not "acid reflux" as many of the doctors already have. If anyone knows of a good allergy specialist in the Denver/Aurora area I am open to suggestions and would greatly appreciate them.

Thank you! Denyse
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I am allergic to pork aswell, I actually have never become swollen or inflamed, but I get a killer migraine from any pork substance, so I stay clear away from pork. A lot of people Ive told say "you cant be allergic to pork", but you really can.

i have been allergic to pork, lamb and beef all my life - if first got ill eating it when weaning .. i spent my early years with tests and exclusion diets, the dr. told my mum it could not possibly be caused by meat!! my mum excluded meat and i got better.. i have not eaten meat since i was 2. there are still alot of drs who dont believe you when you say you are allergic to meat. i used to get very sleepy after eating meat and my temp would rise before throwing up voilently about 8 hours later- once i had been sick i was back to normal - all the time i was being fed meat i was aneamic and had low levels of B12 once i stoped the deficiency resolved. 4 years ago when i went for surgery i was told the allergy need not be noted as it was unimportant!! i tried to explain but the surgeon and aneathistist but they were not listening .... they gave me gelifusin in theater and i had anaphalaxis - then they had to believe me!!

I've know that I've been allergic to pork since I was 3. My Mom had to test me to see what foods I was allergic to! I basically break out with excema. So many people have told me that there is no such thing as pork allergies; but I trust my Mom and because of her, have avoided it all my life. Now that I'm older, I can eat it; but not in excess. I still do not care for most types of pork.

Just for the record, I have the exact same reactions as many have documented. Nichole, what you described is exactly what I have. Upon eating beef:

0-3 hours - no symptoms at all.
4-5 hours - indigestion sets in, feels like the food does not 'go down'.
6-7 hours - hives and diarrhea set in, usually starting around my waist and shoulders. Sometimes my palms itch. I immediately take 1 benedryl and drink two glasses of water to help flush allergens out. The trick is that as soon as you notice that first hive - and you will know - take a benedryl IMMEDIATELY. If you wait, the hives will grow far worse. Sometimes I get the shakes and anxiety.

8 hours - Hives usually slow down, because of the benedryl. If hives continue to grow, I will take a second Benedryl.
10 hours on - usually I am 'cleaned out' and tired. Hives usually go down.

Next day, I am usually cleared of hives, but I will take a claritin for the next few days to help ensure that they do not re-occur. So far, this has worked well.

Other notes: Beef allergies are not always indicated by a skin test - i had no reaction. Insist on an immunoglobulin (blood) test.

I am now developing signs that I am getting allergic to pork.

My S.o. stopped eating meat at age nine. She only ate kosher ( non rennet ) cheeses. She now gets severe stomache pain and nausea after any exposure to meat protein. Even the small amount of grease from cross contamination is sufficient for 2 days of pain including some vomitin. She always ate eggs and vegetarian type cheeses. At this point, we have to limit food to that we prepare at home. We only eat cheeses from dairies that don't use rennet. We can't risk going out except to a 100% vegetarian restaurant. We know of only 3 in 50 miles. She became "allergic" by cutting off all meat many years ago. I don't think there are any good solutions but maybe now there are allergy treatments? If anyone has done this to at least minimize the risks it would be good to hear.

Does anyone experience an extreme headache after eating pork? It usually takes about 2 hours to begin. One time (which was the last draw) it hurt so bad, it caused nausea. I could not stand up, nor could I tolerate noise or light. I can eat pizza with bits of pork and bacon bits, but a sausage, sausage patty, etc. is out of the question. That night I thought I was going to die. My professor made me aware that there is an allergy to the stuff. I always start off with a severe headache that medicine doesn't cure, and it last for three days.

my son is 15 and about 3 mo ago we found out he is allergic to beef , now this gets complicated for school lunches! he is not a cold food eater so he just refuses to take a lunch on the days he cant eat there, the school said they would let him warm up 1 lunch a week. lately its been like 3 or 4 days a week he cant eat there. Is there a program that accomodates allergies and kids for school lunches? we already get the free/ reduced lunches, we just can afford to do this on a constant basis. anyone have any ideas pleas feel free to e-mail me we live in illinois i dont know if that makes a difference or not ? my e-mail is nikkik74 [at] yahoo.com... please any information is greating appreciated and helpfull, and i look forward to hearing from anyone who can provide me with a little insite.. thanks ...nikki

Hi all,
I also have the same reaction to pork that many of you are describing. It's a true allergic reaction. To those of you reading this STOP EATING ALL MEAT! You can actually die from allergic reactions. They should be taken very seriously. It's quite easy to live a vegetarian lifestyle. There's lots of great meatless alternatives out there and you can easily get just as much protein and actually lots less calories and fat than with eating meat. (Foreign travel is very difficult though...)

I do have issues with restaurants. They will post things as "vegetarian" on their menus. And after a night of extreme vomiting I'll call the restaurant and speak to the manager and discover, that yes, there was chicken stock in something or something like that. You just have to keep asking the waiter and the manager and explain that you are a vegetarian and have an extreme allergic reaction to all meat or to things that touch where meat is prepared. I recently had a horrible reaction after dropping my guard and trusting the "vegetarian" menu at a restaurant.

It's tough because people do not respect the vegetarian lifestyle. (Which is unfair.) Unless you are prepared to kill these animals yourself and look into their eyes as they die, perhaps you shouldn't be eating them, right? And plus it might kill you to do so. So one meat allergy follows another and my guess is that a biochemist or allergist could point out that if you're allergic to pork, chances are all mammals will cause some reaction. And you can live healthier and guilt-free as a vegetarian if you love animals and pets as well.

Read labels for gelatin, lard and meat additives, always order black beans at a Mexican restaurant, check cheese for vegetarian rennet, kosher or macrobial rennet as opposed to animal rennet. (Some cheese is made by adding enzymes from the linings of animal stomachs. If you're allergic to mammals, chances are the animal rennet in cheese might cause a reaction.)

So try being a vegetarian if you have one meat allergy, you might find your health to be greatly improved!