Help me think of the safest foods for this allergy issue....

[Ann.without.an.e]

I have been struggling and the healthier I eat, the worse it gets. I am a vegetarian and when I originally cut out meat it stopped my wheezing problem altogether.  My wheezing is still gone - yay!  But I have been battling eczema all around my lips and sores on my tongue for months.  It comes and goes for periods of time but it seems to have planted itself here permanently and just has bad days and worse days.  I am eating tons of freshies right not.  I don't even eat much fruit in the winter but I have been eating peaches, watermelon, cantaloupe, tomatoes, etc. I want to find out if it is food related because it is painful and embarrassing.  I was vegan for a while but then introduced eggs again when I started WW.  I just can't quite nail this problem down.  I am seriously thinking about eating a plain baked potato three times a day with some dairy free, soy free butter and seeing if that stops it.  Is this sensible?  What are some other super safe foods?  Maybe green beans?  I just want to cut back to almost nothing so I can feel sure if it is or isn't food related.  Thanks for letting me bounce this off ya'll.  Please don't quote as I will probably delete this.  

 

ETA - I went through a skin prick test and nothing.  I did the holistic IGG test through my doctor and nothing.

[itsheresomewhere]

Melons, strawberries and bananas can be a cause to some. Tomatoes could also be the problem. 

Any chance you are eating a lot of chick peas? I know someone who had mouth sores and nothing on allergy testing showed so she tried eliminating an item every two weeks.  Hers starting getting better when she eliminated chick peas.

[Junie]

Are you allergic to any trees?  If so you should look up Oral Allergy Syndrome.

Some people who are allergic to trees are also allergic to specific fresh fruits.

[AmandaVT]

Have you been eating pineapple? That always gives me canker sores. I can eat it cooked, no problem, but fresh pineapple kills me!

[Ann.without.an.e]

2 hours ago, itsheresomewhere said:

Melons, strawberries and bananas can be a cause to some. Tomatoes could also be the problem. 

Any chance you are eating a lot of chick peas? I know someone who had mouth sores and nothing on allergy testing showed so she tried eliminating an item every two weeks.  Hers starting getting better when she eliminated chick peas.

 

2 hours ago, Junie said:

Are you allergic to any trees?  If so you should look up Oral Allergy Syndrome.

Some people who are allergic to trees are also allergic to specific fresh fruits.

 

2 hours ago, WendyAndMilo said:

If you are normally allergic to certain types of pollens, this might help narrow down the food causes: https://acaai.org/allergies/types/food-allergies/types-food-allergy/oral-allergy-syndrome

 

1 hour ago, Patty Joanna said:

 

Given that the sores are around the mouth in particular, this is the first thing I would check, as well.  If it isn't these (and give it at LEAST a couple of weeks free of those particular culprits), I would start next with tomatoes and strawberries and possible other acidic fruits.  

I hope you find the culprit.  

 

32 minutes ago, AmandaVT said:

Have you been eating pineapple? That always gives me canker sores. I can eat it cooked, no problem, but fresh pineapple kills me!

 

 

I have no environmental allergies that I know of so no to the trees but I will look up oral allergy syndrome to see what it entails.

I don't eat pineapple because it does something weird to my mouth but I don't think I am allergic. 

I am wondering about melon, peaches, or tomatoes.  I guess I will keep trying this process of elimination.  Thanks for your thoughts.

[Tangerine]

SLS in toothpaste can give some people mouth and lip issues. 

[Tangerine]

2 minutes ago, Attolia said:

 

I don't eat pineapple because it does something weird to my mouth 

Pineapple actually eats you back because of the bromelain, so that can be the feeling. But I have 2 kids who require Benadryl after ingesting pineapple because of the burning from oral allergies. So that’s a thing too. 

[itsheresomewhere]

A dear friend’s teen has oral allergy syndrome.  He can eat most things as long as they are cook  but very few things raw. 

[J-rap]

You might be overdoing it with fruit right now -- which can be acidic, and cause allergy-type symptoms.  I like your idea of eating potatoes (or white rice) for a few days (I've never heard of someone allergic to a potato!) to see if you notice a difference, along with overly cooked veggies.  My dd has oral allergy syndrome, and lots of raw or barely cooked veggies affect her, but cook it hard and she's fine.  Blueberries and apples are generally safe for her, but melons and other fresh fruit are not.  Probably oatmeal is fine too, for breakfast.

Can you eat cheese?  Cheese would be a nice thing to add in during your trial.  It is a little more filling and adds more flavor.

[Ann.without.an.e]

2 hours ago, J-rap said:

 

Can you eat cheese?  Cheese would be a nice thing to add in during your trial.  It is a little more filling and adds more flavor.

