High Fructose Intolerance

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How did you find out you are intolerant? I have issues with, but not allergies to, so many things that I have given up on trying to figure out what my problem is. Of course doctors say IBS, but I think that's just when they can'g figure out what the problem is - which I can't blame them for too much since I can't figure it out either. Thanks

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  • ickybubble
    ickybubble Posts: 18 Member
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    I know how you feel its been a real nightmare!
    Originally I thought I had ceoliac disease so I changed to that diet for 2 years, but there were still foods that were affecting me.
    So after a long time of researching I found out about HFI and I have started a new trial diet of eating only potato, rice, brocoli, cauliflower and spinach (with herbs, salt and a little lemon juice) as these are the lowest foods in fructose and contain no fructons. And so far so good.. so unfortunately its safe to say I have HFI, there are two types of this illness tho. Sadly I have the worse of the two.
    I have tried everything and this diet is the only one that has been okay so far, it can get so depressing trying to figure it out. I will slowly add more foods to my diet but I really need to heal myself a bit so think I will just be safe and stick to what I have been doing for a few months. (I am also vegan by choice, so I am unaware of the symptoms of HFI and meat??) Also liquid glucose is really helpful because it evens out the balance of fructose, so a spoonful of this on say a fruit salad for example will help your body digest it without it being so damaging to you! You can buy this is any supermarket in the baking area or the sugar area.
    The best thing to do is the salt water flush or a fast to really get your body clean and your colon empty, so you can have a fresh start, and then try a food on its own and if it affects you then you can't eat it! There really is no easy way around it, you just have to individually test each food!
    I can't eat dairy, lagoons, nuts, wheat, gluten, soy and many more...
    Doctors are pretty much useless with food allergies and intollerences as they are not entirely sure what causes it and why. So just experiment and find out what you can and can't eat :) Make sure to write it down!
    Its also usually genetic, my older brother suffers from it also but he has had it since he was a kid and is really malnurished from it. Luckily I only have had it for a few years now. Is anyone in your family having similar problems as you?
    It can also cause anemia, achy bones, paleness, headaches, weight loss or weight gain for unknown reasons, tired more than average, cold hands and feet, stumps your growth, makes you feel weak, depression, anxiety.. and some more that I can't remember..
    I hope this helps a little =)
  • SarahAFerguson
    SarahAFerguson Posts: 250 Member
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    Hi there, both my husband and 6 year old daughter are intollerant to corn or so I thought. I never considered that it might be the fructose. It is truely a nightmare trying to eat corn free, I can't imagine going further and cutting out all fructose.
  • ickybubble
    ickybubble Posts: 18 Member
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    Hey thanks for joining!
    Corn syrup is a very common one as its very high in fructose, so it could well be that. Try cutting it out of the diet for a week and see if any improvements happen!
    Yea it sure does have its moments, but I just try and be grateful for what I can eat, as it could always be worse =)
  • gonzalezcook
    gonzalezcook Posts: 9 Member
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    Thanks so much for the info. I find this very interesting. I tried gluten-free for about 6 months which seemed to help in the beginning. I don't each much meat - my husband has to remind me to buy/cook meat. I avoid high-fructose corn syrup but not religiously. I do much better if I use almond or coconut milk instead of regular milk. I did some allergy testing that showed very slight issues with peanuts, eggs and milk, but the doctors acted like it wasn't high enough to be an issue. I already knew I had issues with peanuts and know that none of them are true allergies.

    I am definitely going to look into this. I think you are right about cutting most all foods out and then adding them back -I have thought of doing this, but haven't gotten up the nerve. How long do you wait after starting a new food to start the next? Different time intervals if you have problems with that food (to let your bowels calm down)? I seem to have problems whenever I eat, no matter what it is and so this seems very daunting. Do you have any websites or reference books that you recommend my reading?

    Two of my daughters have alot of wide-spread, generic stomach issues - we are unfortunately a nervous bunch too which doesn't help matters.
  • ickybubble
    ickybubble Posts: 18 Member
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    You are truly welcome, I know how frustrating it can get, so it feels great to try and help others figure out their dietary needs. There is so much dis-information about medicine and illness, online especially, simply because people have no idea what they are talking about and doctors will tell you anything to try and get some pills down you because they make far too much money of it to tell you the simple truth.

    It usually takes me at least two days after eating something for it to be out of my system, or I will salt water flush and be gone in a day. If I have a meal and something affects me I will write down what I ate and then try cutting out one food at a time and eliminate it that way, you can do it the opposite but it gets boring just eating say a potato on its own for example.

