Oh-- you're probably wondering why I keep referring you back to your physician for specific advice about avoidance and what LEVEL of avoidance you ought to be trying...
well, the reason for that is complicated, but basically, there is increasingly overwhelming evidence that avoidance BEYOND what is needed to avoid major reactions (that is, assuming IgE-mediated reactivity) tends to
prime the individual for more SEVERE responses to LOWER doses of the allergen.In other words, avoiding something that you tolerate simply because of a desire to practice "complete avoidance" MAY not be a good idea in the long run. If you have an IgE-mediated food allergy to that thing, that is. Different conditions there require different management (which is why it is super-super important to be clear on what the underlying cause of food-related symptoms is).
On the other hand, if you feel better when you avoid something, and your quality of life is improved through that avoidance, then it's probably worth it-- at least as long as you can successfully avoid small triggering doses of the allergen, that is, and aren't in the process of avoiding actually enhancing your risk of fatality...
With soy and wheat, that is
notoriously difficult, and often is only possible with a highly restricted/modified lifestyle-- one thing if you are risk of death if you don't do it... but NEVER eating in a restaurant, NEVER traveling, NEVER trusting anyone else to prepare your food, NEVER eating/using anything you haven't made a twenty to forty minute phone call about (and calling about every two to four months to double check for changes)... well. That gets to be a real drag in a hurry.
The risk of "trying" that for a while (months, usually) is that you may not be able to go back to a more lax management style if you're dealing with an anaphylaxis trigger, because you may have inadvertently reduced your threshold dose with that kind of avoidance in the meantime.
That's why I'm cautioning you to be sure that you SHOULD avoid those things, and to keep careful, careful notes as you experiment with different products.
Has your allergist expressed any willingness to challenge wheat or soy under medical supervision? At least if you knew that the responses to those were non-IgE mediated, you could experiment with different avoidance strategies without worry about the threshold thing. If they
are likely to be IgE-mediated (and test results alone don't tend to mean much, unfortunately) then you probably ought to discuss
epinephrine with your allergist. Be sure to take a look at our
Welcome Info page(s)-- particularly the link there, which provides a handy guide to allergic reaction symptoms. Have you been evaluated for EE? I ask because of the mention of mast cells and the Gastrocrom rx; that's not really a standard
food allergy treatment, but it can help a LOT with EE and related eosinophilic disorders.
My DH has an atypical soy protein allergy (and has since childhood). He has to avoid concentrated forms of soy, and has trouble with some refined soy products (but not all). It can be highly individual, we've found. Soy
oils are far worse for him personally than fermented products like soy sauce. He can actually use tiny amounts of soy sauce... but can't tolerate movie theater popcorn, a particular brand of chicken breast tenders, or the soy additive in a local pizzeria's crust. It's weird. If he gets dosed, he very definitely has IgE-mediated responses-- vomiting, diarrhea (and I mean.... THE BIG D... like
I'm.going.to.just.throw.those.pants.away.now.and.oh.yeah.we.need.to.burn.that.chair diarrhea... like I said, a matter of degree, this one) and cutaneous symptoms likes hives.