Tag Archive for: allergy

I Hate My Food Intolerances

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“I hate my food intolerances!”

If you have said this before, this blog post is for you. I have been living with food intolerances myself for years and let me tell you, it has been a journey to acceptance. My intolerances began after my first pregnancy and it has taken years to figure out my new normal.  I have dealt with all the feelings: anger, frustration, annoyance, sadness, and down right feeling sorry for myself. Even after all this time, there are days that are really hard. And it is OK. So how do you get through it?

The first step is truly identifying what foods affect you. For years I thought my intolerances were from gluten and after eliminating wheat/gluten products I felt better, but not 100% normal. I took a Pinner test and the results were shocking. A staple food in my life was the main culprit to my poor gut health: eggs. This was incredibly difficult to accept. When I eliminated them from my diet, I noticed a world of change and quickly found reasonable substitutes to give my body a chance to heal. The bloating, pain, fatigue and a host of other symptoms have slowly gone away and what is left is… nothing. A lack of symptoms and a feeling of normal that I didn’t think I could feel.

Going forward, I ask a million questions at restaurants, buy new products, and try alternate recipes with the goal of keeping my body symptom free and completely satisfied. Remember folks, there are thousands of foods out there, so there is no need to focus on the few items that you can’t have.  So find out what you are actually intolerant/allergic to and make the adjustments to your pantry so you can be comfortable in your kitchen again. Please feel free to contact us to find out more information on our Pinner tests and set an appointment to start your path down the road to eating with confidence again. MU

Food Allergies

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Prevalence and Severity of Food Allergies Among US Adults – Article Review

A new study was published looking at the prevalence of food allergies among adults in the US. Since most studies are centered around childhood food allergies, this information is greatly welcomed. Food allergies continue to be a relevant topic as they pose a threat to many people’s health and well-being. Adults can either develop food allergies later in life (example: fin fish and shellfish) or continue to react to food allergies from childhood. This study set out to provide comprehensive, national representative estimates of the distribution, severity, and factors associated with adult food allergy in the United States.

Surveys were administered to a sampling of US households, age 18 and above, by NORC at the University of Chicago from 10/9/2015 – 9/18/2016. The primary outcome measures for the study were the prevalence and severity of overall and food specific convincing adult food allergy.  Criteria were set to distinguish between convincing and non-convincing food allergies: severity of reactions and organ systems involved. Statistical analysis was done to compare relative prevalence and other assessed food allergy outcomes by participant characteristics.

Overall 10.8% of US adults were estimated to have 1 or more convincing food allergies, suggesting that at least 12 million adults have adult – onset food allergies and 13 million have experienced 1 or more severe reactions. The data suggests 1 in 10 US adults are food allergic and 1 in 5 adults believe they are food allergic.  The most common allergies seen were: shellfish, peanut, milk, tree nuts, and fin fish. Half of the participants reported a diagnosed allergy and peanuts tended to be the FA with the highest rate of physician diagnoses. A history of severe reactions was more commonly reported by participants with peanut and tree nut allergies. 8.6% of participants reported 1 or more ER visits within the last year. Rates of females with convincing FA were higher than those of males and younger adults (age 30-39 years) were higher than participants 60 years or older. Food allergies continue to be a prevailing topic in health care and as shown in this study, are extremely common in the United States.

To see the study in its entirety visit: https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2720064

MU

Halloween Candy & Food Allergies

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Halloween Candy

 

Having allergies or intolerances can be extremely challenging, especially during the holidays. Daily reminders about the foods you once enjoyed but can no longer have are constant. Dairy, gluten, corn, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, and eggs are found in so many foods these days. Whether you or your children are new to having allergies or have been dealing with them for years, Halloween can be a tricky holiday to traverse.  Many candy companies are wonderful at providing the allergens listed in their ingredients, which makes it possible to find allergen free treats your family can enjoy. Below I have provided a list of candy suitable for each allergy/intolerance:

 

 

Wheat/Gluten

Common ingredients listed are:  wheat flour, wheat, glucose syrup made from wheat, barley, barley syrup, malt, or cross contamination from the manufacturing facility.

