Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Katejo]

Hi
I am 51 and close to menopause in that i haven't had a period since February and that was very light. Before that I had had gaps of 6-7 months at a time. I have had hay fever for a few years and my skin has always been sensitive to some metal (eg. like earring studs). Then in June I got a sudden attack of hives which lasted about 3 days. Then 1 Sunday in late June I woke up and found that I had a tight feeling at the base of my throat and my chest. I thought i was getting a cold but it didn't develop until 2 weeks later when i got a throat infection which took a long time to clear up. Since then I have still had this tight sensation and the feeling that my muscles are really working when i raise my voice. I have been to the doctor twice and had blood tests and a chest xray but nothing wrong was found. If I take an anti histamine, the irritation in the throat and slightly bunged feeling do improve. It was also better when i was away on holiday (reduced stress, more fresh air?). I do have a  longstanding problem with muscle tension across my back/shoulders and have been doing muscle stretching in the gym. I also have underactive thyroid. That is under control but my throat has been sensitive to irritation since i had the thyroid op nearly 10 years ago.
Would just like to hear from anyone who has had similar increased allergies.  I haven't tried HRT as yet.

[Joyce]

Not allergies, but increased intolerances to certain foods.  The things they never told us about aging! 

[cherylks]

Interesting, cos I have had the opposite happen.  Am 50 and well into peri.  Have been allergic to certain fruits and nuts since teen years.  Apples being one of them.  Mouth and throat would itch and swell and skin would itch and rash if touched (inner part of apple not the skin).  Anyway, every couple of years I would do a test.  I would literally just let my tongue rest on a piece of apple (and would know within 30 seconds if still allergic).  Last year tried again cos we are growing our own apples and husband commented on how nice they were.  I did the lick test - no reaction.  A few days later I tried again etc and basically I can now eat all apples and pears.  Haven't tried cherries as they gave most severe reaction but am looking at other fruit again.  Guess we are all different.

[Ju Ju]

I had severe asthmatic, eczema and hay fever as a child and was allergic to numerous things, but with age these allergies have disappeared. I am not prepared to test a few of these allergens though as they were potentially life threatening at the time. I still have asthma and eczema, but infection is a problem with the former and cold weather with the latter. I did have problems with various food intolerances though during the peri menopause stage, but this has eased to some extent now I am post menopausal. I still have milder reactions, so still have to be careful. I had never thought about a hormonal connection before.

[cherylks]

Sparkle, I was exactly the same.  Couldn't eat raw apples, pears, cherries, oranges (cant remember others) but could eat any of them if cooked.  Could also eat tinned varieties.  Most fruit juice I could also have but one particular apple juice I couldn't (probably the only one that really was only apple juice!).  Someone told me it was to do with stoned or pipped fruit but the idea of oral allergy syndrome makes sense!  I agree with the comment that you have to be so careful about trying something to see if still allergic.  Depends on seriousness of the reaction.  I am able to eat peanuts but not other nuts.  However, on one occasion apparently I ate too many peanuts (snickers bar followed by crunchy nut cornflakes and ended up with a rash from head to toe!  Horrible!!  Walnuts are the worst and would have me in hospital.  All strange. x

[CLKD]

Onions - have been allergic for years (since aged about 9) and I love 'em.  If they are boiled for hours I can tolerate them otherwise 

[CLKD]

Yep.  I have to be careful when eating out.  So many made up sandwiches have them in.  Chutneys are OK so it must be that the poison is boiled out, I make a Tibetan recipe with onions as the main ingredient plus a tin of tomatoes - boiled for several hours then left to go cold - that's OK too.

[cherylks]

The nut allergy works the same as fruit with me.  I.e. if cooked am ok.  Other than walnuts which I can't have in any form.  But other nuts are ok in cooked, tinned foods just not raw.  So not so difficult to avoid.

[Rowan]

I saw an Immunologist two weeks ago and had the skin **** test, I tested positive for 10 allergies, the worse being Birch, hazelnuts, almonds, house dust and cats.

I have to avoid every thing that cross reacts too, but can eat cooked except celery you can react to that raw or cooked  http://www.healwithfood.org/allergicrhinitis/birch-pollen-foods-avoid-list.php

I have been put on the three year sensitisation program, that consists of vaccine injection weekly for 12 weeks and then every 3 months for three years, daunting!!!

When I asked if it included  vaccine for cats he said no, you can avoid cats but not Birch. Apparently they have to make up the vaccines, so am waiting for my appointment to start. I am a bit apprehensive as was told I have to stay in the hospital for an hour after injection just in case there is any reaction. 

I had a severe reaction to eating hazel nuts three months ago which landed me in in A&E with very swollen lips, I was given an adrenal injection.

