# What are you not allowed to eat (due to any health/medical reason)? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 5, 2015, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343 "2015-07-05T20:41:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/1 "2015-07-05T20:41:04Z")
Just curious as what some Doper food restrictions we have here. What are you not allowed to have (or shouldn’t have), based on there being something about your body that can’t take it? This could be due to any number of reasons, for example: -You being diabetic -Having too high of a blood pressure or cholesterol level -Being lactose intolerant -Being allergic to a food or something in it -Other reasons (ulcers, GERD, things that worsen or bring on any gastrointestinal issues, things that may cause you to fall ill or possibly die) -Any other ailment, disorder, disease, or complication I’m forgetting Nothing for me yet, thankfully, but I have a feeling it’s not too far off… ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/2 "2015-07-05T21:33:36Z")
Grapefruit/grapefruit juice, because it interferes with my cholesterol meds. High carbs, because of diabetes. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/3 "2015-07-05T21:40:30Z")
I used to be lactose intolerant when I was younger. I think it’s mostly gone, though…I like cheese, for instance. But the taste aversion lingers. So it’s not so much that I can’t drink milk or eat ice cream or yogurt–more that the thought is nauseating. ---
**Author:** ![Lanzy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/74df32/32.png) [@Lanzy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lanzy)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/4 "2015-07-05T21:41:05Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Grapefruit/grapefruit juice, because it interferes with my cholesterol meds. > High carbs, because of diabetes. Yeah, this stuff. ---
**Author:** ![zoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zoid/32/336_2.png) [@zoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoid)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/5 "2015-07-05T21:52:24Z")
[QUOTE=Orson Welles] My doctor told me to stop having intimate dinners for four. Unless there are three other people. [/QUOTE] That and apple pie & ice cream is not a suitable dinner. ---
**Author:** ![DinoR](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dinor/32/2821_2.png) [@DinoR](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DinoR)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/6 "2015-07-05T21:56:21Z")
There’s no limitation on the what but very clearly a limitation on when. My body hates food too soon after I wake up and let’s me know. Eating breakfast too soon can leave me feeling ill for a good chunk of the morning. Since I am also by nature a night person, it’s a bad combination for being able to eat the so called “most important meal of the day.” ---
**Author:** ![Telperion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telperion/32/509_2.png) [@Telperion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telperion)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/7 "2015-07-05T21:57:42Z")
> [@zoid](#): > > That and apple pie & ice cream is not a suitable dinner. Waffles and ice cream, on the other hand, is awesome at any time. ---
**Author:** ![Terr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/839c29/32.png) [@Terr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Terr)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/8 "2015-07-05T22:02:00Z")
Carbs. Thank God for peanut butter. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 10:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/9 "2015-07-05T22:03:23Z")
Low sodium diet for BP, (I’m salt reactive!) I don’t eat much bread, as a result. I try to eat a zero sodium lunch because it empowers me to have Asian food, (home made, lower sodium!) for dinner. No salted nuts, very little bacon, no sausages or cold cuts. No tinned soup, broth, beans, most highly processed foods. All incredibly sodium rich. Everything from scratch instead. It’s not that I can’t ever have it. Only that I have to do so in a very measured way. ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/10 "2015-07-05T22:11:26Z")
> [@Rick\_Kitchen](#): > > Grapefruit/grapefruit juice, because it interferes with my cholesterol meds. > High carbs, because of diabetes. > [@Lanzy](#): > > Yeah, this stuff. Yeah, this stuff. \*I don’t eat grapefruit anyway, so no worries there. Being careful around carbs is a little more of a hassle. ---
