Food Allergies Treatment

Question by momof2: Should I be concerned about continued weight loss?
Okay- back history first:
I developed general anxiety in 2005. Fear of going crazy, hypochondriasis. Got that under control. In fact rarely even need an ativan. Then some life changes happened- I went to nursing school after being a stay at home mom for 5 years- graduated in December 2009. Husband lost job in July of 2009. So I got a full time job in August of 2009. November of 2009 after quitting my zyrtec medicine for seasonal allergies- I started obsessing about “what if’s” again. What if now that I am not on zyrtec I have food allergies? What if I have an anaphylactic reaction to food. So starting on thanksgiving day 2009 fear eating food due to possible anaphylactic reaction. All food. EVERYTHING. I started out slowly just eating bread. Then added ramen noodle soup and oatmeal. Anyway I had lost about 15 pounds by the end of May. I gave up all sweets, all sugar, all snacks. Now my diet has increased some. I have now lost 20+ pounds. I eat oatmeal for breakfast every morning or pancakes. For lunch I eat either beef and cheese quesadilla’s, ham and cheese sandwich, or loaded baked potato. For dinner I can eat chicken or beef items. I just ate spaghetti red and garlic toast. So I have had major life changes in the last year- new full time job and weird food phobia. I understand the weight loss. Now I know that I gave up sweets and all sugar and all milk, eggs, shellfish, peanut butter… BUT I am still eating! I am eating 3 full meals a day. I have not weighed myself but people keep telling me I look like I am getting smaller. I was wearing a size 10/12 in August of 2009 and now it is July of 2010 and I am a size 4/6. So with my anxiety here I sit wondering if I have some underlying medical condition that keeps me losing weight. I do not work out. There is no reason I should be losing more weight. Surely just cutting out snack foods, sugar, sweets can’t make you lose 20 pounds- or can it? I do have a goiter BUT my thyroid levels were normal last year. UGH!!! Any words of wisdom? Should I consult a doctor or is the weight loss related to my weird food phobia? I am seeing a psychologist about the food thing by the way.

Best answer:

Answer by l33nix
yeap need to see gastrinolginal specialist. seems you are having some expulsion some where. but maybe you just need to find the right guy to take care of you and keep you lessed stressed.
also you should try to find a prescription alergy medicine as zertec is not the best thing alergy med.
have you tried other homepathic remdies like kimchi and seaweed to avert allergies.
a good long vacation
no sugar can take a lot of fat away actually but it should make you stronger also
oh and seeing a phyc prolly not a good use of time, but going to see your pastor for couseling would be.

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Question by wouldnt you like to know: how can i gain some weight?
alright this is usually the other way around people asking how to loose weight but i have a problem gaining weight im 19 years old, 5,11 and weigh 130 i eat all the time weather it be chicken steak pasta stuff like that but it never works i always stay around 130 no matter how much i eat
i do have allergies to peanut butter and nuts (almonds, tree nuts, peanuts, you get it all of them) so i cant try to eat that on a daily basis to help me out but i need some advice how to gain some pounds im not interested in buying hundreds of dollars of weight gainer so thats out of the question
so who can help me
thats the thing i do lift weight i played foorball my last two years of high school and lifted everyday, i maxed out on bench at 200 and my squat was 225

Best answer:

Answer by Maddy
Well, muscle weighs more than fat, so maybe you could try building some muscle. Don’t just eat a ton more food, especially junk food, because that could be really bad for your body.

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Question by Kris: Wheat Free Diet for weight loss and allergies?
I have excema and have heard that a wheat free and poss dairy free diet would help. I also have asthma! Also trying to lose some weight…Any one else heard this or tried for those things? Any info would help also any tips on starting a diet like this would be great. Thanks so much.

Best answer:

Answer by sailor
There is a possibility that a wheat free diet will help your eczema and this is why. Dermititis herpetiformis (DH) is often misdiagnosed as eczema. DH is a condition that reacts to the gluten found in wheat, rye and barley and things made from these grains. It causes all sorts of skin problems that can look like several different things one of them being eczema.
I had hives for 10 years and have always had skin issues and asthma that all cleared up when I went on a gluten free diet.
The first thing you need to do is get tested for both DH and celiac disease with blood work and skin biopsy and possibly an endoscopic exam. Do Not stop eating gluten until the testing is finished or the tests will show false negatives. After the testing is over and doctor says you have one or the other, go on a gluten free diet. If the testing is inconclusive or negative, you can still try a gluten free diet to rule out non-DH/CD gluten intolerance or a gluten allergy. Plan for 2-3 months on the diet to see results although with skin conditions it can take longer.
How to start a gluten free diet
The easiest way to get started is to eat simply. Clean your kitchen and cookware/dinner ware well and put all of the food containing gluten into a box away from the kitchen so you won’t be tempted. You can have all the fresh fruit and vegetables you want, Fresh non-processed meats, fish, chicken, eggs, cheese are all acceptable. Add in potatoes and rice for starches in place of breads, pasta etc. You can use frozen meat and vegetables as long as they don’t have any sauces or gravies added. That will give you a large variety of foods that you don’t really have to worry about reading the labels on. After you get established on this, then you can start learning the label reading routine, find the gluten free substitutes for whatever you gave up that you are missing and learning to cook with some new ingredients.