The nurse told me they were seeing more and more allergy cases, also that anyone can become allergic to anything at anytime.

Since I have avoided all nuts I have felt better and not had the ****ling lips and scratchy throat.

I have also bought an air purifier/ioniser for bedroom.

[dahliagirl]

I have oral allergy syndrome and only just discovered it this year.

I have had hay fever for the last 15-20 years and only recently linked it to silver birch pollen.  Then this year, I had one or two much bigger reactions and now realise that itchy mouth and sore throats over the years have been OAS.

I have a growing list which includes:

Apples, peaches/nectarines, pears, cherries, gooseberries, carrots,  home grown tomatoes, hazlenuts, almonds, peanuts, Waitrose onion bhajis, M&S pear and raspberry juice, M&S chocolates with nuts on, sachets of green tea with lemon in hotels (liptons and pickwick; twinnings is ok). Peeling potatoes makes me sneeze violently and I end up with lumpy tonsils and swollen glands.

I am not sure if this is menopause, or the fact that the 4 silver birch trees in the garden have grown a lot over the last 20 years.  I suspect that tonsilitis I had when I was 19 was the result of eating peanuts.

http://www.allergyuk.org/oral-allergy-syndrome/oral-allergy-syndrome

[Rowan]

Had my first injection she took my blood pressure after she had told me that there had been some deaths, it was high no wonder. I am not sure if I can make the commitment needed for this treatment especially when I read that it is not for anyone under five or over fifty.

http://www.allergy-clinic.co.uk/more-about-allergy/desensitization-immunotherapy/

Going to think about this and decide at my next appointment on Tuesday
 
I had to take antihistamine before the injection and do the peak flow test and then wait to see if there was a reaction, they said don't worry we have all the equipment for resuscitation at hand so don't wander off

I am beginning to think that this treatment is for people who are much worse then me.

Woke up with a panic attack last night the first for over three years, the worst worry for me was that my blood pressure was high that bothered me more then anything, I hate hospitals and have white coat syndrome, and the thought of going to one each week for 15 weeks and then every two weeks is putting me into a panic.

Not sure what to do at the moment.

Will post this in the "Allergies" ad not sure if this is the right thread.

[dahliagirl]

It does look daunting when you read it.

http://www.allergyuk.org/the-management-of-allergy/immunotherapy

This is a bit more encouraging - it says:  modern immunotherapy vaccines have a good safety record.

Is there a yoga/destressy-type activity you could go to after your appointments? Or a relaxation tape you could listen to in the waiting room?  It would be a shame to give it up when you have braved the first appointment.  Hopefully, when the injections are behind you and the silver birches are preparing to shed their pollen everywhere it can go, you will feel it was worthwhile.

[Rowan]

What concerns me Dahliagirl is this

"All immunotherapy carries a degree of risk, is time-consuming and expensive. In the UK, it is generally reserved for patients with specific, severe allergies, particularly:
•treatment of potentially life-threatening allergic reactions to bee and wasp stings
•allergic rhinitis (hay fever) where symptoms are severe"

My symptoms have never been severe, I don't take medication all the time and this year symptoms have been mild, I did have lip swelling from hazelnuts a couple of months ago, hard to understand as I have eaten them in the past with no reaction, and the results of the skin **** tests

The age limits concern me too, the nurse didn't have my records to hand and seemed surprised that I did not have an EpiPen.

What I think I will do is have a think, try and make an appointment with my doctor before next Tuesday and go through my concerns with her.

Three years seems an awful long time for it to feel worth while  especially as the hospital is not local, I wonder if the Immunologist though this one might comply

[dahliagirl]

A good doctor to talk to is worth a lot.  I would be really worried about doing it if I had a life-threatening allergic reaction to bee stings.


I have variable responses to things like hazlenuts and almonds, and I think the variety may has something to do with it.  Some hazlenuts with shells on I bought last Christmas were so bad, I thought there was something wrong with them and didn't dare even give them to the birds.  Almonds are usually ok cooked, but I made a chocolate cake with ground almonds and got a sore throat. 

I have never noticed problems with peaches/nectarines until I had a pretty red one in Bruges that made my top lip swell up and gave me a 'trout pout'.  Interesting apples from waitrose have proved a problem, and a long thin carrot, lightly cooked in Holland gave me a very worrying swollen throat (probably not helped by drinking wine - unless it was the wine  )  Never had a problem with carrots before or since, unless you count rubbing my eye after peeling them.....

[Rowan]

"Trough pout" is exactly what happened, I think knowing what to avoid is half way to controlling reactions.

It was rather fetching and gave me ideas about fillers