Developed an allergy to meat protein....what to do??

snlperdue93

I posted this to my friends, but also thought I would look for advice in this thread.

My Doc just called and said that my blood work came back in and I definitely have developed a meat allergy. She took me off all meats for one week and made me go vegetarian (hated it) and all of my symptoms went away (rashes, asthma issues, swelling in lips...it goes on and on).

She has slowly had me trying different meats to see if it is only one or all of them and my symptoms flew back full force and were even more severe than before.

So, as of now I am supposed to stay away from all beef, chicken, pork and mutton. Since I am also allergic to shell fish (always have been) and generally hate fish, I guess I am screwed.

Any suggestions for someone who desperately wants to lose weight, is on a limited budget due to 4 kids that eat like pigs, and hates most vegitables?

neanderthin

That does suck. Try grass fed and/or wild animals like duck, bison, elk, ostrich, emu and see what happens. Somehow i doubt it's the actual protein in meat and is something else like histamine's for example.

1shauna1

Do you like eggs? What about tofu? Beans/legumes also have good protein sources. I would say cheese but you can't really overdo it with that because of fat/sodium. This sucks, and I'm sorry....but maybe it will help with your weight loss? A lot of meats can be fatty/high in calories....

snlperdue93

That does suck. Try grass fed and/or wild animals like duck, bison, elk, ostrich, emu and see what happens. Somehow i doubt it's the actual protein in meat and is something else like histamine's for example.

I have tried Venison but had the same reaction as I had when I ate beef. I will talk to her about some of your suggestions and see what she says. Thanks!

lizard053

What about dairy? There's lots of good protein there.
All the different veggies and grains have protein sources, you just need to mix and match daily to get complete proteins. Even rice and peas have protein! Have your doctor refer you to a dietician to help you out in developing a healthy diet plan for yourself. It's not easy to switch around to a new diet! I'm learning to eat without yeast, another thing hard to avoid!

mheightchew

Bump...my brother is going through this as well

rw4004

OOh Vegan to the rescue lol!Ok first thing you need to make sure you get enough fat,iron,and protein.Gardein has a wonderful chicken and beef steak substitute.Morningstar has a great veggie burger (also burger king sells this,plus some subways,red robins,etc),Veggiepatch has a delish portabella burger.Making vegan sloppy joe or chili is great just brown up some veggie crumbles(sold at most stores in the freezer section or health food section).Also:beans,rice,legumes,mushrooms,keep searching you will find some great protein sources.Drinks:Genisoy is my favorite in chocolate-it comes in a powder I add to some coconut milk or almond milk(both good protein by the way) and one cup of ice cubes,cinnamon,nutmeg whatever you want.Hope you feel better soon!

pdworkman

Yeah, I stopped eating meat when I figured out that I would throw up for three days whenever I had it. Especially beef and dairy combined. It was much easier just to go veg. I joined some vegetarian recipe internet groups (back when internet was young and mostly text based) and started collecting recipes.

First of all, identify meals or sides that you already eat that are vegetarian or could easily be vegetarian (soups, sandwiches, chillis, curries, salads, pasta, stir-fry, casseroles, baked potato, pancakes, oatmeal, etc.) Are there some veggies that you already like or tolerate? Corn? Carrots? Tomato sauce? Experiment with some different recipes using them. Start to add small bits of other veggies in.

You can choose to go with meat analogues (veggie burgers, etc.) or just stick to legumes, nuts, and seeds, or some combination thereof. Don't worry about having a big meat centrepiece for every meal. Sometimes a meal will just be a collection of sides.

The Happy Herbivore group is pretty active. Feel free to browse my diary, it is open.

econut2000

It sounds like you're going to have to start eating those veggies!! I hated veggies and wouldn't eat any voluntarily - my parents would make me eat one serving spoon full with dinner every night. And I couldn't stand that. About 10 years ago I realized it's super hard to be healthy if you aren't willing to eat veggies and I forced myself to have an open mind. I started by eating things that I didn't find revolting and eating them in or on things (spaghetti sauce, pizza, etc). Now I eat ALL vegetables - every single one, some I like more than others but I do eat them all and I try to eat a serving with all my meals.
Beans have a lot of protein and are delicious (and a heck of a lot cheaper than meat!). They can be substituted in place of meat in a lot of your favorite dishes: chili, tacos, etc. They also have vegetarian meat substitutes: veggie crumbles are great and you can hardly tell the difference between that and ground beef when used in recipes. For burgers, I like Morningstar Farms. I don't go overboard with these meat substitutes though because many are soy based which have certain chemicals that mimic estrogen - so I limit to once or twice per week.
Check out Happyherbivore.com for recipes. Good luck!

rw4004

Oh forgot to add almonds,walnuts,cashews,pecans,brazil nuts ,etc!Clif bars and Lara Bars are good.

madamepsychosis

Eggs, cheese, nuts, pulses etc. are all great sources of protein. If you miss the meat taste you could also try products like Quorn if you're from the UK or Morningstar if you're from the US. These are usually fairly abound in protein and are a good transition for people who miss the taste of meat but can't eat it.

