The holidays were an especially busy time this year. Not only were we getting ready for a trip out of state (with a baby), but we noticed our food pantry was infested with Indian Meal Moths and our dishwasher stopped working mid-cycle just as the dishes were really piling up in the kitchen. On top of all of that, I visited the allergist the day before we left.
I met with the same allergist who five years ago told me I wasn’t allergic to peanuts or tree nuts based on skin testing. I’ve eaten them on and off over the years, but within the past year I’ve noticed that I get blisters on my lips, gums and throat that last about a week when I eat them. I decided to do allergy testing again because I didn’t want to mess around with a potential nut allergy. I was really hopeful I could add nuts back into my diet because I’m still nursing and need the extra calories. The allergist didn’t think my symptoms sounded like a true allergic response, but proceeded with skin testing.
I found out that I’m allergic to milk, peanuts, tree nuts, and white potato!
I did have a reaction to soy and corn, but the allergist didn’t think it was big enough to be considered a true IgE allergy. He prescribed an Epi Pen and a nurse trained me how to administer it.
It seems to me that this allergist is pretty conservative, so if he says it’s serious I believe him. It’s unfortunate that I really am allergic to peanuts and tree nuts because there are so many products that I’ll have to be careful to avoid, like nut butters, flours and processed snack bars. I was also really surprised to discover that I am allergic to potato, but now that I think back I realize that potatoes make my hands itch and make my stomach really upset. I always thought it was the starch that was the problem. Regardless, I’m going to do my best to avoid the foods that are problematic for me, so I can start feeling better!
This was the first holiday I stayed away from all the treats I normally looked forward to because they all contained nuts. Fortunately, I was able to indulge by eating some pure maple syrup candy Santas!
I am having a hard time remembering everything I need to avoid because of Celiac and food allergies!
No gluten, dairy, soy, egg, corn, peanuts, tree nuts, potato , fish, or strawberry!
Whew!
Fussy Buns 