Sugars/Intolerance? Help me Understand.
Replies
-
Sorry to hear about your problem. It sounds painful and confusing.
I think the advice from @shaumom is great. I had chronic pain and inflammation that would flare up in my leg and wrist (previous injuries) and found that foods were a huge factor after doing an elimination diet. My worst triggers are processed meats, but I also get symptoms if I gorge on wheat products or sugar. While my experience is different from yours, I think you'd benefit from trying it out. Just google "the 4 R's of gut health" or something like that and you'll find a lot of good resources to follow. Basically, its Remove, Repair, Restore, Replace, which is referring to potential intolerances and gut health and flora.
http://www.precisionnutrition.com/elimination-diet
Fruit sugar is fructose while sugar in cakes or breads might be regular white sugar (sucrose) or could be fructose (from high fructose corn syrup), depending on how it was made. HFCS is cheaper than white sugar. Sucrose will break down into glucose and fructose. Glucose and fructose are processed differently by the body.arditarose wrote: »What is the difference between sugars from an apple or added sugar in cakes or sugar in bread?
It's hard to say without more info, but I'd suspect fructose. Just cause your reaction to apples was so severe. Could be an apple-specific problem, though. Do you react to other fruits? Honey is pretty high in fructose. Do you react to that?
I mean I really ate a lot of apples that day. Kind of embarrassing to admit. I generally don't eat too much fruit because I'm not drawn to it so I can't say for sure.
0 -
I'm PMing you to avoid a dumpster fire here.0
-
-
I would do an elimination diet like what was suggested and go from there.0
-
Have you noticed similar reactions after low carb meals?
Generally pain would indicate an allergy (in my experience). You could try some protocols of cutting out foods and then incorporating them back in to determine the source of pain.0 -
Have you noticed similar reactions after low carb meals?
Generally pain would indicate an allergy (in my experience). You could try some protocols of cutting out foods and then incorporating them back in to determine the source of pain.
No. I started paying attention because I thought it could just be water retention/sodium issue on some of my more extravagant days but really I am a sodium monster 7 days out of the week so I don't think that's it. Mostly carbs, admittedly when I go quite hard/over eat...but not always. Sometimes it'll happen with a moderate amount.
0 -
arditarose wrote: »
There's a lot of information out there for sure, but a lot of it is anecdotal, etc. so I can definitely see why! You've got me curious and doing lots of reading.0 -
Have you noticed similar reactions after low carb meals?
Generally pain would indicate an allergy (in my experience). You could try some protocols of cutting out foods and then incorporating them back in to determine the source of pain.
He's right about the allergy piece- there is a good possibility it's an inflammatory response to something.0 -
I'm PMing you to avoid a dumpster fire here.
I wish you would post here because I would love to know you opinions.
So here is my experience with food allergies and it has yet been explained to me.
If i eat even a part of an oyster, sallop, mussel or clam I feel like I am being stabbed in the stomach and i spend the night snuggling some porcelain instead of my wife. Found this out on a business trip and confirm on my first vday with the wife... sexy right?
This is the interesting one... I can eat a limited quantity of shrimp (<6 small or 3-4 large) pieces of shrimp... after that, hives, throat closing and anaphylaxic shock. So most people assume shelf fish.... nope... i can pound lobster and crab like its my job. Seriously, 3 lbs of snow crab or 2.5 lbs of lobster with not issue. It makes me sad because i love shrimp cocktail.0 -
I'm PMing you to avoid a dumpster fire here.
I wish you would post here because I would love to know you opinions.
So here is my experience with food allergies and it has yet been explained to me.
If i eat even a part of an oyster, sallop, mussel or clam I feel like I am being stabbed in the stomach and i spend the night snuggling some porcelain instead of my wife. Found this out on a business trip and confirm on my first vday with the wife... sexy right?
This is the interesting one... I can eat a limited quantity of shrimp (<6 small or 3-4 large) pieces of shrimp... after that, hives, throat closing and anaphylaxic shock. So most people assume shelf fish.... nope... i can pound lobster and crab like its my job. Seriously, 3 lbs of snow crab or 2.5 lbs of lobster with not issue. It makes me sad because i love shrimp cocktail.
So basically, allergies can be tricky lol. I would really rather not do an elimination diet. bleh0 -
arditarose wrote: »I'm PMing you to avoid a dumpster fire here.
I wish you would post here because I would love to know you opinions.
So here is my experience with food allergies and it has yet been explained to me.
If i eat even a part of an oyster, sallop, mussel or clam I feel like I am being stabbed in the stomach and i spend the night snuggling some porcelain instead of my wife. Found this out on a business trip and confirm on my first vday with the wife... sexy right?