 

 

I am dairy free.  That is what makes this so hard - I am already gluten free, dairy free, meat free ? 

[Ann.without.an.e]

Thank you all for your thoughts.  I think I might just eat potatoes and rice for a a few days and see if it calms down. Thank you for not thinking I am crazy for thinking it might be food. It just seems logical to me but someone in my life suggested I was crazy for that thought. 

[mumto2]

I am guessing tomato.  So when you start adding back in take particular care to isolate them.  Hugs!

[Ann.without.an.e]

Do ya'll think that vegan almond milk yogurt is safe?  If it is a non-fruity type like vanilla?  

[Kanin]

Gluten-free, dairy-free, and meat-free, on an elimination diet, is tough! Eczema around the mouth sounds very uncomfortable, too!

My first thought was to go on an anti-inflammation elimination diet, but most of the time when people do that, they eat meat. Hmm. You also need to get protein and fat somehow. I think your rice + potatoes idea is good, since it’s probably a fruit or veggie that’s causing your issues. Can you keep avocado? 

For sure, I would cut out eggs and nightshades (tomatoes, peppers, certain spices), and cutting out most fruits/veggies would give you information the fastest - and if that STILL doesn’t work, you could modify the plan.

I wonder why someone told you it’s crazy that it would be food. Food would be my first thought! What else would cause it, other than some immune thing? There’s got to be some root cause. 

[J-rap]

Also, I wanted to add that my dd at one point got a tiny jar of a prescription cortisone cream for the little patches of eczema on her face.  It took care of it pretty quickly!

[Ann.without.an.e]

So yesterday I ate a vegan almond milk yogurt, two baked potatoes with a little olive oil and Himalayan salt.  I had to go over in WW points to do this ?. I don't care, I have to figure this out.  It is killing me and I've put up with it for far too long.  It looks bad today but a different kind of bad - a crust over, flake, healing sort of bad.  I am willing to give this longer.  And, weird thing, I woke up 4 pounds lighter this morning than yesterday morning even though I totally had to bust on WW points to eat yesterday.  I have always wondered if I tend to hold weight because of food intolerance because I eat so darn healthy and I eat so little. This makes me wonder even more.  

Thanks for letting me bounce all of this off of ya'll.  

[Spryte]

My DS has OAS and can eat very few uncooked veg or fruit.

 

He can have apples, grapes, and strawberries, and sometimes lettuce.  That’s it.

 

My mom is similar and when I wasgrowing up could only eat some lettuces raw.

 

you might cut out the fresh stuff, for a trial

[Ann.without.an.e]

51 minutes ago, Danae said:

I used to get horrible red patches around my lips. I thought it was just really bad chapped lips, but various lip balms did nothing for it. My dentist noticed, and said it was a fungal infection. She gave me a prescription cream that cleared it right up. You might want to look into that, if the elimination diet doesn't help.

 

But if it does clear up with elimination then I can assume it isn't fungal, right? I guess I never considered that it would be fungal and that is a whole different direction ?

[Ann.without.an.e]

42 minutes ago, Spryte said:

My DS has OAS and can eat very few uncooked veg or fruit.

 

He can have apples, grapes, and strawberries, and sometimes lettuce.  That’s it.

 

My mom is similar and when I wasgrowing up could only eat some lettuces raw.

 

you might cut out the fresh stuff, for a trial

 

 

I definitely think I might need to do this.  I thought about adding in cooked fruits/veggies first and saving raw for last? I feel like the more raw I eat, the worse it is ?‍♀️

[Kanin]

1 hour ago, Attolia said:

So yesterday I ate a vegan almond milk yogurt, two baked potatoes with a little olive oil and Himalayan salt.  I had to go over in WW points to do this ?. I don't care, I have to figure this out.  It is killing me and I've put up with it for far too long.  It looks bad today but a different kind of bad - a crust over, flake, healing sort of bad.  I am willing to give this longer.  And, weird thing, I woke up 4 pounds lighter this morning than yesterday morning even though I totally had to bust on WW points to eat yesterday.  I have always wondered if I tend to hold weight because of food intolerance because I eat so darn healthy and I eat so little. This makes me wonder even more.  

Thanks for letting me bounce all of this off of ya'll.  

Good for you! How is it today?

Also, with a sample case of 1, I think food sensitivities can definitely make you gain weight. My DH lost about 20 pounds when he stopped eating dairy and eggs. He can have dairy now without too much discomfort, but eggs still make him sick for a week. 

