Food Intolerances May Be Causing You To Feel Sick

Food Intolerances can be extremely common

Up to 20% of people may suffer from a food intolerance or sensitivity.  A food allergy is not the same as an intolerance though they can often be confused.  An allergy is a hypersensitive reaction while an intolerance is usually from an inability to process the food.  Unfortunately, it can be incredibly difficult to identify a food intolerance.  There isn’t always a test for a food intolerance. Reactions can be delayed from a few to 48 hours or more. Also, symptoms can mimic allergic reactions.  Reactions can include abdominal pain, swelling, nausea, diarrhea, constipation, rashes, fatigue, headaches, runny nose and so much more.  Discovering what food you are having a problem with can take months to years to identify but,  I am here to tell you why it is absolutely worth it!

What My Life Looked Like Before Discovering Sulfites

This week I ran my first 3 mile run.  There aren’t enough words to describe how proud I am for achieving this feat. We don’t often pat ourselves on the back, but when we work hard to make ourselves better, we need to take time to acknowledge our effort and achievement.  To know why this was such a great accomplishment,  I should start from the beginning.  It is important to understand how little I could do before I discovered my sulfite intolerance.  For me, running was something other people did.  Like people who speak Russian or those who can do cartwheels.  Seemed like something I should be able to learn if I really wanted to, but for some reason my legs just didn’t agree. 

Running was the least of my problems.  Most of my adult life, I wished I didn’t have to sit to do my make-up because many mornings my legs felt weak.  Often, I wondered if there would ever be a day that I wouldn’t have to take a minute at the top of a flight of stairs to get rid of the lightheadedness.  Though I was so tired of being tired, I really didn’t know any different.  I hoped I would come across an explanation but was mostly told there was nothing wrong with me.  I truly convinced myself I was just lazy.  Lazy people can’t run a 1/4 mile much less a 5k, I told myself.  

Overtime I created modifications.  Put a stool at my bathroom counter.  Knew where I would be able to sit in every store I ever went in.  Made every excuse I could think of to avoid physically taxing endeavors.  I even took a theoretical, all book learning, bowling elective in high school instead of P.E.  Don’t ask me how I found that but if there is a will there is a way.  When I needed to wash my hair, I scheduled it because I would need to nap due to exhaustion.  

One Trip And A Lot Of Wine Held The Key To My Discovery

Then, my husband and I went to Napa.  I will always be grateful to that trip as it set into motion the journey I am on now.  Of course, while in wine country, I drank wine and mimosas. The weekend was followed by profuse vomiting, days of feeling exhausted and terrible headaches.  My brother then made a suggestion that was essentially the most life altering statement anyone has ever made to me.  He said I should look for a common denominator, not a particular food.  I pulled out my phone and frantically searched.  Tannins, no.  Histamines, no.  Nitrites, still nothing. Then came sulfites.  Everything I read about, was me!  The signs, symptoms triggering foods explained my whole life.  I literally had to pick my jaw off the ground.   Suddenly, it felt as if someone had pulled the string to turn on a light in my life.  Everything on that page seemed to make sense and apply to me.  It was like nothing I had ever felt before.  I mean just the sheer joy is indescribable.  

I didn’t think I had symptoms of a true food allergy but I never even considered a food intolerance.  Now, right before me, it was clear that learning everything there was to know about this sulfite intolerance might be the key to getting my life back.  So, I read.  I asked. Kept a symptom/food log.  Spent time learning.  Slowly but surely, I began feeling better.  Good days started out numbering bad days.  I stopped spending whole days in bed.  Finally, I was actively participating in life rather than as a bystander.  And it felt great!

Sulfites are only one type of food intolerance.

There are many others:

Why Does This Type Of Food Seem To Hate Me?

Food intolerances can be caused by several different mechanisms.  Sometimes it is an inborn or genetic reason such as with Sucrose intolerance.  Other times it may be due to lacking a key enzyme to break down a substance such as with lactose.  Furthermore, it may be an immune reaction or an antibody reaction.  Sulfite intolerance can actually be due all 3 of these, making it difficult to treat it.   

Track.  Log.  Read.  Explore.  Learn.

I have found that reading labels and keeping a food and symptom log has been the most helpful tool in my journey.  When I feel sick, I write what I ate in the last 24 hours or so and the reaction I had.  Sometimes I take pictures of the labels of the food.  Next time I have the symptom, I do the same.  Over time, I can cross check previous notes.  Remember that with some substances such as sulfites, there can be fast absorbing and some slow.  Meaning, some foods can cause an immediate reaction and some may be delayed by days.  

Remember A Food Intolerance Is Not The Same As A Food Allergy

Once you identify what it is you think you may be intolerant to, you can try to avoid that food/ingredient/substance as much as possible.  It is not always necessary to completely eliminate it from your diet as food intolerances are different from food allergies.  People can tolerate different levels of the substance depending on their own immune systems and their mechanism or cause for intolerance.  For instance, garlic, onions and eggs can contain sulfites but low levels.  In normal portions, I can tolerate all three.  Lemon juice concentrate has very high levels of sulfites so even half a teaspoon can cause my belly to swell like a basketball and have me hunched over the toilet all night.  

It Takes A Village

I can’t do all this alone.  My family plays an enormous role in me staying healthy.  My husband tries to order my drinks at the bar rather than at the table so he can talk to the bartender directly and make sure nothing intentionally creeps into my drink.  The kids understand mommy can’t eat everything they can.  My coworkers understand that some days I don’t feel like myself because of something I might have had the night before.  It seems to take a village to keep me healthy but in turn I try to be present and give my 100% in everything I do for them (on the days I feel well). 

Share Your Story

Have you recently discovered a food intolerance? I’d love to hear your story!  Please leave a comment, connect on instagram at #sulfitefreelife or email me