Ques re: IgA/IgG allergy test

[sahmmie]

I'm really new to this having had no idea I had any food allergies. I recently had a blood allergy test which suggested the following;

Class !V and greater IgA/IgG reactive:

Casein, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, cow's milk, eggs (chicken; yolk and whites) mozzarella cheese, whey, yogurt.

Class III IgA/IgG reactive:

Wheat gluten, Wheat gliadin, Whole wheat, oysters, goat's milk, spelt.

From the little research I've done I assume these are the delayed onset type allergies, right? I'm supposed to go on a rotation diet in which these items are rotated so that they are only consumed every four days. Wouldn't it be better to NOT eat these things at all?

Can anyone point me to some books or websites that will help me to understand all of this?

Any insights or advice will be greatly appreciated!

[True Blue]

It looks to me like you need a gluten free, casein free diet, all the time. Also no eggs and oysters.

[sahmmie]

Thanks. That's what I was thinking. It's interesting that even before I had this test done I intuitively "knew" or had a suspicion about dairy and wheat. I even went on a dairy/wheat free diet for a month. It was the best I've felt in years!
I was surprised about the egg allergy, but again, it's interesting that I hated eggs all of my life and only began eating them a few months ago, mainly because my kids like them and I cook them often for them.

Anyway, it's going to be tough being dairy and wheat free indefinitely.

[Naturopath Mom]

Difficult yes, but it is possible

[tanyalynn]

Originally Posted by sahmmie

Anyway, it's going to be tough being dairy and wheat free indefinitely.

The adjustment is tough, but after that it gets a whole lot easier (else I'd have gone bonkers 3 years ago). In the Sticky, there's a link to the Recipes thread, and almost all the recipes discussed in the forum are gluten and dairy free. I found hanging out here very helpful when we had to cut out gluten and dairy, and really now, at this point, I feel like I've got more food choices than I ever did before because I've tried so many new things (admittedly, fewer convenience foods).

re: food intolerances, it's a different reaction than IgE, usually slower and the symptoms are highly variable from person-to-person. For adults, lots of fatigue and mood issues and general digestive upset are common, it seems, though I know some folks get more specific reactions. I don't know why rotation diets are recommended in some circumstances and not others. I know that *I* would have had issues rotating gluten but I know some kids in the forum have done well rotating foods.

[kjbrown92]

And hopefully if you heal your gut, then you'll eventually get those foods back in (at least that's the theory). My kids have done well rotating some of their lesser reactive foods, but none of those top 4 intolerances (gluten, dairy, soy, and corn). I'd be scared to do that only because those reactions are more than a few days. We've been doing it for a couple of years (milk free off and on 10 years for DS) and it does get easier.

[sahmmie]

Originally Posted by tanyalynn

re: food intolerances, it's a different reaction than IgE, usually slower and the symptoms are highly variable from person-to-person. For adults, lots of fatigue and mood issues and general digestive upset are common, it seems, though I know some folks get more specific reactions. I don't know why rotation diets are recommended in some circumstances and not others. I know that *I* would have had issues rotating gluten but I know some kids in the forum have done well rotating foods.

So, the IgA/IgG test I had show intolerances versus allergies?

Does this tend to be hereditary? I wonder if I should have my kids tested. None of them have digestive issues, so hopefully they are fine.

My symptoms tend to be GI related, but also fatigue and irritability. Maybe this diet will help me. I'm going to start today.

Thanks everyone for your support!

[tanyalynn]

IgE allergies are the kind that are traditionally considered allergies, the kind that kids who have life-threatening peanut or tree nut allergies have. A fair number of allergists don't recognize anything but IgE allergies--which may not be life-threatening, but they have the potential to escalate without notice.

Kids usually seem to have different symptoms than adults, it seems.

For me: anxiety/depression, lots of fatigue, those are the biggies.

For my kids: excessive spit-up and blowout diapers as a baby, weird poop, DD's evening crying as a baby was probably related, DD dropping naps before she was ready, DD's night-wetting after using the potty during the day, for DS it was involved in him getting sick so often though there were other things going on too, DS vomited when he got milk (not cheese, but un-cultured cow's milk), and DS got rashes around his mouth and both kids got red bottoms back when they wore diapers.... so it's not like me.

Neither IgE allergies nor intolerances are strictly hereditary, but I think a tendency toward them is. I mean--there's a reason you have them, and with kids genetically related to you, who grew in you and live in the same environment as you, that's a lot of similarity. It's something to consider, though they wouldn't necessarily be the same foods--but gluten and dairy are just so problematic for so many people that considering those more than, say, the oysters, is reasonable.

[sahmmie]

Thanks Tanyalynn. So far my kids don't seem to have any issues except for occasional dry skin/eczema. So, I think they're probably okay.