That’s a pretty long answer and only touches on the highlights so if this raises more questions, contact me through here.

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Question by NOT USING Y!A ANYMORE!!!!!!!!!!!: Weight gain? Need help with this.?
I know it’s weird to hear this, but I need to gain weight. I am underweight and I’d like to gain a healthy weight. You see, I’m 17 5’3″ and only 104 lbs. I want to gain a little but every time I try, it doesn’t work. I stay right around 102-104.
I have two main food allergies: Milk and Shellfish and I have problems digesting carbs once in a while, so I’m on a strict diet as it is.
What are your ideas on me to gain weight?

And yes, I’ve tried eating a bag of chips and sitting on the couch, that just gave me heartburn lol. I want to do this as healthy of a way as possible that way I can keep a good diet, good habits, and be healthy.

Best answer:

Answer by ny
Those who are extremely lean tend to have weaker immune systems,
making them prone to infections, surgical complications, and slower
recovery times for illness. They tend to have low muscle mass, and
less than ideal hair, teeth, and skin composition. They may have
disruptions in the ability to regulate hormones and protect bone
health, and women could become unable to menstruate.
There are many reasons why people may find it hard to gain weight.
Genetics can obviously play a role, but individual personalities and
the environment can be strong factors.
Some people are just more physically active, they tend to move around
more,
burning more calories than they take in. In children, the inability
to gain weight may signal a condition
known as “failure to thrive,” which means a kid is not growing
appropriately for his/her age. This may be caused by an illness, or
eating patterns dictated by a parental idiosyncrasy.
Being able to eat anything with abandon is also deceiving — even the
skinny need to worry about having too much sugar and fat for good
health. Poor diets can lead to ailments such as heart disease,
stroke, and
cancer.
If you want to put on weight, you should work out, to insure that you
put on muscle and not fat. Healthy weight gain, just like healthy
weight loss, takes time and
requires a conscious effort to apply good habits.
Recommended Ways to Gain Weight
Have meals with the right balance of proteins, carbohydrates, and the
right kinds of fat (such as unsaturated and monounsaturated fats,
olive oil, canola oil, pistachios, almonds and walnuts). Heinemann
suggests the following ratio: 60%-70% carbohydrates, 10%-15% protein,
and a small amount of fat.
Eat foods higher in calories, vitamins, and minerals, as opposed to
higher in fat or sugar.
Pack more nutritious calories in each serving. For example, you may
add grated cooked eggs to mashed potatoes, ground chicken to soups and
gravies, cheese in casseroles, eggs, and soups, and nonfat dried milk
in soups, shakes, milk, and mashed potatoes.
If you get too full too fast, try having more high-calorie foods or
slices of foods as opposed to consuming the whole thing (raisins
versus grapes, granola and Grape Nuts versus corn flakes, mango slices
versus the whole mango).
Limit drinking beverages to a half-hour before and after a meal.
Drink mixed juices (apple/berry, peach/orange/banana as opposed to
one juice beverages) for a higher calorie intake.
With moderation, you may add in good fat sources to meals such as
nuts, avocado, olives, and fatty fish (salmon and mackerel).
Snack in between meals. Nuts, dried fruits, and yogurt are good
options, but it’s also important to find nutritious foods that you
will enjoy.
Have a nutritious snack before bedtime, such as a peanut butter
sandwich.

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Question by Ellie H: How should I go about losing weight?
I’m 5′ 7.5″ and about 145 pounds. I gained a lot of weight this year, and over the summer I’d like to get down to my former weight, 125 pounds, by diet and exercise. I don’t necessarily want to lose all the weight by summer’s end, but to lose a good chunk of that weight would be great. My main goal is to reach my goal weight by the end of October (a little over four months from now; that’s 5 pounds lost a month, which seems totally reasonable to me).

How should I go about doing this? Eating smaller meals of the ‘right’ foods every few hours sounds great, as does regular cardio. But what should these smaller meals consist of? How far apart should meals be spread? Is butter allowed, is bread allowed? Are potatoes? What are these so-called ‘right’ foods? Note that I have food allergies (peanuts, tree nuts, soy, and egg whites).

And as far as cardio- I don’t have a gym membership, nor do I plan on getting one, since my local YMCA is under construction and unusable for the next year, and the other gyms nearby are financially not an option (I’ve looked into trying to snag a cheaper membership– it’s not happening).

Any solid advice on how I can lose those 20 pounds in 4 months would be greatly appreciated.

Best answer:

Answer by Steven M
Cut your head off.

Say goodbye to ten pounds of unwanted fat.

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