{"id":157,"date":"2007-08-30T18:10:46","date_gmt":"2007-08-30T18:10:46","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2012-06-15T16:27:14","modified_gmt":"2012-06-15T20:27:14","slug":"whats-wrong-my-body-allergy-question","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.allergy-details.com\/allergy-c\/whats-wrong-my-body-allergy-question\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s Wrong With My Body Allergy Question"},"content":{"rendered":"

Natacha<\/strong> asks:<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Hi Doug,<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

For the last year I have been going back and forwards to my doctors regarding symptoms of constant sneezing<\/strong>, weight loss<\/strong>, no appetite<\/strong> and generally feeling down<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

I was tested on two on occasions for celiac<\/a>, an allergy<\/a> to wheat<\/a> which my nan also suffers from. The results both came back negative.<\/p>\n

I have since realized I sneeze immediately after drinking beer<\/strong> which can go on for hours and causes me to feel as if I haven’t slept in days<\/strong>, even though I get more than 6-7 hours. I then picked up that I was always sneezing after I drank beer<\/a> and wine<\/a>, when I drunk it. It was then I was told by a member of my family that it could possibly be the yeast and that is how I came across Yeast Allergy on the site, the problem is the allergy to yeast<\/a> has bought up a link to again lactose intolerance, which I have explained I was tested for and nothing was found.<\/p>\n

My point is I know there something is wrong and I was the one who requested a second test from my doctor as when I looked up lactose intolerance on the internet, most of the symptoms were just like the one’s I have now.<\/p>\n

I was also tested for iron and folic which were both negative.<\/p>\n

I am at my wits end as it is ruining my life. It may sound extreme but at 23 years old I shouldn’t be living like this.<\/p>\n

I would be so appreciated for any advice that you can give me as I know there is something not right and am sick of being told to just cut out wheat and yeast but if nothing is found in 2 tests that have been for the same reason, then can I be blamed for fighting?<\/p>\n

Any advice will be highly appreciated. Many Thanks. Natasha<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Doug’s Allergy Answer…<\/h2>\n

<\/p>\n

Note:<\/b> This is my opinion and is not to be taken as qualified medical advice.<\/p>\n

Hi Natacha,<\/p>\n

Thank-you for your question. It is a great question, because it is so typical of what many people have to put up with when they have a health problem that does not suit the sort of disease doctors like to look for.<\/p>\n

You are right, at 23 years of age, you should not be ill. Actually, I know a lot of 75 year olds who are healthier than I was at 20. There is hope though, I do think the information below will help you a lot.<\/p>\n

Keep in mind as you read this that there may be more than one factor at play here. For example, most people with allergies have more than one, so if there is evidence of one allergy, it is definitely worth searching for others.<\/p>\n

Let’s start with yeast, because that looks like the most obvious. If you have any kind of symptom (in this case, sneezing) that you can directly associate with exposure to a particular substance (in this case yeast), you can pretty safely assume that you have some sort of allergy (or reaction) to that substance.<\/p>\n

The solution is simple, but not necessarily easy: avoid that substance.<\/p>\n

There is a chance that if you give your body a rest from the allergen, that you will loose your sensitivity to it. So avoid all yeast for at least three months. Sorry, no beer<\/a> or wine<\/a>! Do not despair, you are pretty safe with pure spirits such as gin and vodka.<\/p>\n

Avoiding bread<\/a> will probably be your biggest challenge. My solution to this for years was to simply pack lunches that were more typical of dinner – stew, rice and some sort of sauce etc.<\/p>\n

If you crave the foods you are eliminating, that is a big clue that those foods are causing you trouble. So if you crave a slice of bread or anything and everything with sugar in it, just tell yourself “good, I have some information here”. Don’t give in to the craving though. This requires discipline – I know, believe me I know – but it gets easer with time. If you can beat the sugar cravings for a week, you can beet them for a month, and by the end of a month, you won’t have them anymore.<\/p>\n

As for lactose intolerance, this is very common. A lot of people can not digest milk<\/a>. There is some medical interest in this, since you can buy pills for it, but they are over the counter, so I guess doctors don’t get too excited when they can’t write a prescription (please excuse my cynicism, not all<\/em> doctors are quite this bad).<\/p>\n

Start off by avoiding milk products completely. If the symptoms go away when you eliminate milk products, and return when you reintroduce them, you can be pretty sure dairy is a problem. You might find some $cheese$ is OK, yogurt may also be OK. Butter is probably also OK. But do cut out these foods completely at first (for at least a month).<\/p>\n

I asked Frances Cheung<\/a><\/b> what she thought of your question. Here is her response:<\/p>\n

Most medical doctors are inclined to treat symptoms and not causes and most don’t even link the importance between diet and well-being, which is so very unfortunate. Just look at what hospitals feed patients!<\/p>\n

What kind of test did you have? Most likely it was a test for immediate allergies, in which case wheat would likely not show up, since it is often a hidden (delayed onset) food allergy.<\/p>\n

Also, if you do indeed have lactose intolerance, it does not trigger the body’s auto-immune response, since it would be an intolerance and not an allergy, and therefore would not show up on tests. You may however, be allergic to milk\/milk products, in which case that would trigger an auto-immune response and show up on a delayed onset food allergy test.<\/p>\n

It’s important that you listen to her body’s intuition and if you feel you have a wheat and\/or lactose allergy or intolerance, then eliminate it from your diet and notice how you feel. I would recommend eliminating for at least 3 months, as the symptoms sound quite severe.<\/p>\n

One important thing to note is that wheat is found in so many things, that you really have to pay careful attention to ingredients on food labels and when you eat out. There are also foods that belong to the same grass family, poaceae, that may trigger allergic reactions.<\/p>\n

One other thing I think is important to emphasize is that you should really trust your body. Even if doctors tell you that you are fine, if you are not feeling well, no one knows your body better than you. It’s great that you have taken the step to do your own research.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Candidiasis<\/a> is worth looking in to.<\/p>\n

Mary de Bassecourt at AEHA<\/a> has this to say:<\/p>\n

My info is gleaned from personal experience and information from Dr. Mickelson, Dr. Armstrong, Dr. Drzyzga and various literature.<\/p>\n

For the candidiasis<\/a>, you might like to check out the Candida Support website which has lots of pretty good info and some checklists for self-diagnosis to arm you when you pay a medical visit.<\/p>\n

You also might like to consider seeking out a doctor of environmental medicine, if there is one within reasonable distance. They might be willing to get you tested for gluten<\/a> sensitivity\/celiac<\/a> disease through a stool test, which Dr. Armstrong (doctor of environmental medicine) has said is much more accurate.<\/p>\n

I had a blood test which was inconclusive, and our doctors have all said it can be inconclusive. Our doctors and literature tell me that if a biopsy is taken of a healthy section of the intestine, it will show nothing – the random selection may not be taken from the affected section, giving you a false result which leads the patient to believe that they are not celiac and further damage will be done to the intestine if they continue to eat WROB (wheat, rye, oats and barley).<\/p>\n

You could also order the test yourself. Dr. Armstrong recommends EnteroLabs (enterolab.com), and the full panel if you can afford it, which will reveal the full picture.<\/p>\n

Unfortunately, most people have travelled this frustrating route before they have found out the problem and how to deal with it. Sadly, my old GP said about 6 years ago that candidiasis was not a recognized medical condition, and that ended our discussion. For gluten-sensitivity, biopsy is still conventional medicine’s “gold standard” for diagnosis, although it is hit and miss.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

I hope this helps!<\/p>\n

Comments welcome if anyone has further advice or for elaboration.<\/p>\n

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