This is the interesting one... I can eat a limited quantity of shrimp (<6 small or 3-4 large) pieces of shrimp... after that, hives, throat closing and anaphylaxic shock. So most people assume shelf fish.... nope... i can pound lobster and crab like its my job. Seriously, 3 lbs of snow crab or 2.5 lbs of lobster with not issue. It makes me sad because i love shrimp cocktail.
So basically, allergies can be tricky lol. I would really rather not do an elimination diet. bleh
I found out mine from through accidental confirmation ... aka i did it twice and saw the same thing and i compared notes on the foods i ate.
You could start there and then replicate the day with different quantities or combinations. Sometimes its not just foods but the quantity.
I would say, i think if i had 6 apples i would probably feel that way too...0 -
That sounds scary.
I wish I knew of a way other than medical testing. The only thing I know possible to do on yr own is to do sort of an elimination diet experiment where you eliminate one thing at a time, or else eliminate all the possibles and reintroduce one thing at a time, keeping a journal of what you ate and how you felt each day. 0 -
JanetYellen wrote: »Could it be an allergy to gluten?
Not if apples caused it. Gluten is in wheat, barley and rye.
0 -
arditarose wrote: »Have you noticed similar reactions after low carb meals?
Generally pain would indicate an allergy (in my experience). You could try some protocols of cutting out foods and then incorporating them back in to determine the source of pain.
No. I started paying attention because I thought it could just be water retention/sodium issue on some of my more extravagant days but really I am a sodium monster 7 days out of the week so I don't think that's it. Mostly carbs, admittedly when I go quite hard/over eat...but not always. Sometimes it'll happen with a moderate amount.
Removing the anomaly of 6 apples, do you recognize it more with ultra processed foods, natural foods or both (food agnostic but possibly gram dependant)0 -
If you don't have health insurance, here's what I'd do in your shoes (I was having bizarre symptoms myself for a long time, to food, and this is what I ended up doing until I could get diagnosed).
1. If you are a healthy weight, and getting enough nutrients, I'd consider dropping the 8 major allergens (wheat (gluten is easier to do, honestly), eggs, dairy, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, shellfish, and fish...plus sesame and sulfites, is usually good). I would ditch these ingredients as though you are allergic, so no ingredients derived from either (like natural flavors - can be from gluten).
2. After this, you're pretty much going to be making food from scratch, even condiments and salad dressing, because you just can't avoid all of those ingredients and buy pre-made food, typically.
3. Which makes it easier to do this: start a food journal. Usually, one would just write down food eaten, time, and then note symptoms and time when they show up. However, since you are having symptoms that you think may be quantity dependent, I'd personally write down food including amount of food, plus the time, and make sure the severity of the symptoms is noted. You want to write down EVERY item included in the food that you ingest, including oils or salt (some salt brands add things like corn - to stabilize iodine - so this actually can make a difference).
Do this for a few weeks, and then see what connections you can make.
There are a number of what are currently called intolerances (very poorly named, because it really just means that the body doesn't tolerate them, but can be for many reasons) that are in numerous, seemingly unrelated foods, so might be worth exploring when you are checking your food journal over.
1. Fructose malabsorption - a low FODMAP diet is required for this. The Monash University has the best, most up to date information I've seen on this yet. Involves a lot of carbs, especially fruits and veggies with more carbs.
2. sulfite sensitivity - some people with this can also have issues with foods high in sulfur, like eggs, broccoli, onions, and so on. But apples is typically not the issue, so this seems less likely.
3. Salicylate sensitivity - needs a low sals diet
4. histamine intolerance - needs a low histamine diet
5. sensitivity to taurines - need to eat low taurines
6. There's a few others that are simply intolerances to certain proteins. Sometimes it's a problem with a few of them at once, so it's really simple intolerances or low level allergies, but they just have to be hunted down. They CAN cause full body pain, and the intolerances seem more likely to cause pain the next day as opposed to right after eating.
7. An odd one, but could apply - celiac disease. This involves the body attacking its intestines when gluten - even tiny particles or contamination of it - are ingested. For at least a third of people with this, they can have NO symptoms when they eat gluten and don't start noticing OTHER problems when they eat. For example, the villi that are destroyed by this are where certain enzymes are made, like those that help digest lactose, or digesting certain sugars, which would be more commonly found in high carb foods. The trouble with this is that it takes weeks for the body to heal on a gluten free diet, so it takes a while of being gluten free (at celiac level compliance, which you 'd need to research) before symptoms start to improve. So this one wouldnt' have a quick fix. But it can cause pain, inflammation, muscle aches, all sorts of stuff that is usually not mentioned outside of literature shared among experts, :-/
8. Parasites or diseases- some parasites, like giardia, are affected by diet. Some diseases like lyme disease are affected by diet. And can cause more symptoms when you eat certain foods. I know gluten seems to have a negative impact on lyme disease.
