<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> I suppose I could summarize this easily by saying there were yeas and nays re allergy testing. However, the many responses I received were so interesting and varied, and included such interesting information, that I have included lots of copy/paste. I know it's long, but hope everyone will find it of interest. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- My Allergist told me that there is not a reliable test for food allergies. He stated however, that there is a relationship between allergies and air- borne allergies. Example if one allergic to mold in the air, then they should avoid foods that contain mold (certain cheeses, watermelon, cantaloupe, and many other foods). -------------------------------------------------------------------------- You probably have food intolerances and not food allergies and testing for food allergies is not accurate. I suggest doing an elimination diet. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- My food allergies, including gluten, were diagnosed with an IGg blood test that measured sensitivity to 91 (I think) common food allergens. After more than a year of getting good and GF living and then trying my limits on the other things that showed up, I'd say the test was pretty accurate in my case. I'm doing better than ever in many respects, although I must say the GF thing has got to be the most difficult and challenging thing I've ever undertaken. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- In addition to Gluten, most of the foods contained gluten such as rye, soy protein, The main ones that didn't were garlic, spinach, asparagus,corn,all cow milk products,and peanuts. I definitely feel better. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- I used Serimmune PHysicians ELISA test. THey test against 300+ things - food and chemicals. They give you a comprehensive report and a nutritionist counseling for free ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- These are the URLs I've collected This is best known lab: http://www.immunolabs.com/ http://www.betterhealthusa.com/home.htm http://www.drbralyallergyrelief.com/ (First is for doctors, second for consumers, and third is by their medical director.) Then on the MS list they are recommending (which is cheaper and less accurate than the above): http://www.tahomaclinic.com/ (then click on Meridian Valley Laboratory along the left) And there are other labs, like: http://www.gsdl.com/services/compallergyprofile.html http://www.foodallergy.com/ But at least the first lab is not allowed to do business in NY state. Possibly none of the labs are. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I spoke to Dr. Murray at the International Conference on CD, and he told me that there is no scientific evidence that food allergy testing works, (I had the blood antibody testing done). It showed that I had numerous allergies and going off the foods helped me tremendously. He said that my gut could still be damaged, and I wasn't digesting the foods, and that is why I improved when I stopped eating them. I am waiting for my antibody results to see if I still have intestinal damage, and will go from there. The lab I used has a money back guarantee if you don't get better within 3 months. (I found this amazing). Better Health U.S.A. 1-800-684-2231. Their web site is www.betterhealthusa.com ... I don't know what to tell you. Prior to my discussion with Dr. Murray, I swore by Better Health, because they made such a drastic change in my life. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- For the last five years, when it became obvious to me that my symptoms were food related, I began to question my doctors about food allergies. To my surprise, most of them denied that there was such a thing as being allergic to food, some minimized food allergies and the rest said that there was no reliable method for testing. I finally found a doctor, a naturopathic MD who agreed that there were food allergies and put me on an elimination diet. All food intake is stopped, only distilled water is taken at first and foods are introduced one at a time. It was hard to do, but I learned which foods I was allergic,or sensitive, to and eliminated them from my diet. I improved greatly by dropping wheat, corn, dairy, black pepper and refined sugar from my diet. No doctor recommended enzymes, but I started taking papain tablets anyway and it seems to help. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I do know that nuts and seeds make me very hyper. I never had problems with food like this before getting sick with celiac sprue. Some foods I can tell fairly quickly, like soy. I eat something with soy in it and within several hours I have these tiny, black, raised spots in the inside of my mouth. Now, with eggs I really can't tell. It seems I get kind of ill feeling after eating them. Lactose creates an instant winner...... diarrhea and lots of gas. The elimination diet is tough. There are lots of books out on it, but what I do is stick to a diet that I know doesn't cause problems, then add ONE thing in to see how I react. Wait a few days, then repeat with something else. It took me a couple of years to start feeling that I was healing. One thing that has made a huge difference in myhealth and digestion (same thing, huh?), is a yogurt-like drink called Kefir. There is one brand that I have found that is gf, doesn't contain any lactose due to the fermentation process, and is loaded with probiotics (the good bacteria that you want in your gastro system). The name of the brand is "Lifeway". I buy it at Whole Foods. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- There is a company in Florida, American Testing Lab, 954 923 2990 that does food intolerance testing all over the country. You may want to contact them. I found out that I have other allergies. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I am in the middle of a long procedure called the food allergy elimination diet which my allergist said was the only way to truly find out what you are allergic to. He said that all the other tests have so many false positives and false negatives that he found them to be unproductive. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I have used pancreatin for 5 years made from KAL. It has greatly increased my energy as well as helping to digest me food! ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I had food allergy testing done by Great Smokies Diagnostic Labaratory in parallel to my Celiac Disease testing. The latter turned up positive by biopsy, so I was interested when the food allergy report came back to see confirmation. Instead, the results were comical. I got a very pretty report -- lots of colors and graphs -- but the food listings were absurd. Wheat was shown as the fifth best thing I could eat. The top four foods, which they recommended restricting my diet to, were Lactalbumin, yogurt, sardines, and alfalfa. Dairy products bother me a lot (which I now understand is normal for CD victims), so this would not be a practical diet. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Since undertaking a course of Nystatin treatment for about 3 months and cutting out all nightshade, all dairy, all fungi (including yeast), all alcohol, and all sugar my problems with undigested food have basically cleared up. I am, however, far from happy with the state of my gut, and am continuing to pursue health in that department. I have been told by several allergists that testing for food allergies is a futile business, and since my adventure with wheat testing (I tested positive, but not for the gluten factor, which was not included in the chemical smaple of wheat!, though I am highly gluten intolerant.) I believe that elimination diet and careful observation of foods and their effect is the only way to control allergies and manage sensitivities. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I would recommend being tested - the skin tests are supposed ot be more sensitive, but a RAST test work as well. There are a lot of false positives as well as false negatives. There are also non-IgE intolerances that won't be picked up. What you might consider to start with is a food diary. List every thing - broken down into ingredients - and see if you see and symptomatic pattern emerge. If you have suspicions of certain things you could try an elimination diet and challenge. Be aware that some things like dairy hide in the most insidious places and you have to know all the names of ingredients. Corn and soy are also this way. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I would definitely avoid the Great Smokies Lab. I heard that was the best one, so I was tested. Everything that I KNOW I am allergic/sensitive/intolerant to showed-up as negative. The things I don't have a problem with, showed-up positive. They say that what you are tested on is what you have ingested in the last six months. So, when they said I was allergic to oysters I certainly questioned that. I haven't had any oysters, or anything in that food family for 20 years. On the other hand, when I eat soy I immediately have a reaction with mouth sores. They said I wasn't allergic to soy. The whole thing was a waste of money. My doctor said the best way to find out about food allergies is to do an elimination test. I know that wheat/gluten (naturally) is a definite. The others are: soy, nuts, seeds, citus fruit, lactose and, possibly, eggs. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I'm allergic to 40+ foods. Some were identified by standard skin testing. If you have that done, you must be off all antihistimines for 7 days prior to the test (but it is ok to take prednisone for hives, if necessary). The extracts used for skin testing must be fresh or you can get false negative test results. I was still getting intermittent symptoms after eliminating the foods identified by the skin tests (wheat, corn, pork, soy, turkey, apples, grapes, nuts, shellfish, etc etc) so my allergist offered to skin test me with fresh foods. I brought 2 small coolers of every food I wanted to be tested for - about 65 foods total. The technician would scrape a place on my back then scrape the food and rub the edge of the needle on the skin scratch area. After 15min, she looked for redness or swelling. My physician acted as my 'control' - in other words - every food I got a test for - she got one too. She has no known food allergies and did not react to a single one. What a site we made in the exam room! The bill to my insurance company was over $800, but my share was only 10% of that - and it was well worth it. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- I recommend a book which your local libraries might carry. It is called: 'MS Something Can Be Done and You Can Do It'. By Robert W. Soll, M.D., PhD., and Penelope B. Grenoble, PhD. It is published by Contemporary Books, Inc., Chicago, 1984. ISBN 0-8092-5469-7. It connects MS with food allergies, and contains simple methods you can use at home for testing allergies in your own diet. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- As far as food allergies...you may very well have some additional problems. I am allergic to dairy, eggs, peanut/legume, tomato, shellfish and fish in addition to being gluten intolerant...The symptoms are similar for each of those as are my CD symptoms...diarrhea, abdominal cramping, etc...I also have environmental allergies which I am taking shots for (dust, cat, dog, mold, etc). I highly recommend that you find a good allergist and get tested...some test by injecting a small amount of the offending item under the skin..others do scratch tests....or you can have a RAST or ELISA blood panel done and run for those foods...different drs do different things...you'll just have to ask around... Hope this summary was of interest. Latimer --- --- [log in to unmask] --- EarthLink: It's your Internet.