So, after last week’s post that I was attempting to eat vegan to test my theory that if a chicken ate soy and then I ate soy, would it affect me like an allergy/intolerance, I woke up on Thursday looking like this:
Reaction from eating the plant family Pooideae
Ugly, cystic, red and painful…..the story of my life…..perhaps….until now. In the past 20 years, I’ve tested many theories about my allergies/intolerances, done many elimination diets, tried many products and seen many doctors. I already know that some of my intolerances don’t show up on allergy blood tests – tree nuts make my mouth swell up, but have never appeared; soy appears sometimes and not others. But this week, I think I finally had the epiphany I’ve been looking for. 2 years ago was when I had my last allergy test done. The only thing that came up was Kentucky Bluegrass – and it came up majorly high (which explained why when I went into my backyard barefoot, my feet itched for days). This was the first allergy test ever done on me that wasn’t just straight foods. So, I hit the internet (my blessing and my curse!) and found that many of the grasses are in the Pooideae family which also contains Kentucky Bluegrass. This week, I also suffered some majorly itchy ear reactions when I ate rye and oats and I had some tummy troubles after eating pasta several days in a row (trust me, you don’t want the details on that). In the past, my diets have been wheat free, but never gluten free or completely free of a certain family of grains. The Pooideae family includes wheat, rye, barley, oat, spelt and triticeae. Rice, Corn and Sugarcane fall into the large Poa family, but not the same subfamily. Well, I will tell you, that in the last few days, I’ve only eaten rice and corn as my grains and my face is clearing up and starting to look normal. I know what this means. It means a very restrictive diet. Been there, done that. It is a pain in the neck, but if it means I’ll feel better and not look like I have the measles, I’m in. Sign me up. So, it is back to Whole Foods I go to read label after label. And hopefully soon, I’ll be able to put up a Nice Face Picture rather than an Ugly Face Picture. On a side note, I must thank someone above for the blessing of Janet Sartin makeup because without it, I don’t think I would ever leave my house. They make skin care products for people with extremely sensitive skin and have been my saving grace/face for many years.