**Author:** ![pohjonen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pohjonen/32/423_2.png) [@pohjonen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pohjonen)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/11 "2015-07-05T22:15:19Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > Low sodium diet for BP, (I’m salt reactive!) > > I don’t eat much bread, as a result. I try to eat a zero sodium lunch because it empowers me to have Asian food, (home made, lower sodium!) for dinner. No salted nuts, very little bacon, no sausages or cold cuts. No tinned soup, broth, beans, most highly processed foods. All incredibly sodium rich. Everything from scratch instead. It’s not that I can’t ever have it. Only that I have to do so in a very measured way. A couple of years ago when I was in the hospital I had great fun pointing out that while they wouldn’t let me have any salt for my spinach, they had an IV dripping saline into my veins. The nurse just called me a smart ass. ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/12 "2015-07-05T22:32:26Z")
I am allergic to some commonly used preservative or additive in prepared box meals. Instant mashed potatoes are the worst. My lips and nose go numb and I feel weak and shaky for about two hours. Eggs and bananas I think I have a problem with in the digestive area. I love to each them but I just can’t. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/13 "2015-07-05T23:01:06Z")
I’m allergic to eggs. ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 11:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/14 "2015-07-05T23:16:15Z")
I’m allergic to eggs, tree nuts, and peanuts. This makes dining out kind of a hassle for me. Allergies are a bitch. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/15 "2015-07-05T23:27:21Z")
Not completely off limits, but I have to watch my consumption of beef and other high-iron foods, because of hereditary hemochromatosis. Basically, I don’t eat beef any more unless it’s either _really good_ beef (and a decade in Montana has set my bar pretty high for that), or if someone else is serving it. On a completely separate note, I can’t have any alcohol: Even a single sip is enough to make me feel queasy. I think that one’s an enzyme deficiency. ---
**Author:** ![Lacunae\_Matata](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lacunae\_Matata](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lacunae_Matata)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/16 "2015-07-05T23:29:01Z")
I’m allergic to black pepper. That’s a hell of an ingredient to avoid when dining out, but not too bad when I cook - everyone else can add their own, no worries. Boy 2.0 has developed (or is just now realizing) the same allergy. He may have had it all along, but he eats 95% of his meals from my kitchen, so he hasn’t had as much exposure to recognize the connection. Otherwise, just a mild lactose intolerance - cheese and yogurt are fine, plain old milk gives me some mild gastric problems for a few hours, so I either avoid milk, or use Lactaid, or some other non-cow-derived milk product if I’m jonesing for a bowl of cereal. Tequila makes me try to get into bar fights, which would be bad for my health, but I don’t know whether that counts! ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [July 5, 2015, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/17 "2015-07-05T23:30:51Z")
Allergies/intolerances (not going to go into the nuances here): tomatoes oranges green peas lentils (all varieties) barley peanuts corn (that one is complicated and now under question) Yeah, it kind of sucks. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2015, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/18 "2015-07-06T00:09:10Z")
Caffeine – it triggers my seizures. And there’s so much out there I love with caffeine. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2015, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/19 "2015-07-06T00:25:31Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > because of hereditary hemochromatosis. I didn’t know you had that. I used to work in a genetics lab testing for that and other mutations. I might have helped diagnose you. I know far more about the molecular biology of the disease than I really need to. Anyway, I have no functional pancreas, so I’m supposed to avoid carbs (diabetes) and also fats (can’t make digestive enzymes). I have medication to get around both limitations, thankfully. Otherwise I wouldn’t have much I COULD eat. ---
**Author:** ![kopek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kopek/32/337_2.png) [@kopek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kopek)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2015, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343/20 "2015-07-06T01:27:50Z")
Heart and BP as well as some intestinal issues. Nothing is _forbidden_ but the usual things are restricted. My original doc, long gone now, told me from the start to allow myself one “cheat” a week - one meal where common sense and caution can be put aside. His opinion was that folks did better that way than trying to be super-strict. Do that, according to him, and you will fail – and then fail more – and sooner or later quit trying. Giving yourself a meal off was like a safety valve to keep you on track and motivated. Must have worked; I’m still here. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-you-not-allowed-to-eat-due-to-any-health-medical-reason/724343.md?page=2)