Hi, I'm new to this forum as food allergies are pretty new to me. I'm a 31 year old male who's had no known food allergies up to this point. I know there are people who deal with severe allergies and I feel kind of silly posting my "problem" which seems minor by comparison to some, but I'm just trying to get some different opinions.
I recently went to a naturopath for some anxiety issues that I have. I didn't feel like they were major but were enough to at least see what someone thought. I wasn't really interested in prescription meds either because, again, I don't think they're really major, so that's why I thought a naturopath might be a good option. In our discussion I mentioned having asthma (not severe by my own account; never hospitalized by it or super bad attacks) and some seasonal allergies which have gotten a little worse over the years but, still, I manage, and my symptoms seem relatively minor compared to some others I read about.
Anyway, long story short, she ordered some blood tests for me as a starting point; a general standard blood test and one that tested food allergies. Everything on the standard blood test came back pretty much normal, but the food allergy results were a bit of a surprise. Basically she told me that from this point forward I would never eat corn again.My IgE level for corn was 0.25 EIA (enough to fall into the level II category; the whole scale goes up to VI). I also had a number of foods that came up positive on the IgG test, which I believe I understood as being more food sensitivities than full blown allergies. Without going into every single detail, I'm essentially on a no corn, wheat, dairy, or gluten diet for the next 3 months because she suspects "leaky gut". The only one she told me I'd probably have to eliminate forever is corn, and the others, I assume, would be just something I have to make sure is in moderation.
So there you go. You can understand my surprise when I went in thinking that maybe I'd just get some supplements for my anxiety and be on my way, but instead I'm told I have to change my entire diet. I did get some supplements for the anxiety too, however...good, considering I ended up leaving with more of it.
The thing that is really hard for me to get into my head is the fact that I think back to all of the corn I've had over the years, in the form of popcorn, chips, just plain corn itself, and just about everything else on the planet that has corn in it, why do I not have more symptoms? Food allergies cause different reactions in people, I know, but when you look up food allergies online the most common symptoms you read are itchy/swollen mouth, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, cramps, rashes, headaches. I've had no noticeable, obvious reactions like those. The only thing I could possibly even match to it is the whole asthma/breathing thing, which I've just always had anyway; most people in my family do. And it seems to flair up on a more exercise-induced basis and during certain parts of the year (seasonal allergies). I can't single out any weird reactions to anything, specifically food-wise. Even the other more minor allergies; the wheat, cheese, and a few others, I've never noticed anything from them either, unless I'm just desensitized or something.
I understand that people can develop allergies at different times, or even outgrow some they've had earlier in life, but is there any chance at all that this is an overreaction or maybe the test isn't entirely accurate? What would you suggest? Maybe I'm just in denial or maybe I'm lucky that it caught something before it gets too bad, I don't really know, but I'd appreciate any input from others who are more experienced with allergies than I am. I have no real problems doing the 3-month "cleanse" diet to help regulate some things in my gut, but completely eliminating a food forever, especially one as widespread as corn, when I've had what I perceive to be no reactions to it is hard to comprehend.
Thanks.