CaseyD Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 I've been experimenting with foods I'd rather not eat anymore because of constant morning sickness. I've tried everything and I'm getting very desperate here, otherwise I wouldn't be reintroducing these foods. I'm curious, and I may be posting this in the wrong thread (sorry!), about what is going on here. I've tried reintroducing wheat and rice after many months of not having either, and I'm having reactions similar to the reaction I have with my pretty severe dairy allergy. Now, before I cut these grains out of my diet, I never had reactions that I was aware of, although I'm certain now these foods were hurting me. I started pulling them out, and then caving now and then during the first half of this year, only to have pretty mild reactions. Then, in June, I believe, I completely stopped eating wheat. In August, I stopped rice. Now, when I have either, I have major inflammation in my sinuses/ears so bad that I'm dizzy. This is how my milk allergy starts to manifest when I have a very small amount. But, when I ate the wheat, my stomach felt better for the first time in 4 weeks. So, I tried to bring wheat back into my diet gradually, just for the sake of surviving morning sickness. This isn't working because my reaction is not calming down. I have the same bad reaction each time I eat wheat or rice and it seems to build on itself. I have no choice but to stop this experiment and just be very sick. This was literally my last option. Oh, well. I'll live, but I just want to understand what is happening now when I used to eat wheat all the time and never had this happen. Is it possible to create an allergy by quitting foods you may have unknowingly been sensitive too? I'm really curious as to why this happened, mostly because this is building a case for my husband to not let our kids be paleo (he doesn't want me to cause them to have food allergies because he believes I created mine). I just want to understand this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bodygeek Posted November 7, 2012 Share Posted November 7, 2012 I think it happened to me too. I quit it all for months, and then when I picked an F/Off scale food to try out that had wheat, I got a migraine. Never happened to me because of gluten before. I can have a beer now and then without it happening, but that particular wheaty item (a special pastry from a special place) set me off. Most of the time when I eat off plan I get pretty sick and bloated. So I think we can create allergies out of nothing, but it's not technically a creation; it's our bodies finally having enough space from the low level constant inflammation that it can react... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa Urban Posted November 8, 2012 Share Posted November 8, 2012 You absolutely, positively cannot create an allergy or sensitivity to a particular food by taking it out of your diet. However, this is a relatively common phenomenon after something like the Whole30, for a few reasons. First, awareness. These foods were affecting you in a negative fashion when you used to eat them, but you didn't notice because you always just kind of felt a little crappy. The Whole30 brings you to an entirely new point in your health, and how you feel on a daily basis. It's like smokers who say they feel great, and then quit smoking, and then smoke another cigarette again a year later. That cigarette makes them feel like crap, not because they are now more sensitive to cigarette smoke, but because they are far more aware of how awful it's making them feel (compared to how good they've been feeling). Second, in the face of inflammatory, gut-disrupting foods, the body has some defense measures. Your gut flora change, and the mucus lining of your small intestine gets way thicker, as a buffer to try to protect your body against those inflammatory substances. When you remove them and allow the gut to heal, the body can relax. Flora restore to a normal, healthy balance, and the mucus lining sloughs off, as you no longer need it to protect your small intestine. So what happens, in the absence of these defense mechanisms, when you reintroduce that inflammatory food? It hits you twice, three times, four times as hard. Because the body isn't prepared for it, because it hasn't been exposed to it for such a long time. Reintroducing these foods so that your awareness disappears and your body starts to recreate these defense measures is not the answer. The answer is recognizing that, in the face of such serious reactions to a particular food, you should never eat that food. This is your body's way of saying this food makes you seriously less healthy. I'd pay attention now that you're able to listen. Best, Melissa Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heatherdarbs Posted November 8, 2012 Share Posted November 8, 2012 I reintroduced 1/3 cup of black beans yesterday and my body is reacting as if I had 20 bowls - I've been very uncomfortable for 2 days. I used to consume legumes all the time! