I haven’t been in this thread, but I have medically diagnosed allergies. The more dangerous ones have been diagnosed at the time of preventing my death, rather than by scratch tests.
Many people have headaches and/or nausea when exposed to the fake cinnamon/fake cinnamon apple scented candles, room spray and scented pinecones that are so popular in November and December, so I’d put my money on that rather than the red dye.
I seem to be prone to hives. I have chronic hives, but these particular things give me ultra-mega-hives. First, penicillin and any other anti-biotic that’s derived from it.
And I don’t know if it counts as an allergy, although my doctor at the time said it did, but as a kid, when I ate too much of something acidic (like citris fruit, or even just OJ). Or when I drank too much pop.
And finally there was the time when I was about three or four and my mother bought this new kind of fabric softener, and again, I got hives from it. As did my father.
Hives fucking suck.
I’ve never had allergies myself but I had a friend who had a growing allergy problem. He had scheduled an appointment with a specialist who was going to give him a series of tests to determine what he was allergic to. Before he went, he told me he was hoping he would be told he was allergic to cats because he didn’t like his wife’s cat and wanted an excuse to get rid of it.
The first time I saw him after his appointment, I asked him if he was allergic to the cat. He said no. I asked him what he was allergic to. He said he tested positive for everything except cats and bananas. I told him he was going to have a strange diet.
Well for me it is coconuts and milk later in life. I also now cough my head off after I eat chocolate icecream.
The last time I had an allergy test about 3 years ago they gave me the pricks all over my back and the doctor explained that he would be back to see the results. I could feel my back lighting up but it was bearable.
He came in and took one look at me and his eyebrows shot up. He said most of his patients with reactions like i had were on shots.
The funny thing is I think i could pinpoint when it started. Back when I was in great shape and young as a freshman in college I would routinely pet cats dogs etc.
Well that first semester I got real sick - flu like symptoms - and did not actually come home until Thanksgiving. when I got there i could not sleep the first night because I could not catch my breath.
It turns out I was suddenly allergic to our cat who I had petted for years. And also dogs, horses etc you name it.
i wonder if it was my body reacting to being exposed to whatever in school and then it making me sick when I got home?
I’ve never had an allergy test, but I can think of only one element that caused what I would interpret as a allergic reaction. As a kid, i found that if I played with my friends on some (well kept) lawns, my eyes would water and itch, get red, and my face would feel swollen. It wasn’t all lawns, and the reaction would only occur if my face was smooshed into the lawn (which, at that age was de rigueur for playing on a lawn with other kids).
I concluded that there was something on the lawns or some kind of grass or weed that was causing it. I don’t think my parents ever noticed that I was allergic, since I never told them and it never occurred with simple exposure like standing or sitting on the lawn. As an adult, I’ve never had this reaction when playing football in parks and such, so I either grew out of it or I haven’t smooshed my face in the right places.
Is their such a thing as a reverse allergy? In the 90’s I was treated for inflammation and fluid buildup with a steroid (prednisone). I reacted marvelously to the drug (starting at 30 mg per day) and started tapering off, which should have taken a few weeks. It took 5 months! For the last month I was slowly tapering from 5 mg every other day down to 1 mg every other day and my body was protesting every step of the way. As a result, I warn doctors that it would be better to go with non-steroidal treatments if possible. I never want to go through those withdrawal pains again.
It’s not a true allergy (that I am aware of) but I can’t drink anything made with tea in it without getting nauseated to the point of throwing up. Iced tea, hot tea etc. Even smelling it turns my stomach, and if I’ve got a cold or am feeling under the weather the smell can make me barf.
I was diagnosed as a child (not quite 4 years old) as allergic to grass, mold, pollen and advised to stay away from cigarette smoke.
I have discuss my reaction to escalator handrails with various doctors. If not already using, they switch to non-latex gloves for me. They give me the bandages for sensitive skin.
I got a doctor’s reference to a nutritionist for the reaction to pizza and other grain products. This is why I even heard of FODMAPs.
