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StephanieAc:
I need some input. I just found out today, at 25 years old, that I'm allergic to peanuts via a RAST food panel blood test. I didn't ever have any symptoms other than a stomach ache for a few minutes after eating most nuts, which started pretty recently. I also have an allergy to wheat, which I eat every single day, corn, and milk. It's all very odd to me. Does anyone know about these tests and their rate of false positives or have any suggestions as to what I should do?

I'm also penicillin allergic, which worries me about meat, soy sensitive…and I have an allergy to the mold that grows on fruit and veggies lol. I'm going to the allergist for further testing tomorrow, I'd just love some input! Thanks! :bye:

Janelle205:
The rate of false positives for RAST and skin testing as well, is pretty high. I don't have the exact statistics, but I know that there are other members here that can point you in the right direction. If you are eating something every day without having issues, the likelihood that you are actually allergic to it is very, very low.

I have a number of food allergies, but there are things that I skin test positive to, and things that I RAST test positive to that I eat frequently with no issues at all.

If there is an allergist in your area that specializes in food allergies, I would try to see that doc for another opinion. Docs that do mostly environmental allergies are often not as good, or as up to date on the particulars of food allergies. It is really, really important to get a good allergist. Before I got my current doc, my previous allergist gave me advice that I am nearly certain would have killed me if I had followed it.

GoingNuts:
Welcome Stephanie!

I second Janelle's suggestion about being certain that you see a Board Certified Allergist who is knowledgeable about food allergies, not just environmentals.

RAST testing alone means almost nothing; it has to be considered along with a clinical history. As my old allergist always said, he doesn't treat test results, he treats patients and symptoms.

Who has been doing the testing? And what made you seek it in the first place? Those answers may help us help you. :)

PurpleCat:
What they both said.

Reactions trump testing.

False positives are common.

My DD tests positive to apples but eats them often. She tests positive for shellfish and can not eat lobster or crab, however, she eats shrimp all the time!

StephanieAc:
Thank you so much for all of the replies! I'm gonna try and answer all of them. Well, I had some skin prick tests for only environmental allergies done by someone who I THOUGHT was an allergist, she was just a tech, as it turns out. I came up positive for a lot of molds, pecan trees (and thus fresh pecans) and trees. Molds that grow on veggies and fruits, as well…anyway… after that test I got a fever, which …was odd (Has that happened to anyone else by the way? I get fevers from a lot of things like colonics, colonoscopies… gross I know, sorry) Anyway, back on topic. Then I had the RAST test done by my GP. They told me they didn't know how to interpret the numbers, so they weren't sure just how severe my allergies were. They just saw that it came up as abnormal.

The reason I went for testing is because I started to feel odd after eating certain foods. Sushi (even just avocado rolls with no fish) started to make my heart race. I thought it could be a soy allergy (someone also told me that wheat allergies make you very sensitive to soy…) or it could be the high amount of salt. Benedryl wouldn't even really work, which was scary,so I cut out the sushi all together and much chinese food, although I recently had some with oyster sauce and I was fine…weird.

I also started to break out randomly. I broke out twice when I had some coconut milk ice cream… half of my face broke out…and once when I had some mayo and organic chicken with a little bit of vinegar and oregano. That's something I eat all the time, so it struck me as odd. The hives on my face actually occurred after I took benedryl because my tongue felt strange, so I took it. I was told that this was REALLY BAD by my GP, which scared me even more. So he took the test.

I'm going to a specialist today for skin prick tests (I'm guessing because they told me not to take any benedryl, etc. for 24 hours…) and I'm going to see if he can either give me another blood test or get the results from my GP so that I can have him interpret the numbers.

The other thing is that I have severe anxiety and panic disorder. I was hoping the hives, etc. were all results of me panicking from slight reactions, but now that I got those results I became extremely worried. I'm honestly too nervous to eat anything because, as it is, I was living off of crackers and now… they said wheat. Oy… It's weird to have your life turned upside down at 25, but honestly, I'm so glad I found this forum!