Sudden Allergic Reaction

[Jenny324]

I'm in my last week of my first Whole30 and have been very happy with the results.  I'm feeling better, sleeping better, getting leaner.  On day 23, I noticed a bright red rash on my hip.  At first it seemed to just be an irritation, but was worse the next morning (day 24).  That evening, I noticed the same irritation on the top of one foot and ankle. I took a benadryl before bed, thinking it must be an allergic reaction to something.  My the morning of day 25 (yesterday) it was on the heal and palm of one hand and worse on my hip and foot.  So, off to Urgent Care I went where I was given a steroid shot and a 5-day dosepak of prednisone, which I started this morning.  The steroids seem to be helping.

However, I can think of nothing that has changed in my diet other than the foods I've eliminated. Nothing else has changed in my life-style.  No new lotions, detergents, etc.

Has anyone else experienced a reaction like this at this point in their Whole30?  I'm concerned about the steroids and what it will do to my final 5 days.  Is there anything I should watch out for?

[ladyshanny]

Hi @Jenny324 - I'm so sorry you experienced this! It likely has nothing to do with the foods you've been eating, especially if nothing has changed in the last 22-ish days. That said, sometimes people can reach a tolerance limit if they are eating a lot of something that they don't normally (ie, coconut products, eggs, avocados, etc). 

I would be very diligent about writing down the foods you're eating so that if this does happen again you have something to go back with and see if it is food related. 

Prednisone has some pretty unfortunate side effects so you might not be feeling top-shelf by the time you get to the end of your 30 days. If you're not feeling great I would probably wait on doing reintroductions until you get back to feeling well. 

[Jenny324]

Thank you @ladyshanny for the quick response.  I am keeping detailed food logs and will continue to monitor.  I'll review my notes again to see if any one thing jumps out more than another.

I'm enjoying this way of eating so much, I'm planning on continuing to follow this way of eating as my primary lifestyle with the occasional indulgence after I go through a reintroduction to determine if any specific food are an issue.

Prednisone tends to make me jittery and hungry - so I'm monitoring that closely as well.

Thank you!

[Saltex]

I'm sorry to hear about your troubles.

I followed Whole30 for four weeks strictly and had many good results--sleeping better, more focused, more energy, etc. After five weeks on Whole30 I also experienced a severe flare-up of my psoriasis, which previously had been moderate and only on my hands, elbows, knees, and feet.  Suddenly it is all over my body and much more severe--especially on my back, but also the entire torso, legs, arms, scalp--everywhere.  It's the worst I've ever had in my life.  The itching is terrible.  I could not wait another few weeks to see if it improved.  I read about autoimmune paleo or diet but symptoms have been so bad that I did not want to wait the several weeks it would take to see results.  I stopped Whole30 and went to my dermatologist, who agreed it was an "explosion."  I do not know why.  I am now taking two oral medications and hoping to see improvement.  I do not know why this happened or if it is related to Whole30, but it is the first time ever that I have had such severe symptoms.  It has been disappointing to me.  I am now eating a regular diet and trying to be very moderate in everything.  

My main reason for doing Whole30 was to see an improvement in my psoriasis.  Weight loss would have been an added bonus (and I did lose 9 lbs).  But this result was wholly unexpected and, though possibly not related to Whole30, it made me stop the program altogether.