My Allergies and Intolerances

Why do I make my own shampoo and stuff?

What is an allergy?  

An allergy is an IgE mediated reaction to a substance.

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allergy - NOTE - While Wikipedia is NOT an authoritative resource, these articles are mostly ok and are a good place to START gathering information.  Please do not depend on wikipedia for complete or scholarly information.
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antibody

What is an intolerance?  

A reaction that does not involve IgE, but that can resemble an allergic reaction.

1. http://www.webmd.com/allergies/foods-allergy-intolerance
2. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/food-allergy/AN01109

What is the difference?  

The biochemical mechanism by which the reaction occurs.  The terms used by medical professionals when talking about the reactions.

To most people - not a darn thing!  

My Allergies and Intolerances:

I have both allergies and intolerances.  My intolerances (like the one to wheat) can kill me.  So could my allergies.  Both types of reaction can cause anaphylaxis - which is throat swelling, itching, not being able to breathe for me.  THERE ARE LOTS OF OTHER WAYS THAT ANAPHYLAXIS CAN SHOW UP.  (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anaphylaxis)

MEDICAL Allergies & Sensitivities:
Substance	Reaction
Ambien	Cannot remember the 48 hours after taking it.  Lost time.
Augmentin	Bloody Diarrhea, massive, explosive, dehydrates me quickly
Band aid adhesive, tape adhesive	Welts and itching
Codeine (Pain Killer)	Makes Extremely Dizzy and have Vertigo – lasts 2 days.
Flexeril (Muscle Relaxer)	Hallucinate
Hydrochlorothiazide	Severe hallucinations for 36-72 hours
Imatrex Injection and Nasal Spray	Turns migraine into blinding migraine and leaves head feeling bruised.  Feels like red ants stinging brain.
Lisinopril	Twitching eye and twitching muscles, extreme mental confusion
Neomycin (antibiotic) – allergy test positive	Hives
Omnicef 300 mg 2x per day (generic cefdinir)	Took generic.  After 72 hours was extremely dizzy, had migraine, and felt like floor was tilting under my feet.
Thimersol (Mercury preservative) – allergy test positive	Hives
Tizanidine (generic for zanaflex) (Muscle Relaxer)	Hallucinations, Extreme Sweating, Gland Infections?
Topomax (25 mg)	48 hours after first dose (i.e., after taking 2 doses) – extremely dizzy (could not stand up for more than 5 minutes at a time), hands and feet were numb to the touch and tingled, slept for over 16 hours of the day.  Stopped taking it.
Torodol (Pain Killer)	Obsessive-Compulsive and Nightmares
Tussionex (Hydrocodone cough syrup)	Hives, extreme sleepiness, inability to think
Triclosan (Antibacterial agent in soaps, etc) – allergy test positive	Hives
Verapamil	Causes very high blood pressure (200/150) after taking for 4 weeks.  Blood pressure returned to normal 2 weeks after last dose.
Wygesic (Pain Killer)	Paranoid

Food And Environmental Allergies/Intolerances
Agave, Stevia, Truvia, Purvia	Blinding migraine for 72 hours, starts within 5 minutes of consumption, burning mouth
Air Fresheners and Perfumes	Asthma
All Wines	Migraine
Anise	hives
Apples	Nausea, itching, headache, achy all over
Artificial Grape Flavoring	Anaphylaxis
Bacardi Rum	Anaphylaxis
Balsamic Vinegar	Migraine, profuse vomiting
Bananas	Blisters in mouth, “burns” on skin
Bay Leaves	Nausea, headache, itching
Cantaloupe	Migraine, Vomiting
Carob	Severe, blinding migraine – lasts 36 hours
Catnip	Hives
Cats	Asthma and Itchy skin, chronic bronchitis when exposed over several days
Chemical Sugars	Migraine, Diarrhea
Chemicals and Cleaners	Asthma, Migraines, Hives
Coconut	Blisters in mouth, burning mouth, “burns” on skin
Corn	Hives, Migraines
Crab meat	Migraine 50% of the time, the other 50% am ok
Dust Mites	Allergies
Environmental – typical grasses, pollens, molds	Allergies
Ether and Ether type solvents (organic chemistry lab stuff)	Severe asthma attack
Fennel	Instant migraine
Geranium Oil	Hives
Gums (Locust bean gum, Xanthum gum, carob bean gum, etc.)	Migraine.  Increase blood pressure
Imitation Crab Meat	Contains wheat = anaphylaxis
Lavender	Eyes swell shut, wheezing, hives
Lotions	Hives
Magnesium - 250 mg capsule 1 x per day	Raised blood pressure 20-30+ points
Maple Syrup	Nausea, Headache
Millet	Instant Migraine
MSG	Severe Migraine
Nitrates, Nitrites	Migraine
Processed cocoa	Intolerance = gut disturbance and headache, itchiness
Purple and dark grapes	Migraines (although can eat them if they are peeled)
Purple Grapes	Migraine
Rice	Migraine, itching on legs and arms
Shrimp	Mild Anaphylaxis OR no reaction other than mild nausea
Sodium Bisulfite	Blinding Migraine
Soy (more than about a tablespoon)	Gastrointestinal upset, including Nausea and Diarrhea
Strawberries	Nausea and Diarrhea, hives
Sugar	Mood Swings & Migraines
Sulfates, Sulfites	Migraine
Tea Tree Oil	Hives
Wheat – blood tests show NOT gluten sensitive and no IgE allergy	Mild Anaphylaxis to severe anaphylaxis

My biggest and baddest ones are Wheat, Coconut and Bananas.  These are the ones I avoid at all costs.  Corn is horrible if I inhale it (cleaners, perfume, etc.), bad if I consume it, and uncomfortable if I touch it.  So, for corn, it really depends on the mode of contact.  The others range from discomfort to medium dangerous.