 

Safe candies include:

Skittles, Mike and Ike’s, Blow Pop, Almond Joy, Snickers, M&M’s, Reese’s Peanut butter Cups, Milk Duds, Charleston Chews, Dots, Tootsie Pops, Double Bubble, Reese’s Pieces, Laffy Taffy, Caramel Apple Pops, Andes Mints, Sour Patch Kids, Starburst, 3 Muskateers, Lifesavors, Sugar Babies, Tootsie Rolls, Nerds, Butterfingers, Baby Ruth, Jolly Ranchers, Junior Mints, Mounds, Sugar Daddy, Dum Dums. Hershey Bar

 

Corn

While most corn allergies are specific to the protein in corn, some are allergic to other nutrients in corn. There can be traces of corn protein in any corn- derived ingredient.

Common ingredients listed are: corn syrup, corn flour, cornstarch, maltodextrin, cellulose, caramel, vegetable oil, cross contamination from the manufacturing facility.

 

Safe candies include:

Reese’s peanut butter cup, Hershey Bar, Heath Bar, KitKat, Mr Good Bar, Andes Mints

 

 

 

Dairy

Common ingredients include: whey, casein, milkfat, milk, powdered milk, skim milk, lactose, dairy butter, cross contamination from the manufacturing facility.

 

Safe candies include:

Skittles, Mike and Ike’s, Twizzlers, Lifesavers, Starburst, Dots, Double Bubble, Nerds, Jolly Ranchers, Laffy Taffy, Sweet Tarts, Dum Dums, Sour Patch Kids

 

Soy

Common ingredients include: soy lecithin, soy albumin, soy flour, TVP, soy protein, cold pressed soybean oil

 

Safe candies include:

Sweet Tarts, Twizzler’s Pull N Peel , Nerds, Life Savers, Sour Patch Kids, Good and Plenty, Dum Dums

 

Peanuts

Common ingredients include: peanut flour, peanuts, peanut protein hydrosolate, cross contamination from the manufacturing facility

 

Safe Candies include:

Tootsie Pop, Dum Dums, Dots, Andes Mints, Laffy Taffy, Jelly Belly, Milk Duds, Caramel Apple Pops, Skittles, Lifesavers, Tootsie Roll, Mike and Ike’s, Blow Pop, Sugar Babies, Double Bubble, Charleston Chew, Whoppers, Starburst, Nerds, Dots, Kit Kat, Junior Mints, Sweet Tarts, Hershey Bar

 

Tree Nuts

Common Ingredients include: almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, cashews, macadamia nuts, brazil nuts, coconut, pistachio, pecan, marzipan, almond paste, nut oils, nut milks, nut extracts, chestnut, cross contamination from the manufacturing facility.

 

Safe candies include:

Skittles, Tootsie Roll, Butterfinger, Baby Ruth, Jolly Ranchers, Sour Patch Kids, Sugar Daddy, Mike and Ike’s, Blow Pop, Reese’s Peanut butter Cup, M&M’s Plain, Good and Plenty, Junior Mints, KitKat, Twizzlers, Lifesavers, Nerds, Starburst, Milk Duds, Dum Dums, Whoppers, Dots, Reese’s Pieces, Andes Mints, Charleston Chew, Twizzler’s Pull N Peel, Dots, Hershey Bar, Sweet Tarts

 

Eggs

Common ingredients include: egg whites, egg yolks, egg albumin, egg protein, meringue, egg lecithin, cross contamination from the manufacturing facility.

 

Safe candies include:

Skittles, Mike and Ike’s, M&M’s, Dum Dums, Almond Joy, Reese’s Peanut butter Cup, Hershey Bar, KitKat, Twizzlers, Lifesavers, Tootsie Roll, Nerds, Good and Plenty, Blow Pop, Butterfinger, Jolly Ranchers, Starburst, Crunch Bar, Sour Patch Kids, Milk Duds, Andes Mints, Caramel Apple Pops, Dots, Tootsie Pop, Rolo, Twizzler’s Pull N Peel, Reese’s Pieces

 

 

Hoping everyone has a safe and delicious Halloween!

MU