The sensitivity to artifical dyes is something I have mentioned, and it is in my medical record. But I have never had a scratch test for it.
food-allergies … none. and, when i stipulate “none” … implies something akin to “howard-wolowitz”(tv-bbt), and his peanut oil allergy … purportedly, anaphylaxis. as to a sour stomach … personally, i ignore that. drug-allergies … none. seasonal-allergies … none. animal-allergies … none. mold-allergies … dunno’. however … fly me out to east asia … you’d best arrange to include a portable cistern of filtered water. wasn’t always that way … materialized when i reached late 50’s.
people’s biologies/tolerances do change … as do their allergies … at my age, guess i’ve just been lucky. still look forward to next incursion of “phaal-vindaloo”.
I had to look those up, that’s a very interesting theory! My latest manifestation is with a new retinol eye cream that put a red blotch on one eyelid but not the other. I am getting old and want to take better care of my skin but my skin keeps saying “no thanks just leave me alone!”.
My mother started having an allergic reaction to hair dye in late middle age, so I probably have that to look forward to as well.
A banana-only diet was briefly thought to cure celiac disease, long before doctors figured out what that really was.
I have a friend who is unable to eat anything with coconut in it, as in she vomits immediately. This has happened more than once while eating at friends’ houses, or potlucks, and she would ask, “Did that have coconut in it?” and the cook would reply, “No, but it has coconut oil in it, and that’s healthy.” :smack: Not for her, it isn’t!
Same here. In my early 30’s I began having allergic-type reactions to unknown something. ENT/Allergist did the scratch tests which revealed a severe allergy to house dust and mites. Gave myself injections 2-3x weekly for about a year, gradually kind of forgot about both the injections and paying any attention to dust. 40 years ago.
In the meantime, I had some basmati rice last night, and I’m STILL burping it! This has happened before; could it be something in the particular bag, or an additive? Maybe I should rinse the rice before I cook it, something I generally don’t do.
I took what was left in the cooker out into the yard and fed it to the ducks.
I don’t know if it’s a sensitivity or a true allergy, but eating oatmeal or anything containing oats has me in the bathroom within 20-30 minutes. It’s…not fun.
But it’s easier to generally avoid oats. I should probably mention it to my doctor though, so she can decide about allergy testing and if it is a true allergy, make sure it’s in my records in case of a hospitalization.
My dad is one of the very few people I’ve ever known who is full-on allergic to garlic.
Og save me from people who think “natural” or “organic” means “will not trigger my allergies”. My body doesn’t care if those tomatoes are “natural”, “GMO”, “organic”, or anything else - if it’s a tomato my body does its best to rapidly self-destruct.
More and more I just stick to my own cooking.
I met a man allergic to the whole garlic-onions-leeks family.
This was back when arranging dinners and buffets for the corporation I worked for was part of my job. Most of the time cooks/caterers would sigh but would comply because who wants to have to call 911, worry about lawsuits, etc.? Except for one guy - he kept calling me to say “Are you sure he wouldn’t like some onion powder, just a little bit?”, “But the food will be so bland!”, “How about garlic salt, is garlic salt OK?”
No, no, and no. Good god, why are you so determined to make someone ill or worse? Yes, he knows it will be bland, but he prefers bland to a stint in the hospital.
Sorry - I seem to be a bit ranting about food allergies today. I’ll stop now.
I have not been tested, but I have observed that whenever I am in Ohio, my thumbs swell up and itch.
So, my thumbs are allergic to Ohio.
I met a woman once who was allergic to all alliums, all nightshades (potatoes/tomatoes), and all crucifers. Fortunately it wasn’t “put her in the hospital” bad, it was just “cause massive skin problems” severe.
I met her at a bellydance competition, and there was a free middle-eastern food buffet. She pretty much couldn’t eat anything but the dessert.
I have an allergy to peanuts which is 100% stress-related. When I was in grad school and working 60-70 hour weeks at a bank, allergic. Nowadays? Nothing.
My allergist did tell me to never be far from benadryl, though, because weird food allergies like that can go from “that’s odd” to “that’s fatal” with no notice.