A friend of mine loves roasted sweet potatoes topped with sliced avocado and lime juice. It sounds weird, but it’s really delicious!

[Ann.without.an.e]

11 minutes ago, Mainer said:

Good for you! How is it today?

Also, with a sample case of 1, I think food sensitivities can definitely make you gain weight. My DH lost about 20 pounds when he stopped eating dairy and eggs. He can have dairy now without too much discomfort, but eggs still make him sick for a week. 

A friend of mine loves roasted sweet potatoes topped with sliced avocado and lime juice. It sounds weird, but it’s really delicious!

 

I just posted this afternoon so .... bad today but a different kind of bad - a crust over, flake, healing sort of bad.

I have been eating rice today but thank you for reminding me about sweet potatoes.  I bet a bake sweet potato would be safe? ❤️ 

[kbutton]

On 7/24/2018 at 10:15 AM, Mainer said:

For sure, I would cut out eggs and nightshades (tomatoes, peppers, certain spices), and cutting out most fruits/veggies would give you information the fastest - and if that STILL doesn’t work, you could modify the plan.

 

POTATOES and eggplant are also nightshades, and while you can be intolerant of some and not others, removing categories and reintroducing might be good. Spices--that is anything made from a bell or hot pepper, including paprika, chili powder, cayenne, nearly any kind of taco seasoning, etc. Many spice mixes also have dehydrated tomatoes. Nightshades are in everything, and potato is in tons of GF products. 

I would not eat anything fresh for a while if more raw stuff makes it worse. That would let you keep more food in your diet for now and would probably be easier to deal with as a first step. 

If you use natural skincare products, you need to check those for food or herbal ingredients that can exacerbate this stuff too. Also, any dietary supplements (including vitamins, shakes, etc.) often are food-derived. Some people have to get really specific supplements, like citrus-free and the like.

[Kanin]

14 minutes ago, kbutton said:

POTATOES and eggplant are also nightshades, and while you can be intolerant of some and not others, removing categories and reintroducing might be good. Spices--that is anything made from a bell or hot pepper, including paprika, chili powder, cayenne, nearly any kind of taco seasoning, etc. Many spice mixes also have dehydrated tomatoes. Nightshades are in everything, and potato is in tons of GF products. 

I would not eat anything fresh for a while if more raw stuff makes it worse. That would let you keep more food in your diet for now and would probably be easier to deal with as a first step. 

If you use natural skincare products, you need to check those for food or herbal ingredients that can exacerbate this stuff too. Also, any dietary supplements (including vitamins, shakes, etc.) often are food-derived. Some people have to get really specific supplements, like citrus-free and the like.

Oh wow, I completely forgot that potatoes are nightshades! Duh!  My brain is mush from getting ready to move. Thank you for the reminder!

So... maybe remove white potatoes for a few days, and switch to sweet potatoes? They’re not actually nightshades. Then again, if your mouth heals even with white potatoes, that would be great since they’re so useful when you’re gluten free. 

My DH has an anaphylactic (spelling?) reaction to white potatoes, so I tend to forget they even exist for “normal people.” ? 

 

 

[Ann.without.an.e]

43 minutes ago, Mainer said:

Oh wow, I completely forgot that potatoes are nightshades! Duh!  My brain is mush from getting ready to move. Thank you for the reminder!

So... maybe remove white potatoes for a few days, and switch to sweet potatoes? They’re not actually nightshades. Then again, if your mouth heals even with white potatoes, that would be great since they’re so useful when you’re gluten free. 

My DH has an anaphylactic (spelling?) reaction to white potatoes, so I tend to forget they even exist for “normal people.” ? 

 

 

 

 

Yea, I know they are but I am desperately hoping they aren't an issue. ?

[mominco]

Someone mentioned toothpaste,do change that and see.GL I hope you can figure this out.

[kbutton]

3 hours ago, Mainer said:

My DH has an anaphylactic (spelling?) reaction to white potatoes, so I tend to forget they even exist for “normal people.” ? 

 

I kind of realized later my caps might have been construed as a rebuke, but I really meant them as attention getting. I am glad you don't seem overly bothered. Thanks!

I totally get the bolded, lol! I forget entire food groups as well either due to allergies or to people in my family not liking something (though 2 are adventurous eaters).

[katilac]

Do you use lip balm or anything else on your lips? My dd got the ring around her mouth and it turned out to be a reaction to lip balm, with beeswax being the primary problem ingredient. It got really bad before she figured out what it was, and took a good while to heal completely. She accidentally used an old lip balm the other day and it came back immediately, but is healing well a few days later because she didn't continue to use it like she did the first time before figuring it out. 