TourThePast

How awful to have it thrust upon you like that.

Just a thought, try vegetable soups (eg leek and potato) with some lentils thrown in.

mes1119

Whole grains and dairy have a large amount of protein in them. Whey protein supplements may help as well.

TourThePast

Incidentally, if you're missing meat, Marmite is quite "meaty" but is 100% vegetarian.

dododo123

wow, this is a horrible allergy, especially if you love meat. I have no idea what to suggest, but I wish you luck. I could not deal with such an allergy...

snlperdue93

First, Thanks to everyone for the responses and I am definitely going to look into all of your options.

One thing I left out is that I think my body has just decided that it hates food. LOL.

I was already allergic to tomatoes, shell fish, mushrooms, peanuts, avocados, strawberries (if too many), and lactose intolerant.

So, I can eat eggs, but only 2 or 3 a week, no more than 1/2 a glass of milk per day and that is only if I don't eat eggs or cheese, tomatoes only if cooked and in very small quantities, no shell fish, no mushrooms, peanuts I can tolerate in small quantities (like peanut butter) but have to have the benedryl handy and of course, have to watch the dairy intake. Now I get hit with no meat....grrr

So, I am already using a great whey protein because I was limited on meats for the last month and a half, but I have got to find more things as I am bored like crazy with my diet as it stands. There are some veggies that I love like green beans, zucchini, carrots, and peas, but other then that I am blank. I am open to trying new things but with me not working at the moment due to being a full time student, my husband's checks only go so far so I really have to watch how much I spend.

I am going to definitely try out some of the Morning Star options that I can find in the freezer and I love pasta, so I can do that, but with trying to lose weight I have cut almost all of my pasta's out. I guess I need to try to find a vegetarian cookbook and see if there are things that I can make where I can add meat in for the family after I take my food out. Like stew or veggie soup.

So, thanks for the tips and keep them coming. I am writing them all down and will try the ones that I can. :-)

pdworkman

Have you been tested for celiac disease? Celiac disease causes damage to your gut, which allows larger food molecules into your bloodstream, which are then treated as foreign invaders, since they aren't supposed to be there. The result is multiple allergies.

There is a food allergies group too.

You may want to try a rotation diet for a while, to get your system off of high-alert.

I don't have all of the same allergies as you do, but you may find my diary helpful, and feel free to ask how to substitute for things that you can't eat. I have lots of experience.

First, Thanks to everyone for the responses and I am definitely going to look into all of your options.

One thing I left out is that I think my body has just decided that it hates food. LOL.

I was already allergic to tomatoes, shell fish, mushrooms, peanuts, avocados, strawberries (if too many), and lactose intolerant.

So, I can eat eggs, but only 2 or 3 a week, no more than 1/2 a glass of milk per day and that is only if I don't eat eggs or cheese, tomatoes only if cooked and in very small quantities, no shell fish, no mushrooms, peanuts I can tolerate in small quantities (like peanut butter) but have to have the benedryl handy and of course, have to watch the dairy intake. Now I get hit with no meat....grrr

So, I am already using a great whey protein because I was limited on meats for the last month and a half, but I have got to find more things as I am bored like crazy with my diet as it stands. There are some veggies that I love like green beans, zucchini, carrots, and peas, but other then that I am blank. I am open to trying new things but with me not working at the moment due to being a full time student, my husband's checks only go so far so I really have to watch how much I spend.

I am going to definitely try out some of the Morning Star options that I can find in the freezer and I love pasta, so I can do that, but with trying to lose weight I have cut almost all of my pasta's out. I guess I need to try to find a vegetarian cookbook and see if there are things that I can make where I can add meat in for the family after I take my food out. Like stew or veggie soup.

So, thanks for the tips and keep them coming. I am writing them all down and will try the ones that I can. :-)

snlperdue93

Have you been tested for celiac disease? Celiac disease causes damage to your gut, which allows larger food molecules into your bloodstream, which are then treated as foreign invaders, since they aren't supposed to be there. The result is multiple allergies.

There is a food allergies group too.

You may want to try a rotation diet for a while, to get your system off of high-alert.

I don't have all of the same allergies as you do, but you may find my diary helpful, and feel free to ask how to substitute for things that you can't eat. I have lots of experience.

