April 27 - Allergies Smallergies

After two years of various exclusion trials, I'm overwhelmed and not much further ahead. I know I've griped about this before, but I'm temporarily sick of navigating the war zone of food allergies and meal planning, so I'm cataloging the problem to try and get it out of my system.

Skyler is sensitive to dairy products, but only sometimes. He's deathly allergic to fish, like tuna or salmon, and probably allergic to shellfish and fish oils. He's highly allergic to tree nuts, especially cashews and pistachios, and bothered by peanuts but an occasional exposure just requires Benadryl, hydration and rest. Of course, that's based on testing from six years ago, so who knows what else is on the no-no list now.

I get migraines from exposure to these foods:

- onions & garlic (the smell alone will sometimes trigger one)

- asparatame (NutraSweet)

- MSG

- coffee (decaf, regular, flavored - not every time, because I keep trying to make it go away!)

- orange juice

- wine & wine coolers

- sometimes bananas

- concentrated salt

- any processed meats

I get painful oral symptoms from these foods:

- potatoes

- tree nuts

- sometimes raw tomatoes

- sometimes corn

My digestive system rebels against these foods:

- dairy products except some cheeses

- beans

- peppers
And I'm officially dermis-tested allergic to these foods:

- melons: watermelon, cantaloupe, honeydew...

- wheat

- and one of the "gum" additives that's in packaged food, softserve and cosmetics

Sigh. The only reason I'm not thinner is that I'm living on loads of chocolate and cheese. I wonder how many ways one can fix rice and blueberries...?