If you are allergic to fruits/vegetables then why?

Question

I am a vegetarian and am allergic to fruits and vegetables (which means I pretty much live on peanut butter and refried beans, vegetarian ones of course) My question, why can I eat vegetables that are cooked or soaked in vinegar (like cucumbers in vinegar?) Does anyone else have this problem? Thank you and God bless!

Answer 1

I sure do have that problem, and I only found out about it after being a vegetarian for five years. It is an allergy to salicylates, which are found in aspirin and many analgesics, as well as in all colored fruits and vegetables and spices. If you can eat some that are cooked, it is only because the cooking dilutes the salicylates, but it is actually better to avoid them.

I stick to bananas, yellow apples, potatoes, leeks, chayote squash, cabbage, string beans, peas, lettuce, beans, lentils, some corn, shallots instead of onions, and only malt vinegar.

I use some great nutritional supplements for balanced vitamin, mineral, protein, fiber, and antioxidant sources. I can truly say that since starting this, I have never been healthier of felt better.

Answer 2

With all due respect to the previous poster, you have the classic symptoms of oral allergy syndrome.  Good for you, I also have this.  What really tips me off is the fact that you can eat cooked and pickled vegetables that you are otherwise allergic to (which is not typically the case with someone with a Salicylate sensitivity). The only thing you failed to mention is if you have other allergies as well. If so, you definitely have it.

Oral allergy syndrome is a secondary allergy that most people develop as they get older.  If you have an allergy to, say, ragweed, over time your immune system may become increasingly sensitized to fruits and vegetables that contain protiens similar to the protiens in ragweed.  The same thing can happen for a grass, birch, alder and other pollen allergies.  You will typically only have a to these things if you ingest them.

OK, so why do you not have a reaction if the item is cooked or pickled?  Because heating and pickling an item denaturalizes the protien (or breaks it down). So tada, you can't eat tomatoes but you can eat ketchup.  You can't eat oranges, but you can't eat pastuerized orange juice (but not fresh orange juice).  You can't eat cucumbers, but you can eat pickles.  And the list goes on.

Now for treatment.  This is a VERY tricky illness for three reasons (1) it tends to get worse, so something you ate your whole life you suddenly can't eat anymore.  (2) Because the reaction is on the molecular level, you usually can't predict what you are allergic to. For example, I an eat McIntosh apples but not Golden Delicious. This makes the illness frustrating.  (3) It takes out a major foods that are essential for good health. So what are the solutions/treatments?

1 - It is worth you while to sit down and really figure out what you are allergic to.  You are only eating a handful of foods, but I garuntee you have cut out things that you can probably eat.  Like you can probably eat raisins, even if you can't eat grapes, and you can probably eat blueberries even though you can't eat strawberries.  If you ony have mild reactions (vomiting, nauseu, itching on the inside of your head - I know that doesn't sound mild, but they are not life-threatening) you may want to eat literally a pin-head size of a fruit you aren't sure about.  If your tongue starts buzzing you are allergic. If not, try a little more.  You may be surprised.  This will greatly increase the number of foods you are eating.

2 - Some vegetables can be steamed and still maintain alot of their nutritional value, but still not cause a reaction.  I understand if you are avoiding canned/cooked veggies, since they tend to be high in salt and fat.

3 - Do reasearch online to deduce what you are actually allergic too.  For example if you have a regwee allergy then you will be allergic to banana, cantaloupe, cucumber, and honey dew.  But not necessarily strawberries.  If you have more than one allergy then if may be a little more tricky.

4 - You can get allergy desensitization immunotherapy, or regular shots of the things you are allergic so your immune system doesn't react anymore.  As I said, your body will only react if you ingest it, so the shots won't hurt you.

Hope this helps.

Answer 3

The person before me was right.  It definitely sounds like oral allergy syndrome.  I used to have it also.  I was allergic to nearly all raw fruits and vegetables.  Even getting the juice on my skin made me break out in a rash.  I went to an allergist and had desensitization shots for my pollen allergies.  After being on the shots for five years, my allergy to raw fruits and vegetable went away!  Now I can even eat salad and watermelon.