No, I have not been tested for Celiac, but I will bring it up when I go back into the doctor next week and see what she thinks. For now she has told me absolutely no meat for 4-6 weeks, so I am trying to figure out what to put on the grocery list for next week.

For the rest of this week until payday I am going to try to limit my meats and eat mostly veggies or have protein shakes. I can't think of anything else that I can do right now until payday. Its times like this where being a full time college student/stay at home mom really bites me in the butt because our budget is so tight

yesthistime

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/45-happy-herbivores
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/46-team-vegan
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/219-mfp-vegetarians
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/2434-veg-ns-raw-foodists
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/144-food-allergies

Hope these help with food ideas/support!

snlperdue93

http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/45-happy-herbivores
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/46-team-vegan
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/219-mfp-vegetarians
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/2434-veg-ns-raw-foodists
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/groups/home/144-food-allergies

Hope these help with food ideas/support!

Awesome! Thanks. I am finishing up some finals stuff this morning and then I am going to take the afternoon off from finals to figure out what to do about my diet/calories/grocery list. These will definitely help!

connorsludge

That sounds terrible! I'm so sorry to hear that you're allergic to EVERYTHING! I have never heard of a meat allergy before, so it's interesting to hear.

I am always surprised when I hear the idea that going meatless might be expensive. I'm a vegetarian so we only buy meat when we're having guests and I'm always shocked at how expensive meat is! I don't know how meat-eaters afford it.

I know that I can feed my family of three (a man and a boy included) on a can of beans (69 cents) or a tray of tofu (1.29 for the fancy organic kind). In lean (haha, no pun intended) times, we've eaten on less than $50 a week by making rice and beans every night! It's cheap and quick. That sounds terribly boring, but if you have the right arsenal of spices, you can make a new meal every night!

I go to the library and get books on Indian, Thai, Jamaican, Mexican, and Middle Eastern food. I find that most "ethnic" cuisines are driven by the whole grain + bean/legume combo. No wonder they're so healthy. Good luck!

snlperdue93

That sounds terrible! I'm so sorry to hear that you're allergic to EVERYTHING! I have never heard of a meat allergy before, so it's interesting to hear.

I am always surprised when I hear the idea that going meatless might be expensive. I'm a vegetarian so we only buy meat when we're having guests and I'm always shocked at how expensive meat is! I don't know how meat-eaters afford it.

I know that I can feed my family of three (a man and a boy included) on a can of beans (69 cents) or a tray of tofu (1.29 for the fancy organic kind). In lean (haha, no pun intended) times, we've eaten on less than $50 a week by making rice and beans every night! It's cheap and quick. That sounds terribly boring, but if you have the right arsenal of spices, you can make a new meal every night!

I go to the library and get books on Indian, Thai, Jamaican, Mexican, and Middle Eastern food. I find that most "ethnic" cuisines are driven by the whole grain + bean/legume combo. No wonder they're so healthy. Good luck!

That is a great idea! The reason going vegetarian will be more expensive for me is because I still have to make a regular meal for my family of 4 kids and hubby. I think my 3 teenage boys would put a hit out on me if I changed up their foods. I have never tried tofu before, but I have heard that brown rice and beans is really good, so I may try that one night next week. For me I can sit down and eat a can of green beans and be perfectly fine, but I would never hit my calorie mark.

My plan so far is to hit up the veggie section at the store and stock up on tons of fresh veggies, almonds and other nuts, and maybe some greek yogurt. I am just afraid that I won't hit my calorie mark by a long shot

pdworkman

I've sent you a private message so that I can e-mail you some docs that might help out with your menu planning.

I also do lots of ethnic foods. Asian, Indian, African, Mediterranean, South American, etc. Most cultures are not as meat-rich as North America. I have a lot of dietary restrictions and still eat very well!

There are so many recipe sites out there. I would recommend browsing through them for new ideas. Don't just look for vegetarian recipes, but consider side dishes, soups, salads, etc. and consider how you can remove or replace the meat in omni dishes. Replace chicken with chickpeas, beef with mushrooms, pork with tofu, etc.

pdworkman

Here's an interesting article linking meat allergies to ticks:

http://allergicliving.com/index.php/2012/04/10/profile-author-john-grishams-allergy-mystery/

monicalosesweight

Yipes. I decided to research that part about the ticks and it does look like it's something pretty serious. Basically, they think it's spreading to some degree. Great. I now have to be paranoid about being bit.

beansprouts

wow, this is a horrible allergy, especially if you love meat. I have no idea what to suggest, but I wish you luck. I could not deal with such an allergy...

^^^^^THIS^^^^:sad: