Hives

[Tuni]

I'm on Day 12 of my Whole30. I've had terrible hives for the past two days.  The only new ingredient that I hadn't yet eaten during my Whole30 is a tiny (super tiny) bit of cilantro in one small bite of salsa yesterday for breakfast.  The hives showed up yesterday afternoon all over my body including my eyelids, arms, legs, torso, etc. I don't have any around my mouth.  I still have them today, although they seem to be a little better and are moving around.  The terrible ones from yesterday are gone, and new ones, in different areas, have taken their place.

 

I haven't had hives in over 26 years.

 

My daughter came over last night (she's on Day 11 of a Whole30) and I mentioned the hives to her, and she said "that's really weird, I have hives too!" and showed me the hives in the bend of her arms and legs.  We don't live together so it's not a matter of shared food or environment. Her hives aren't nearly as bad as mine (some of mine are 3-4 inches across, others are more like mosquito bites). I'm wondering if maybe this is part of the detox process.  When I searched, I found a few other posts about people getting hives around this same time in their Whole30, but most responses say it's not related to this challenge.  I'm beginning to wonder.

 

I am posting this both in hopes of getting some good ideas about how to get rid of these terrible things, and to provide a point of reference for future Whole30'ers who may have the same experience.

 

Tuni

 

[MeadowLily]

This may sound bizarre.... I have a friend who went to Phoenix from the wild west,  the Rockies.

She had to live there for 9 months.   She came home with the worst case of allergies and hives that did not leave her even after she moved away.   She came into contact will all sorts of new pollens, grasses, etc. from that region.

 

The fact that you both came down...makes me wonder if it's not completely 100% environmental and has nothing to do with your Whole 30.   My friend had to start taking allergy shots for years but finally just lived with it.

[Tuni]

This may sound bizarre.... I have a friend who went to Phoenix from the wild west,  the Rockies.

She had to live there for 9 months.   She came home with the worst case of allergies and hives that did not leave her even after she moved away.   She came into contact will all sorts of new pollens, grasses, etc. from that region.

 

The fact that you both came down...makes me wonder if it's not completely 100% environmental and has nothing to do with your Whole 30.   My friend had to start taking allergy shots for years but finally just lived with it.

 

Hmmm... I suppose anything is possible.  No one else in my family has them, and I haven't had hives in the 26 years I've lived here.  I used to occasionally get them when I lived in the midwest, but I was just a kid and don't recall if there was an identified reason for it.  It's weird.

 

Thanks for the reply!

[joobie73]

I started to develop a lacy red rash on my legs every time I started to do any running, biking or walking.  Once I cool down

it goes away.  I figured it was toxins leaving my body.  I also notice that my sweat really stinks now, which it didn't really before.

perhaps the hives are your body reaction to the changes you are making???

[MeadowLily]

If you're not sharing the same foods or household, I really can't think of a reason.

These foods are practically identical to what they prescribe for people with allergies when they're taking grains, dairy, etc out...to help someone heal.

 

What do you think it is...

[Deb.]

  I also notice that my sweat really stinks now, which it didn't really before.

 

Mine does too. Its the red meat I think. I didn't eat red meat for two years and I also didn't have to wear deodorant for two years. 

Interesting right? 

 

Tuni, my suspicion is that you and your daughter with similar genetic makeups, are going through a healing crisis with the changes you are making to your diet and in your body. See this explanation:

http://www.undergroundhealth.com/healing-crisis-when-its-good-to-feel-bad/

 

I would wait a few days and see how you do. In the meantime have a look at these natural remedies for hives:

http://www.earthclinic.com/cures/hives.html

[Tuni]

Mine does too. Its the red meat I think. I didn't eat red meat for two years and I also didn't have to wear deodorant for two years. 

Interesting right? 

 

Tuni, my suspicion is that you and your daughter with similar genetic makeups, are going through a healing crisis with the changes you are making to your diet and in your body. See this explanation:

http://www.undergroundhealth.com/healing-crisis-when-its-good-to-feel-bad/

 

I would wait a few days and see how you do. In the meantime have a look at these natural remedies for hives:

http://www.earthclinic.com/cures/hives.html

 

Thank you for the links Deb! The healing crisis article read like a laundry list of the symptoms I've been feeling since about day 6, so I think you may be right.  I'm going to continue to drink plenty of water and see if this resolves itself in the next couple of days.  Fortunately, other than the hives, I'm feeling much better than I was before I started the Whole30. I have more energy and my thoughts seem clearer, so that helps in dealing with this challenge.

