The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America has published the results of a new study

I can’t remember not having allergies to foods. My mother says they began immediately, when “normal” formulas with dairy made me ill so I was put on soy. (I hated that soy so much I can still remember the taste and to this day will not even try soy milk or other such products  – YEEYUCKKK!) But  colic, rashes, vomiting can be pretty persuasive for food allergy diagnosis.

I learned early, though, how good dairy tasted.  My mother’s father, who would babysit me, was always convinced he knew better than anyone else. He believed allergies were nonsense and some cheese or milk couldn’t hurt me.  So he’d give me bits of cheese from his sandwiches as I played on the floor nearby.  And I would soon begin to “get sick” – hives, rashes, crying, stomach ache.  All too often, by the time Mom got there from work, the allergic reactions had turned into asthma (although he never admitted to a connection between the foods and the reaction).

It didn’t take long for me to make the connection between being so sick and the foods I craved.  I didn’t understand why everyone else could eat ice cream, but I had to have popsicles or non-dairy sherbet.  Why everyone else at a party could eat pizza, but if I did, I’d be sick all night and likely  for days afterward.

I couldn’t eat oranges! Just the release of the citrus oil from the skin of an orange being cut or peeled 1500 feet away – the opposite end of a large house – would cause sneezing, watery eyes.  And within just a few minutes (despite staying at the other end of the house), I’d have a small rash on my skin and the inside of my mouth would feel like it had been filled with blisters.  Benedryl, here I come.

And those were just the highlights.  It has often felt like it would  be easier to list what I could eat, instead of everything I was allergic to, or had bad reactions to.

But over the years I learned all sorts of ways to cope.

There were the safe foods – no reaction, at least so far.  Reactions are not in a steady-state; they can change slowly, evolve, sometimes suddenly just stop.  And new ones start.

Problematic foods – those which I can have a small amount of, if I am not sick or running any worrying symptoms (like peak flows decreasing, other allergic symptoms causing problems, any infections…).  I can eat oranges now, in small amounts.

And Hell No foods – the ones that have caused severe reactions or anaphylaxis in the past, or that are related to foods that have triggered severe reactions.

I learned to adapt recipes, initially from my mother, then by studying cookbooks and learning how to exchange certain ingredients.  But I also learned how to avoid things.  For a while, oranges were a no-no, so I didn’t even buy them. I could eat peanuts and pecans as a child, but in my 20s I developed severe reactions to peanuts and most tree nuts (but oddly, not almonds that have been blanched.)  I’ve been allergic to peas since childhood, but just a few weeks ago was served some sugar snap peas (I thought they were a different sort of green beans).  No reaction – probably because of the Xolair (but I’ve promised my allergist I will not seek them out).  I learned to read ingredient labels compulsively when I was younger, and am careful about new, processed foods.

Now I’m allergic to most legumes – peas, chickpeas, peanuts, lentils are out.  But I can eat most kinds of beans, which are also legumes. Go figure.

Restaurants are rarely a problem, but they can be a serious one – sometimes chefs or waiters are careless.  And there is nothing like having an anaphylactic reaction to spoil a nice dinner.  Or ruin a promising new relationship.

Food Allergies and the Emotional, Social and Financial Impact

Learning to manage asthma and allergies as a child or an adult