Previously I wrote about going wheat, egg and MSG free for both my then 9yr old dd and myself. Although it helped a lot and she herself noticed that she felt better, she was not willing to give up her wheat. And to be honest, neither was I, especially since it made cooking so very difficult. So we went back to our normal diet.
However about 2 months back, she had it really bad. And nothing worked. Not the antihistamines, not the steriod creams. She was feeling and looking really miserable. By then, her face was affected as well.
So upon a recommendation by our chiropractor, we saw a holistic doctor, who upon seeing her condition, immediately said that she should take the IgG test. Now there are various types of tests in the market and none of them are 100% accurate. There are as many false positives as well as false negatives. But I must say that the skin patch test is the least accurate in my experience. Same with the skin prick test 
The IgG test requires very little blood – nurse pricks finger and squeezes out enough blood to cover 3 small strips of paper. It is then mailed to a lab in Australia and the results would be mailed back in 3 – 4 weeks’ time. The good thing about the test is that one can choose to test Asian or Western foods.
The results that met me were bad
She is highly allergic to :
- dairy (casein, cow’s milk, whey, yoghurt)
- garlic
- gluten, wheat
- mung bean
- soy
- oats
- chicken
- egg
She’s moderately allergic to :
- cashew nut
- codfish
- goose
- oyster
- peanut
- red bean
- rice
- sea bass
- sea perch
- tuna
SIGH……….
To say that thinking up of a menu plan that eliminated all these items is difficult is really understating it! So my trusty 2 week menu plan had to be re-worked.
But you know what’s the absolute worst part of eliminating all these allergens from our system? The detox effect. Where you feel awful before you feel better. We’re still in the awful stage And from what I have read even when one is seemingly over the hump and feeling better, one can suddenly start feeling worse again as more toxins get eliminated. Shudder!
Now this is where the mind comes into play. Are you sure it is working? Are you sure all this is worth it? What if the test is wrong? What it you are doing all this work and suffering for nothing? What if after weeks of eliminating these foods from our diet, the rashes are still here?
Well, I don’t know. I don’t know if it is correct. I don’t know if it will work. I don’t know if it is worth it and I don’t know if after weeks of elimination our rashes will disappear.
But I do know that I don’t want her or me taking drugs and this is our best bet (physically). I do know for sure that she is allergic to wheat but when I took her off wheat and dairy only she was still itching. Which meant that there were more allergens in her body that needed to be eliminated.
So this is where we are. End of Week 1 with an intense, horrible, drive-you-crazy itch the past 2 days.
Meanwhile, other things that are being done at the same time is to feed her Borage and Flaxseed Oil, coconut oil, Evening Primrose Oil, vitamin C, digestive enzymes and probiotics. She’s bathing in Physiogel. I wash her at least once a day with potassium permaganate (her sores are infected from incessant scratching) and then I oil her with coconut-cum-tea tree oil. I try very hard not to use elomet (steriod) that was prescribed to us the last time we saw a doctor at the National Skin Centre (who btw does not believe in food allergens or any skin tests). But on very itchy days, I do use it sparingly. I also try not to give her antihistamines since her body is obviously trying to purge itself. Oh and Witch Hazel has been a great help in soothing the itch. Yes, it stings when applied to broken skin but after that, the relief is shiok! 
Oh – and so what do we eat? Pork, beef, vegetables, potatoes, rice (as my mom would say, “We are Chinese, you know? 
) And everyone is put on the same diet coz I am so not cooking 2 different menus a day. Only for breakfast do the rest get their wheat, dairy and egg fix. Dd and I usually just drink a green smoothie (in my Blendtec) or I cook gluten free premix pancakes.
And why I am also putting myself on the same diet? Plagued by eczema since young in on-off bouts, I am having an on bout now So I figured that I might as well keep dd company and do a detox myself. This may sound warped but I am really glad that I am doing this with dd coz then I fully understand how she feels. You know, those who do not suffer from eczema or never have had to avoid allergenic foods are the ones offering the most well-intentioned but totally unusable advice And the amount of products they keep telling us to try!
I must say that one immediate benefit I have experienced is decreased post nasal drip when I lie down to sleep. Usually I would be coughing and needing to clear my throat a good 5 minutes or so the moment I lie down to sleep due to the post nasal drip irritating my throat. So even tho I am taking some milk in my coffee in the morning the nasal congestion has been reduced tremendously. And I don’t feel that foggy headed nowadays with the removal of wheat.
Like I told dh, we may all actually benefit going wheat, egg, soy and dairy free. I think we are overdosing on these items way too much in our regular diet. Why do I say that? Try looking for wheat free foods and you’ll suddenly realise that your range of choice diminishes drastically. And the only alternative is to cook everything from scratch yourself, to be very, very sure of the oingredients that goes into your meal. So there is a silver lining in all these developments – we are eating healthier.
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