 

Thanks again for the reply and links!

Tuni

[Tuni]

If you're not sharing the same foods or household, I really can't think of a reason.

These foods are practically identical to what they prescribe for people with allergies when they're taking grains, dairy, etc out...to help someone heal.

 

What do you think it is...

 

My first guess is that it's related to detoxing. A far second guess is that it could be the eggs. Neither my daughter or I ate many eggs prior to the Whole30. At least not for breakfast.  We were both big bakers though, so ate plenty of eggs baked in cakes, cookies, french toast, etc. (and, of course, in the batter for the goodies), so I'm not really thinking it's eggs.  It's a mystery to me.

 

I will keep track of my progress here so maybe someone else gets some benefit from the experience.

Thanks for the reply!

Tuni

[MeadowLily]

Tuni,

 

Maybe it is eggs.  If you were used to them being baked with flours..hmmmm.

 

You could both leave eggs out for awhile until the hives heal.   Then try them again.

[Tuni]

Tuni,

 

Maybe it is eggs.  If you were used to them being baked with flours..hmmmm.

 

You could both leave eggs out for awhile until the hives heal.   Then try them again.

 

It could be the eggs MeadowLily. I didn't have eggs today and my hives are definitely better tonight, not gone, but a LOT better. I'll go a few days without and then reintroduce to see what happens.  I have a week-long business trip that starts next week, so I'll probably wait to reintroduce until I get home next weekend. That way if they come back I can be miserable in peace . I'll post the results of my experiment once it's done.  Thanks for the support!

[MeadowLily]

Tuni....please do.  

 

Perhaps, eggs without flour are too much for your system.   I've been eating 3 eggs aday as part of my breakfast for 76 days.   I might even have a 4th one right at the beginning of supper.   It's my "horse-diver", hors d'oeuvres. 

 

I have no idea what I would've done without them.   Here's something "bizarre".....I've lowered my cholesterol eating 2 dozen eggs a week by 72 points.    I laugh myself silly just saying that.      

[GoJo09]

Some food reactions are dose dependent - I get hives if I eat two punnets of strawberries in one day, but if I eat a normal quantity of them, I have no reaction at all.

 

Definitely cut out the eggs and if your hives clear up, you might have your culprit. Then, once you're clear, start having just one egg every two days and see how you react, then up it to one every day, then two every second day, etc. You may find that 2 eggs every second day is fine, but 2 every day is not.

[Tuni]

Some food reactions are dose dependent - I get hives if I eat two punnets of strawberries in one day, but if I eat a normal quantity of them, I have no reaction at all.

 

Definitely cut out the eggs and if your hives clear up, you might have your culprit. Then, once you're clear, start having just one egg every two days and see how you react, then up it to one every day, then two every second day, etc. You may find that 2 eggs every second day is fine, but 2 every day is not.

GoJo09, that's a great idea! Thanks for the reintroduction strategy. I would have gotten back and jumped into a big plateful of eggs and if I had a reaction probably never would have eaten them again.  The idea of easing in and seeing if there is some level of eggs that my body will tolerate sounds like a great idea.  If I don't have a reaction, I will try cilantro again and see if it might have been that.  If I don't react to either, I guess I'll know it was a healing crisis.  I do seem to be dropping weight pretty quickly right now, so it makes sense that a lot of previously stored toxins are being released into my system.

 

My hives are finally easing up.  I still have a few small ones, but they are steadily getting better. Thanks again!

[Tuni]

I've slowly reintroduced eggs since getting home last weekend. I've now eaten them two days in a row and am still hive-free (thank goodness!!). Maybe it was just one of those freaky things, or a healing crisis as was mentioned as a possibility. Whatever the cause, I'm now on day 24 and feeling pretty great overall. I'll update if anything else relevent occurs.  Thanks again for all the support!