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaseyD Posted November 8, 2012 Author Share Posted November 8, 2012 Thanks, Melissa. Someone once told me something similar in relation to my milk allergy after an accidental exposure caused me to have a much more severe reaction than I had ever had before, but I didn't quite understand the mechanics behind it. Thanks for explaining it. Reintroducing these foods so that your awareness disappears and your body starts to recreate these defense measures is not the answer. The answer is recognizing that, in the face of such serious reactions to a particular food, you should never eat that food. This is your body's way of saying this food makes you seriously less healthy. I'd pay attention now that you're able to listen. I do understand this, and I never really wanted to bring wheat back into my diet honestly. I think just being constantly sick has made me really desperate that I'm literally trying everything - even things I don't really want to do - just to get relief. But, yeah, the only good I see in this messy, dumb experiment is that now I know grains have to be 100% out of my diet, the way dairy is. So lesson learned. I'll be sooooo glad when this pregnancy sickness business is done with me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xandra Posted November 8, 2012 Share Posted November 8, 2012 Trying to figure out your "normal" dietary sensitivities while pregnant is almost impossible. Pickles and ice cream anyone? Your body is crazy during this time to begin with, constantly changing, and what works this week may not work next. Have you tried fresh lemon juice in water? Some people find that helps with morning sickness. So sorry, I know it's totally miserable but fortunately it usually passes by second trimester. Hang in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaseyD Posted November 8, 2012 Author Share Posted November 8, 2012 Oh yes, I've tried the citrus, peppermint tea, ginger, B6, magnesium, acupuncture (which is sometimes helpful), etc... I was completely blindsided this time. With my first, I had predictable morning and late afternoon sickness and the rest of the day I was fine. This time, it is constant and just crazy! I knew I was sensitive to wheat, rice, sugar and I suspected canola oil (though I never was really sure) before I got pregnant, I just thought because bread really helped the first time around, I might just go down that path. That was definitely not the right thing to do. But, I wanted to understand why my reaction to it has gotten worse, especially since my husband is trying to pull this, "see, I told you so" attitude on me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tasha Posted November 8, 2012 Share Posted November 8, 2012 B6 needs to be in combination with UNisom to be effective (or as a tablet of both, known as Diclectin in Canada). http://paleohacks.com/questions/87321/hyperemesis-gravidarum-tips#axzz2BbEh7mKx I was very sick with both pregnancies so I feel for you! I wasn't Paleo then either but I just coped by always keeping small nibbles of things in my stomach. I hope you feel better soon! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Amy Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 Howdy, new to posting but I've been reading along and just recently finished my first Whole30 (with very positive results, and similar extreme sensitivity upon reintroducing certain foods afterwards). Having been through a pregnancy where I never ever stopped being sick, ever ever ever, including the very morning I delivered my twins, I would simply offer the thought that you really have to separate out the fact of "morning" (ha!) sickness from the experience of food sensitivities. When you have the kind of "morning" sickness that just lasts and lasts, there may not be much you can do to alleviate it. There are lots of things people do (I had a long list but I've forgotten it in the last nine years - where did the time go?). But if you're gonna be sick, you're gonna be sick. It would be nice to attribute some of your misery to an eating plan, but you just got the kind of morning sickness that lasts all day this time. I would hope that your husband would stop with the "I told you so" stuff and start with the "let me do all the chores and childcare while you hang out in the bathroom" stuff - but whether or not that happens, at least give yourself a break emotionally. You didn't cause this pregnancy malaise by eating any one way or another, you just have nice healthy HCG levels. Sending calm tummy vibes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyS Posted November 19, 2012 Share Posted November 19, 2012 Me again, I didn't realize I hadn't registered. No longer a guest! Howdy y'all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennycash Posted January 24, 2013 Share Posted January 24, 2013 I know this is an old read, but I wanted to chime in... Hopefully your morning sickness has passed now. It sounds like you had/have Hyperemesis Gravidarum, an extreme form of pregnancy-related nausea, vomiting, weightless and inability to eat or drink. I had it with both of my pregnancies and was hospitalized and tube fed. It was awful, and I won't have anymore children (naturally, anyway) because I was so very sick. Anyway, you've probably pulled through by now, but I wanted to reach out in case you were still struggling, or anyone else faced something like HG. It can be completely debilitating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaseyD Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 Thanks. It has passed, luckily. It stopped just before New Years, so now I can actually stomach eating a variety of healthy foods again. And, I hear you on how this can make you want to never go through pregnancy again. That's pretty much my attitude at this point as well. I don't ever want to experience that again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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