Monday, January 5, 2009

The Secret Revealed

All of you had great guesses, but the secret is......I recently found out that I have food allergies. I was breaking out in rashes frequently after meals and I couldn't figure out why. One afternoon, after eating lunch, the hives appeared again. The nutritionist that works next door did an allergy test, and it revealed that I am allergic to dairy, eggs, tuna, crab, sunflower seeds, peanuts, and almonds. I eliminated all of the allergens from my diet and I feel like a new woman! No more hives, and the daily stomach issues that I have had for years disappeared. I have been trying lots of Vegan recipes, some of which have been on my blog, and I really have enjoyed them. It has actually been fun to learn a new way of baking/cooking.

What does this mean for my blog? It won't change much. I will still be cooking and baking a variety of foods because my husband's diet won't be changing. My blog will continue to have the same content with the addition of some allergen free and vegan recipes. So....it will just be bigger and better! I would love any website suggestions or recipe suggestions to help me further learn how to construct my diet based on my food allergies!

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36 comments:

ChocolateCoveredVegan said...

Sounds like you're in for challenging times... but challenges are always fun! Plus, now you get to be creative, which can lead to some great new discoveries :o). Good luck! Oh, and stay warm!

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

As a gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free baker, I'm familiar with all of this, for sure - you know you have my support!! :-)

Anonymous said...

OMG Good thing they discovered what you are allergic to! Glad to hear you will not be hive free! :)

Mary H. said...

I'd love to see a post of non-recipe grab-and-go food that you turn to now that you have food allergies. Like what do you eat for breakfast? Or what do you grab for a snack during the day?

Reeni said...

I'm glad you found out the culprits. I'm also glad your feeling better! How are you doing finding things to eat? Eggs seem to be in so many foods!

AK Mom said...

I'm so glad to hear that you're feeling better after making the adjustments to your diet.
I look forward to seeing the new allergen free and vegan recipes, in addition to all the exceptional recipes that you always post, on your blog. :)

Barbara Bakes said...

It must be such a relief to know what was causing the problems. I look forward to all the new recipes!

Anonymous said...

There is so many vegan blogs out there for support I'm sure you will do fine. Can't wait to see the new eats =)

Bob said...

That's rough, but it's good you found it out. I'm glad you are feelin better. One of my nephews has food allergies, I'll ask my sister for some recipes and send them your way. :)

Zesty Cook said...

Good to hear Megan you are feeling better. I would love to support you in any recipe you need some options on...

zesty

Anonymous said...

Oh no! At least now you know!

My aunt grew up LOVING seafood, but in her mid-30's all of a sudden became allergic.

Joie de vivre said...

I'm so glad that you found this out and are feeling better.

Unknown said...

oh no!! the important thing is that you're feeling better... i know you'll still be cooking lots of great stuff though, so good luck :)

Creative One said...

You should be able to find all sorts of interesting and tasty things to make.

Anonymous said...

Awh, at least you know now! But those are so delicious things! LOL!

Anonymous said...

That is so wonderful that you found the source of your symptoms! You must feel tons better!

If you have any questions or need recipes, just let me know! I am always happy to help out. You will find quite a few recipes on my site www.godairyfree.org. All recipes are dairy-free and many are also egg-free and food allergy sensitive. My personal blog is of course dairy-free too :)

Unknown said...

definitely a great find... happy new year!!! :)

Shelby said...

Wow! Megan, now you definitely have more than one reason to use those Cherrybrook Farms cake mixes. ;)

I look forward to your new recipes!

stephchows said...

OH man!! What a bummer girl! I'm so glad you figured it out at least!

Maria said...

Sorry about your allergies! I hope you are feeling better and can adjust to your new foods! Time to try new things! yahoo!

Stephanie said...

Oh wow! I'm glad you were able to find out what was causing the hives and stomach problems. It sounds like you have a really good attitude about all this, and that's definitely going to help! Good luck!

Wandering Coyote said...

Ack - food allergies suck! But so do rashes! I'm glad you got it all sorted out.

The Peanut Butter Boy said...

That is too bad! I felt like crying for you when I read that you're allergic to peanuts =(. Sorry to hear about all these allergies, it's amazing how many foodies have allergies, maybe it's because we eat too much food? I'm sure your blog will be better because of it though, you'll become more creative and your dishes will be more inspiring to others in the same boat.

McKenzie said...

Hi Meg,

Thanks for stopping by my blog! It sounds like you have a lot of new considerations while cooking . . . but you have to be relieved to be feeling better! I'm cutting out dairy and wheat, so I'll be checking back for recipes!

Megan said...

The good news is that you will NOT be allergic to these things forever! As your body rebuilds and adapts, you'll be able to re-introduce these foods without the bad side effects.

HangryPants said...

Wow, it's great that you found this all out. Did you always get the hives or is it more recent.

My nephew is allergic to peanuts and sesame seeds, so I am always looking for new baking recipes that he can enjoy!

Gera@SweetsFoodsBlog said...

Hi Megan!

Glad to see you feel good again!
I've similar allergies especially with peanuts, sometimes with strawberry, orange and chocolate of course...
Keep up and love your blog !

Gera .:. sweetsfoods

Rebekah said...

Sorry to hear about the allergies. I am anxious though to see all the neat recipes you find and new ways to cook old favorites!!

A said...

Ah! CAn't you get allergy shots that help build an immunity towards foods?

I know my sister was very allergic to a lot of environmental things like grass, dust, mold, pollen, and with liek 2 years of allergy shots shes fine now

Lori said...

Wow, so glad you are feeling better. I'm sure it will be a challenge but you know you have a ton of support from the huge variety of food bloggers out there. Lots of options.

Anonymous said...

Wow - you're going to learn a whole new way of baking!

Anonymous said...

Good luck... I'd be distraught if I couldn't have dairy, peanuts or almonds in my diet.

Jennifer

Anonymous said...

Wow, Megan, I'm just catching up over here. Sorry about the allergies but glad you got on top of it!

But peanuts... oh, that would be hard.

At least pumpkin's not on the list!

Hang in there, pal!

priscilla joy said...

I am glad you found out the problem! Looking forward to your "new" kind of recipes!

Caitlin said...

I'm sorry to hear about your allergies but at least now you know. I have a bunch of weird ones too...most nuts, clove, cardamon, nutmeg...some fruits. It is no fun! But at least you know. Middle Eastern cuisine and Italian have tons of options excluding those ingredients!

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