Foods, Allergies, And Overall Health – Raising Awareness

Written by Greg

The ongoing situation with my youngest son’s seizure activity has prompted me to take a closer look at whether foods and allergies may play a role, both in my own health, as well as his. Why? My entire side of the family suffers from documented environmental allergies, so foods and allergies aren’t out of the question, either. In fact, I even tested positive for allergies to some foods. I just haven’t followed up on the subject — for 17 years.

Time to take a look.

Foods & Allergies – Raising My Awareness

Recent reading about seizures has led me to question the possible link between foods, allergies, and a whole host of possible maladies. Why? Because allergies to foods such as casein, chocolate, gluten, and others have all been suspected of reducing the threshold for seizure activity. Furthermore, dietary changes have been proven by institutions such as John Hopkins to reduce the occurrence and severity of seizures, at least in some cases. Anecdotal evidence by people who have experience with these conditions supports the idea as well.

And, of course – there’s more.

I have an aunt who has been diagnosed with celiac disease. A suspicion that a grandfather may have suffered from the condition, as well. We also have some diagnosed allergies to red and yellow food dyes. Finally, a test in 1993 showed possible evidence that I may be allergic to a long list of foods.

Fortunately – I’m a packrat. I still have the original document listing those foods. Last night, I dug it out, dusted it off, and took a look. What I found was a long list of foods that I eat, day in and day out.

Oh boy.

I don’t get sick very often. It’s not uncommon for my wife and kids to pick up a bug that will lay them out, while I keep on trucking. But I am also allergic to just about every tree, grass, and mold in the state. So, about the only “illness” I suffer from regularly is an ear and sinus infection. Even now, I have a problem with nuisance congestion. But the curious thing is, according to Pollen.com, right now nothing at all is in bloom. No grass. No trees.

Here’s the list of foods that may be of concern: oranges, green peas, string beans, white potato, grapes, tomato, spinach, rye, watermelon, lima beans, broccoli, and mustard.

About the only thing on that list I don’t like is lima beans and mustard. Everything else comprises a substantial part of my diet.

At the time, the doctor suggested an “elimination-provocation challenge” to confirm an allergy existed. This is essentially an attempt to remove all these foods from my diet for a period of 2 weeks, followed by reintroduction of each food, sequentially, in 2 week intervals.

So, I’m going to give this a shot. I’ve already figured out that avoiding foodstuffs based on a tomato is not easy. Throw green beans and white potato in the mix and every soup except chicken noodle is off the list, so we’ll see how this goes…

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