Now - the question becomes, what is corn in?  Wheat, after all, is one of the big 8 and has to be labeled.  Coconut is easier to avoid, but can still be a little sneaky.

Corn - oh no... Not required to be labeled, and it gets stashed in all sorts of things - from paper products to food packaging to cleaners and degummers for processing equipment.  Corn is ubiquitous.  I am lucky, I do not have to worry about the FOOD given to the chicken or pig or cow before it was butchered.  Some people do.  No - I just have to worry about HOW the animal was processed.  I am lucky, I can eat store bought eggs which are processed with a rinse that often contains corn.  Others are not able to eat anything except the egg as laid by the chicken - AND SOME CANNOT EVEN DO THAT if the chicken was fed corn during its life.

So - What is corn in?

Thanks to some very dedicated people, there is the list of safe and not safe foods/products at http://www.cornallergens.com/list/corn-allergen-list.php.  There is Corn Allergy and Intolerance support group on Facebook.  There is Avoiding Corn on the Delphi Forums - http://forums.delphiforums.com/AvoidingCorn.  These are all places to go for information.

For the SHORT list, I use when shopping, corn is likely to be in:

• Acetic acid, Alcohol, Alpha tocopherol, Artificial flavorings, Artificial sweeteners, Ascorbates, Ascorbic acid, Astaxanthin
• Baking powder, Barley malt, Bleached flour, Blended sugar, Brown sugar
• Calcium citrate, Calcium fumarate, Calcium gluconate, Calcium lactate, Calcium magnesium acetate (CMA), Calcium stearate, Calcium stearoyl lactylate, Caramel and caramel color, Carbonmethylcellulose sodium, Cellulose microcrystalline, Cellulose, methyl, Cellulose, powdered, Cetearyl glucoside, Choline chloride, Citric acid, Citrus cloud emulsion (CCS), Coco glycerides (cocoglycerides), Confectioners sugar, Corn alcohol, corn gluten, Corn extract, Corn flour, Corn oil, corn oil margarine, Corn starch, Corn sweetener, corn sugar, Corn syrup, corn syrup solids, Corn, popcorn, cornmeal, Cornstarch, cornflour, Crosscarmellose sodium, Crystalline dextrose, Crystalline fructose, Cyclodextrin
• DATUM (a dough conditioner), Decyl glucoside, Decyl polyglucose, Dextrin, Dextrose (also found in IV solutions), Dextrose anything (such as monohydrate or anhydrous), d-Gluconic acid, Distilled white vinegar, Drying agent
• Erythorbic acid, Erythritol, Ethanol, Ethocel 20, Ethylcellulose, Ethylene, Ethyl acetate, Ethyl alcohol, Ethyl lactate, Ethyl maltol,
• Fibersol-2, Flavorings, Food starch, Fructose, Fruit juice concentrate, Fumaric acid
• Germ/germ meal, Gluconate, Gluconic acid, Glucono delta-lactone, Gluconolactone, Glucosamine, Glucose, Glucose syrup* (also found in IV solutions), Glutamate, Gluten, Gluten feed/meal, Glycerides, Glycerin*, Glycerol, Golden syrup, Grits

• High fructose corn syrup, Hominy, Hydrolyzed corn, Hydrolyzed corn protein, Hydrolyzed vegetable protein, Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose, Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose pthalate (HPMCP),
• Inositol, Invert syrup or sugar, Iodized salt
• Lactate, Lactic acid*, Lauryl glucoside, Lecithin, Linoleic acid, Lysine
• Magnesium fumarate, Maize, Malic acid, Malonic acid, Malt syrup from corn, Malt, malt extract, Maltitol, Maltodextrin, Maltol, Maltose, Mannitol, Methyl gluceth, Methyl glucose, Methyl glucoside, Methylcellulose, Microcrystaline cellulose, Modified cellulose gum, Modified corn starch, Modified food starch, Molasses* (corn syrup may be present; know your product), Mono and di glycerides, Monosodium glutamate, MSG
• Natural flavorings*
• Olestra/Olean,
• Polenta, Polydextrose, Polylactic acid (PLA), Polysorbates* (e.g. Polysorbate 80), Polyvinyl acetate, Potassium citrate, Potassium fumarate, Potassium gluconate, Powdered sugar, Pregelatinized starch, Propionic acid, Propylene glycol*, Propylene glycol monostearate*
• Saccharin, Salt (iodized salt), Semolina (unless from wheat), Simethicone, Sodium carboxymethylcellulose, Sodium citrate, Sodium erythorbate, Sodium fumarate, Sodium lactate, Sodium starch glycolate, Sodium stearoyl fumarate, Sorbate, Sorbic acid, Sorbitan, Sorbitan monooleate, Sorbitan tri-oleate, Sorbitol, Sorghum* (not all is bad; the syrup and/or grain CAN be mixed with corn), Starch (any kind that’s not specified), Stearic acid, Stearoyls, Sucrose, Sugar* (not identified as cane or beet)
• Threonine, Tocopherol (vitamin E), Treacle (aka golden syrup), Triethyl citrate
• Unmodified starch
• Vanilla, natural flavoring, Vanilla, pure or extract, Vanillin, Vegetable anything that’s not specific*, Vinegar, distilled white, Vinyl acetate,
• Xanthan gum, Xylitol
• Zea mays, Zein