    I know that feeling too well, even when I know I am eating something that is okay for me it still affects me a bit, but that;'s mainly because your body is in an unhealthy state so until it heals a bit everything will feel a little dodgy at first. B12 pills or injections can help most people to help your body absorb the nutrients better which will speed up the healing process for either HFI or ceoliac.
    I will post some links on here later on tonight, as my brother has all the good ones on his computer but he is at work at the moment!
    I truly hope you figure it out soon =)
    Keep me updated if you have any breakthroughs !
  • SarahAFerguson
    SarahAFerguson Posts: 250 Member
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    2 years ago we did a whole family food restriction thing (not sure what the right name is). For a two weeks I cut out everything except for meat, veggies, fruit and milk (for the kids only). We did not eat any processed or packaged foods especially no grains. This is how we finally pinned down the corn issues. That and doing an internet search for hidden sources of corn. It is literally in virtually every processed product or is used in making the product somehow.
  • dustynbob
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    Hi;
    I got very sick in March and almost died. I had uncontrolable diarrhea; fever, enlarged liver and kidney's. The doctors did nto think i would pull through. I was sick for 3 months, went on just tea and broth. They finally sent me to a GI specialist. I tested positve for celiac, but he didn't think that was my only problem. He did a fructose malabsorbtion test and i was the highest result he had ever seen.
    Long story short, i am on a fructose free and gluten free diet. Wheat turns to sugar (fructose) int he small intestines so everyone who is fructose intollerent needs to be completely wheat free and preferably gluten free. FM is fairly new diagnosis. Two books, wheat belly and tace your genes to health will help you.
    i dont 'have much time now. The diet you should be on according to my dr is high protein, low carbs, no fructose and no gluten. I dont know how you can do this without meat for the B12 and omega 3's. Maybe eggs.
    Also as for milk, i was tested psotive for milk allergies, however i can drink and thrive on A2A2 raw milk.
    Check out rawmilk.com and drmercola.com as they are very knowlegeable.
  • ickybubble
    ickybubble Posts: 18 Member
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    Hey thanks for sharing that with us =) I am glad to hear you pulled through, do you still get any reactions from food now?

    What I have come to learn is that majority of people suffer from different things. Every individual has to figure out what they can't consume. I am very similar to my brother in every way, but there are things I can eat that he can't, it may be because his body is in a worse state than mine. On the whole there are set things that are a definite no to eat, like you said with wheat and gluten, but there are different levels of sensitivity and intolerances. Some of us are just bombarded with the whole damn package :(
    For me and my brother also our bodies currently wont absorb b12 at all and thats the problem, even pills and shots wouldn't work, so fixing my dietary needs is essential. Also fasting is a great way to let your body heal and renew itself.
    There are two types of B12 deficiancy, one being your body will not absorb it at all and will slowly malnurish you, and the other is just you don't have enough of it. You get plenty enough from you veggies and what not if your body will take it. B12 deficiancy is usually caused by other problems you suffer from, like being ceoliac or HFI and eating foods you shouldn't for a while, which eventually will cause your body to stop absorbing it.

    Here is a vegan thread of the b12 thing if anyone is interested.. Eating meat was actually making me really ill, but that may be down to my blood type and all the gmo's also.
    http://www.rawfoodexplained.com/why-we-should-not-eat-meat/vitamin-b12.html
  • ickybubble
    ickybubble Posts: 18 Member
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    2 years ago we did a whole family food restriction thing (not sure what the right name is). For a two weeks I cut out everything except for meat, veggies, fruit and milk (for the kids only). We did not eat any processed or packaged foods especially no grains. This is how we finally pinned down the corn issues. That and doing an internet search for hidden sources of corn. It is literally in virtually every processed product or is used in making the product somehow.

    Well your not wrong ;) It really is in a lot of processed foods, it is a hard lifestyle to live as you just can't trust packaged foods. I would love to grow my own fruit and veg, but its usually cold and raining here and I don't have a garden at the moment.
    And I love to buy organic but it can be so expensive!
    In the UK I don't think its quite as bad for corn syrup as it is in America, as my friend lives there and says it is in everything!
    Where do you live (if you don't mind me asking!)?
    You really do have to do your research with these situations as its a crazy world we live in! I will try and read as much as I can from every point of view just to make sure I am learning the correct information ( plus its always good to know both sides to everything for good judgement).
    Do you think its just corn, have you guys had any problems after cutting it out?
  • ickybubble
    ickybubble Posts: 18 Member
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    Also as for milk, i was tested psotive for milk allergies, however i can drink and thrive on A2A2 raw milk.
    Check out rawmilk.com and drmercola.com as they are very knowlegeable.