[Kanin]

2 hours ago, kbutton said:

I kind of realized later my caps might have been construed as a rebuke, but I really meant them as attention getting. I am glad you don't seem overly bothered. Thanks!

I totally get the bolded, lol! I forget entire food groups as well either due to allergies or to people in my family not liking something (though 2 are adventurous eaters).

Haha, of course not offended ? 

[Ann.without.an.e]

1 hour ago, katilac said:

Do you use lip balm or anything else on your lips? My dd got the ring around her mouth and it turned out to be a reaction to lip balm, with beeswax being the primary problem ingredient. It got really bad before she figured out what it was, and took a good while to heal completely. She accidentally used an old lip balm the other day and it came back immediately, but is healing well a few days later because she didn't continue to use it like she did the first time before figuring it out. 

 

 

Ok, I didn't want to get into that much detail but here goes...I had this problem before and I thought I had clearly narrowed it down to a propolis (beeswax)/carnuba wax issue (cross reacts with each other).  I eliminated these things - anything with carnuba wax, beeswax, etc. and my problems resolved. I only had a few flare ups but I could clearly see that I had accidentally gotten carnuba wax.  For example, DS asked me to try this little candy thing he had and I popped it in my mouth, reacted, read the packaging and saw carnuba wax.  Then recently I am reacting again but can't see that I have had propolis or carnuba wax anywhere?  I am so confused by it all.

[Ann.without.an.e]

On 7/23/2018 at 8:18 PM, Tangerine said:

SLS in toothpaste can give some people mouth and lip issues. 

 

5 hours ago, mominco said:

Someone mentioned toothpaste,do change that and see.GL I hope you can figure this out.

 

 

I use a natural SLS, fluoride free toothpaste.  I haven't changed brands?

[Kanin]

Oh man! Have you noticed that a lot of fruits and veggies feel waxy? I bought a bag of limes the other day, and there was a sticker on the bag that said the limes were coated with some kind of wax. Maybe you’re reacting to wax on produce, but not on potatoes since nobody tries to make potatoes look fancy!

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/04/why-fruit-has-a-fake-wax-coating/524619/

Wouldn’t that be a wild reason? You might have to peel all your produce from now on!

[kbutton]

1 minute ago, Mainer said:

Oh man! Have you noticed that a lot of fruits and veggies feel waxy? I bought a bag of limes the other day, and there was a sticker on the bag that said the limes were coated with some kind of wax. Maybe you’re reacting to wax on produce, but not on potatoes since nobody tries to make potatoes look fancy!

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/04/why-fruit-has-a-fake-wax-coating/524619/

Wouldn’t that be a wild reason? You might have to peel all your produce from now on!

Excellent thought. 

OP, if you take antihistamines faithfully, does your skin improve? Just thinking that if it's allergy-related, antihistamines ought to help. Not that you should keep eating things that are a problem, but maybe it would be good to confirm before you remove a ton more stuff.

[Ann.without.an.e]

14 minutes ago, Mainer said:

Oh man! Have you noticed that a lot of fruits and veggies feel waxy? I bought a bag of limes the other day, and there was a sticker on the bag that said the limes were coated with some kind of wax. Maybe you’re reacting to wax on produce, but not on potatoes since nobody tries to make potatoes look fancy!

https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2017/04/why-fruit-has-a-fake-wax-coating/524619/

Wouldn’t that be a wild reason? You might have to peel all your produce from now on!

 

That makes sense except I can't think of any produce I have had with a wax?  Most of what we are eating now is ether homegrown (large garden) or from a local fruit/veggie stand. 

I need to think on this more though.  Thanks for the thought.

5 minutes ago, kbutton said:

Excellent thought. 

OP, if you take antihistamines faithfully, does your skin improve? Just thinking that if it's allergy-related, antihistamines ought to help. Not that you should keep eating things that are a problem, but maybe it would be good to confirm before you remove a ton more stuff.

 

I just thought of that today.  When I had this issue before antihistamines would help tremendously.  I just took Claritin an hour ago (great minds think alike.  I may have taken Benadryl before though?  In general, antihistamines don't settle well with me so I never think of them first and I rarely resort to them.  I usually wait until I am desperate.  ?

[Ann.without.an.e]

nm, let me think on this haha

[Kanin]

Hmm... maybe the wax is hiding somewhere. There’s a lot we don’t know about what is in/on our food, or in products we use. Or, perhaps, you’re really sensitive to small amounts now.

Or it could just be something else! So hard to figure out stuff like this.

[itsheresomewhere]

Any chance you are cooking with coconut oil? That can cause sores and flaking in some people.  I am good friends with one of those.