9. carbohydrate intolerance - this is typically due to a lack of certain enzymes, or too low levels (again, celiac disease could potentially affect this, from what I read). But it doesn't seem to cause the level of pain you are experiencing.
I wish you well - it took me a few years to find out what was going on with my own body (mast cell activation disorder), but there's SO much more information out there that I hope you can figure it out faster!
Excuse me, but as a person with confirmed celiac, I have to say it took years for my intestines to heal and starting year five totally compliant with a GF diet, my kidneys still aren't functioning normally, although they are slowly improving.0 -
I'm PMing you to avoid a dumpster fire here.
I wish you would post here because I would love to know you opinions.
So here is my experience with food allergies and it has yet been explained to me.
If i eat even a part of an oyster, sallop, mussel or clam I feel like I am being stabbed in the stomach and i spend the night snuggling some porcelain instead of my wife. Found this out on a business trip and confirm on my first vday with the wife... sexy right?
This is the interesting one... I can eat a limited quantity of shrimp (<6 small or 3-4 large) pieces of shrimp... after that, hives, throat closing and anaphylaxic shock. So most people assume shelf fish.... nope... i can pound lobster and crab like its my job. Seriously, 3 lbs of snow crab or 2.5 lbs of lobster with not issue. It makes me sad because i love shrimp cocktail.
I'm posting this with great reluctance because I know a lot of people like to demonize carbs and sugar for the wrong reasons and have some ridiculous debates about food addiction/bingeing, but I digress...
The gist of my PM was this:
- An allergy is the most likely culprit because pain that intermittent and fairly immediate after eating is most likely inflammation.
- The two scenarios where I have heard of similar symptoms are (1) anorexics after a binge and (2) post fairly heavy drinking. (Just to be clear, I'm not calling OP anorexic or a binge eater) My thoughts were that because I know she is bulking and cutting, the increases in calories after a cut or overages during a cut could contribute. I know her gap is not nearly as severe as an anorexic however, which makes me think that's not as likely. As to the drinking, she has identified alcohol as a trigger (though the reason hasn't been identified.) There are some people who are more sensitive to alcohol genetically, but also just a general hangover can cause this feeling....but I would also potentially consider its common ingredients with other foods instead since she isn't often drinking heavily, leading me to this:
- Sugar. I don't have evidence to back this up, and I don't typically believe in the necessity of tracking sugar and reducing it significantly, BUT... I have been reading some anecdotes of people with her symptoms who have reduced sugar and seen a resolution.
Ultimately, the suggestions of an elimination diet or food diary are the best bet, because it's likely to be what a doctor recommends anyway.
But we all know that's not fun 0 -
What kinds of carb-heavy foods are these? There are allergens in apples that are similar to many other fruit and nut species, so people with some allergies might be allergic to apples, peaches, apricots, cherries, etc.
Do you have other allergies? Do antihistamines produce any relief when these symptoms appear?0 -
I would start by noting in your diary each time this happens. You can then go back And see what may be in common on these days. It may have not been the apples but instead something else you ate before the apples. So I would pay close attention to this when it happens.
I would also start saving up for a trip to the doctor. If it really is bothering you, it's worth seeing a professional. If you put 20$ aside per week, you could afford a visit shortly. There are also public health clinics that are available to those who are not insured that use a sliding scale payment method. They go by how much you make to determine what they will charge you.
Sometimes putting ourselves first is necessary. You don't know what's going on so its really worth having the proper tests run. Sometimes we have to help ourselves.
0 -
OP, if eating less fixes the problem, then just eat less until you have insurance and can be allergy tested. you know the solution even if you don't know the problem's medical name.0
-
arditarose wrote: »Have you noticed similar reactions after low carb meals?
Generally pain would indicate an allergy (in my experience). You could try some protocols of cutting out foods and then incorporating them back in to determine the source of pain.
No. I started paying attention because I thought it could just be water retention/sodium issue on some of my more extravagant days but really I am a sodium monster 7 days out of the week so I don't think that's it. Mostly carbs, admittedly when I go quite hard/over eat...but not always. Sometimes it'll happen with a moderate amount.
Removing the anomaly of 6 apples, do you recognize it more with ultra processed foods, natural foods or both (food agnostic but possibly gram dependant)
Nah. I ate a beautiful/upscale restaurant with homemade fresh bread a few weeks ago. I had rabbit, pancetta wrapped chicken livers, a two glasses of wine, and as much bread as I wanted because it was my birthday. Later that night I had pretzels. The next day I was sore. I am pretty sure I would not have been sore if I had not eaten the bread and pretzels. Pretzels were obviously processed. I don't know. I'm confused.0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 392.9K Introduce Yourself
- 43.7K Getting Started
- 260.1K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.8K Food and Nutrition
- 47.4K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 415 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.9K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.6K MyFitnessPal Information
- 23 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.5K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions