Tank Girl Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 I'm going to go to the doctors about this, but I was wondering if there was anyone on here that suffers from allergies and could tell me if my suspicions are correct. For the last few months I have completely lost my appetite. I've lost probably about 2 stone in weight, I feel sick pretty much all the time as well as being sick every couple of weeks. I have really bad stomach pains, my bones click (esp. my hips), and I feel particularly ill after consuming milk, however this usually subsides within a couple of hours. My boyfriends sister is allergic to pretty much everything under the sun and she seems to think I've become lactose intolerant. Does anyone else suffer from these sorts of maladies? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nerd4lifee Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 well i personally am allergic to, well, nature, so i'm not quite sure ... here's a couple of websites that might be able to help you! http://www.essortment.com/lactose-intolerance-symptoms-youre-lactose-intolerant-26563.html http://www.lactoseintolerant.org/am-i-lactose-intolerant/identifying-lactose-intolerance/ however, the best way to get diagnosed would be through an allergy specialist! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tank Girl Posted March 15, 2011 Author Share Posted March 15, 2011 Thank you that's really helpful :) I'll definitely be visiting my doctors soon, even though they scare me! :O Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wembly Posted March 15, 2011 Share Posted March 15, 2011 Yeah, I'm sure the doctor will sort it all out for you but you might not necessarily be lactose intolerant so much as having other stomach issues like GERD or celiac or other such issues. I've got GERD, which is basically acid reflux, and I can't stomach milk but I'm technially not lactose intolerant since its just the fatty acids of the milk that are troubling me not so much the lactose in the milk. I've also developed some strange allergies that I can't find the exact cause of yet (case and point, the other day I dried my hands on a towel and broke out in hives all over my hands) and have to see an allergist eventually too but let us know what you find out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cornflakes Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 Hmmm... you should ask my good friend Rose, as she is experienced in these matters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noog Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 My friend is lactose intolerant and he gets really bad stomach cramps and has diarrhea after drinking milk. Not sure if that disturbing info helps at all. :worried: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rose_682 Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 Have you tried eliminating all milk from your diet? If it is a milk allergy, or lactose intolerance, you will see a significant improvement, if not a total eradication, of your symptoms. Milk allergies (such as mine, to a protein in the milk) are hard to work around, but really, it's not all that bad anymore, with all the milk alternatives (and there are so many it should not be hard to find at least ONE that you like). Eliminating milk from your diet means eliminating not only the dairy product itself (and cheese and the like) but also the following... Whey (and whey powder, etc, any form of whey) Casien (and Sodium Casienate) Modified milk ingredients (Duh) Caramel (made from/with milk) and usually malt, too, as well as lactose, ofc. However, I would also have your iron checked, for sure (I suffered from severely low iron and that alone blanketed most of the symptoms you mentioned. I suffered fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea (esp after I ate anything at all), felt sick a lot of the time, etc.) The clicking of the joints could be from just a lack of water below your joints. Drink more water. :P Also, talk to your doctor, because no one online is going to be able to help you at all as much as your physician. You may not like them, but they will be far more qualified to help you than any of us. Do try to eliminate milk from your diet in the mean time, and see if it makes a difference. If you need any ideas or recipes to make this easier, please feel free to contact me. I have been living a milk-free diet my whole life. (minus a couple years where I was able to enjoy anything before my allergies came back and kicked my butt really good) Also, try adding more iron to your diet. You may find you feel better after just a week or two. (I don't know when you are seeing your doctor, so I figured I would mention this). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tank Girl Posted March 16, 2011 Author Share Posted March 16, 2011 @Wemblin_wembly - You should probably see someone about that towel thing! Have you changed washing powders/fabric softeners recently?? @Rose - I got some soy milk yesterday (it tastes like old bread ¬_¬ ha) and I'm making sure not to eat anything with milk in it. Thanks for letting me know what else to avoid - I would never have known all that! I've been lactose-free since yesterday afternoon and so far today I haven't felt sick at all! Thanks so much for all your advice guys. I will definitely be seeing a doctor this week and hopefully he'll refer me to an allergist and get this sorted out! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Masaryk Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 I'm happy to hear that you are starting to feel better since cutting the milk from your diet. If you don't like soy milk, there are several other options available too. I don't enjoy the taste of cow's milk, so I buy almond milk. Yes, it tastes like almonds. There is also rice milk and hemp milk. I have known people who were allergic to cow's milk, but they could drink goat's milk, as an alternative. That might not work for you, depending on the scource of your allergy, but you could always ask the allergist about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wembly Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 @Wemblin_wembly - You should probably see someone about that towel thing! Have you changed washing powders/fabric softeners recently?? Nope, same everything washing wise and it was an old towel that had already been washed so apparently I am allergic to whatever someone else wiped the towel with :rolleyes_anim: joy. As far as the soy milk goes, I don't know if you got a flavored one, like vanilla or chocolate, apparently those taste better, but I personally like the original plain flavors but they do taste nothing like regular milk so once you resign yourself to that fact it might be easier. Or try a different brand, they don't all taste terrible. Also they taste the best when they are REALLY cold. I go with Silk for soy milk and Rice Dream for rice milk, I don't know if you have those where you're at. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tank Girl Posted March 16, 2011 Author Share Posted March 16, 2011 @Games Master Masaryk - I used to drink goats milk instead of cows milk a couple of years ago, it's much nicer in my opinion so I'd definitely be up for giving that a go! I don't know about almond milk though.. Got a sort of love/hate relationship with almonds :P haha. Rice milk sounds promising though :) @Wemblin_wembley - I pretty much live in the hippie capital of the UK and we have loads of vegan/health food shops around these parts so I'm sure I'll be able to find everything and then some :P I've tried Chocolate soy milk and that was nice, but I wouldn't put it on my cereal :/ ha. I'm sorry to hear about your allergy! That really sucks. Definitely go and see someone about it. I've never had hives but I'm guessing it's not very pleasant! Hope you can get it sorted x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Masaryk Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 Almonds tend to be a love/hate thing for a lot of people. I can completely understand that one. It's just nice to have a variety of options. On another note, I've never baked anything using a milk substitute. Anyone else have any experience with this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rose_682 Posted March 16, 2011 Share Posted March 16, 2011 I have! Being allergic to milk, I have had to use milk substitutes for everything. I LOVE baking, so it's not really that big a deal. For lighter baking (like pastries or crepes, for example) Rice Milk works the best. For anything else, soy or almond milk do the trick (they are heavier milks). I have never used hemp milk before. Don't know if it's even available here. Also have no idea if I can get my hands on goat milk here, but I can get real goat cheese, and there are a couple of companies looking at getting or making chocolate for me here in the Okanagan Valley, BC. So yeah, seriously, I'm a person you can ask just about anything about living without milk, because I do it on a daily basis. I'm glad to hear that you are not feeling sick today, after having gotten rid of the milk in your diet (or at least, probably most of it. :P. Margarine usually has it, some breads, most pre-processed foods, etc. You really have to read every ingredient if you want to eliminate all milk from your diet. >.<) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tank Girl Posted March 22, 2011 Author Share Posted March 22, 2011 I'm glad to hear that you are not feeling sick today, after having gotten rid of the milk in your diet (or at least, probably most of it. :P. Margarine usually has it, some breads, most pre-processed foods, etc. You really have to read every ingredient if you want to eliminate all milk from your diet. >.<) I've substituted my milk with soya and my butter with Vitalite, which isn't too bad. It's a bit rubbish that my boyfriend won a big box of chocolates at work the other day though and sits in front of me eating them ¬_¬ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rose_682 Posted March 23, 2011 Share Posted March 23, 2011 Oh that sucks. If we were allowed to send treats in the mail, I would send you some of the chocolate I can buy here. It's dark chocolate, but it's made with NO milk whatsoever, and I adore it when I am really craving something like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sakurabelle Posted March 27, 2011 Share Posted March 27, 2011 I was about to tell you about a place near where I live that makes vegan truffles but then I realized you live in the UK... So instead I googled vegan chocolate in the UK and found this site that lists places you can buy vegan chocolate from. You should ask your boyfriend for chocolate you can eat as a present since he was so mean to eat all those chocolates in front of you. :whistle: (It might work, you never know!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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