    Can you eat nuts? nut milks are really nice, I can only have a tiny amount as I'm not so great with them. And oat milk is good, but I recently discovered after a lot of trial and error that I can't eat oats either :(
  • SarahAFerguson
    SarahAFerguson Posts: 250 Member
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    2 years ago we did a whole family food restriction thing (not sure what the right name is). For a two weeks I cut out everything except for meat, veggies, fruit and milk (for the kids only). We did not eat any processed or packaged foods especially no grains. This is how we finally pinned down the corn issues. That and doing an internet search for hidden sources of corn. It is literally in virtually every processed product or is used in making the product somehow.

    Well your not wrong ;) It really is in a lot of processed foods, it is a hard lifestyle to live as you just can't trust packaged foods. I would love to grow my own fruit and veg, but its usually cold and raining here and I don't have a garden at the moment.
    And I love to buy organic but it can be so expensive!
    In the UK I don't think its quite as bad for corn syrup as it is in America, as my friend lives there and says it is in everything!
    Where do you live (if you don't mind me asking!)?
    You really do have to do your research with these situations as its a crazy world we live in! I will try and read as much as I can from every point of view just to make sure I am learning the correct information ( plus its always good to know both sides to everything for good judgement).
    Do you think its just corn, have you guys had any problems after cutting it out?

    I'm in Canada. The corn situation is not so bad here as in the US. My sister lives just over the border and she reports that food quality over there is terrible. Every thing seems to be a lot cheaper though, so I guess it is a case of you get what you pay for.

    I'm not at all sure that it is just a corn issue. My daughter is also off dairy of any kind although it doesn't seem to bother her Dad as much. Even with her restrictions she has a very poor bowel control, which was the reason I took her off milk in the first place. She had terrible exema prior to cutting the corn. Now it is completely gone so that is one bright spot.
  • dustynbob
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    No, nut allergies. We live on a farm so i am able to make all my own condiments, etc from our own garden and the livestock. I make meat juices as well.
  • dustynbob
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    do you still get any reactions from food now?


    Oh yes, very badly. Have had migraines and diarrhea for about a week now from something i ate. fructose usually causes migraines, but the gut issues come in after 3-5 days.
  • ginnyginya
    ginnyginya Posts: 4 Member
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    Hi there, I'm in NZ and have had tests to confirm Fructose Intolerance (also cant eat eggs and few other things), and just in case no-one mentioned this before, we get advised to follow the FODMAP diet (you can find it on google) and its really helpful... it lists all the foods that you expect but also many more people don't realise e.g. garlic, onion, fruits including watermelon, vegetables such as mushrooms. Thought it might help if you haven't seen it before. :smile:
  • SarahAFerguson
    SarahAFerguson Posts: 250 Member
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    Thanks for the info. I will check it out.
  • cherilea33
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    Many moons ago I had a test at the gastroenterologist. He tested me for lactose, glucose, fructose and a swallowing disorder. I tested positive for fructose intolerance and dysfunctional swallowing (muscles fire in the wrong order in my esophogaus). I was given the booklet from the University of Iowa and read what I could eat. Since I pretty much couldn't eat anything I gave up. I grew up with a mom who didn't cook from scratch and honestly I was fearful of new vegetables.
    Recently my body mentally said enough. I have cleaned up my diet and gone from drinking 4 or more liters of diet pepsi a day and eating almost nothing but cheese, onions, chips and salsa to a raw food diet. I felt great at first. While searching for recipes I came across a page for fructose malabsorption (when I was dx'd it was called dietary fructose intolerance). When I saw that I was like oh yeah that's why I don't feel as good as I first did. I have been eating primarily fruits so now I'm am trying to transition away from fruits as the focus. On the days I do well I look and fell like I lost 10 lbs overnight due to the lack of bloating.
    Wish you all the best in your journey I know it's not easy.
  • quikbite
    quikbite Posts: 4
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    There is a Glucose, Fructose, and Lactose intolerance breathing test you can get done. I discovered this at Mayo this past May. Each test takes about 3 hours and involves drinking a beverage, eating only plain chicken (with salt/pepper) the day before and fasting right before the test. To know for sure - I highly recommend 1 or all of these tests.
  • quikbite
    quikbite Posts: 4
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    Wow - that is excellent you are making your own sauces. You wouldn't happen to have one for BBQ sauce that is sweet without any sugar or stevia would you? (my most missed condiment :-))

    As for those of you that live in cold climates but would love a garden - because eating fresh is expensive! Try a hydroponics garden in your home (or greenhouse). If you live in a desert, like I do, the added moisture in the home really helps.