If you’ve ever sat down to dinner and wondered how your body might react afterward, you know the constant balancing act of food sensitivities. Instead of focusing on taste or enjoyment, you’re often stuck weighing risks.
Will this meal sit well, or will it leave me battling fatigue, digestive upset, or itching for the rest of the day?
That’s been my reality for as long as I can remember.
If you’re grudgingly nodding your head in agreement, then this article is for you.
Looking back, I can now trace the threads of food sensitivities throughout my life. At the time, I didn’t recognize them for what they were — just random, frustrating symptoms. But eventually, patterns emerged.Â
And when I was finally diagnosed with Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS), all of those seemingly disconnected reactions suddenly made sense.
This is my story of learning to listen to my body, step by step, decade by decade.
If you’re like me, you might have experienced confusing and frustrating symptoms that just didn’t make sense, and then had negative results on allergy tests.
For a primer, you may want to get familiar with the differences between food allergies, food sensitivities, and food intolerances.
In this article, I’ll share my personal journey with food sensitivities, and hopefully, it will shed light on your own experiences.
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Early Signs of Food Sensitivities in Childhood
From the moment I entered the world, my body had strong opinions about what I ate. My food sensitivities began early, even while my mom was nursing me.
Infant Eczema
Like many kids, I had eczema that flared unpredictably.
As a baby, I was a little bundle of rashes, with eczema making my skin itchy, red, and irritated. My parents were constantly trying to soothe my inflamed skin with every cream, ointment, and home remedy suggested.
The doctors told my mom that I had sensitive skin. That’s an understatement. What they didn’t realize was that my sensitivity went beyond just what touched my skin. It was what went into my body. My mom was breastfeeding me, and whatever she ate seemed to have a direct line to my skin’s freak-out button.
After countless sleepless nights and tear-filled days (from both me and my mom), the doctor recommended she cut certain foods from her diet.
When my mom adjusted her diet, avoiding certain foods, my symptoms improved significantly.
Eczema, for me, was more than just a skin condition. It was a signal, a flare, that something wasn’t quite right internally. My skin was like an early warning system, screaming for attention every time my body reacted negatively to something. This connection between my diet and skin health was my first introduction to the world of food sensitivities. It set the stage for a lifetime of mindful eating and vigilant monitoring.
As I grew older, these early signs evolved, but the theme remained consistent: my body was hypersensitive to certain foods, and it wasn’t shy about showing it. Little did I know, this was just the beginning of a complex and ongoing journey.
Recognizing Food Sensitivities as a Teen
As a teenager, my mom thought I was just being picky because I disliked eating leftovers.
However, now we’ve learned this was my body reacting to histamines, which increase in food as it ages.
Imagine trying to explain to your parents that last night’s lasagna made you feel like you’d run a marathon and then hit a wall. Without the right words or understanding, I wasn’t able to really explain well why I didn’t like leftovers.
My parents, who couldn’t see any obvious physical symptoms, found it frustrating, especially since I genuinely loved food and enjoyed trying different cuisines.
The mystery behind my aversion to leftovers wasn’t solved until decades later when I was diagnosed with Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS).
Through my teens, my food sensitivities didn’t demand daily management yet.
However, I had inconsistent periods, headaches, and fatigue that seemed out of proportion to my activity level. But like many teens, I powered through. I didn’t realize then that what I ate was tied to how I felt.
Now it’s easier to see those early signs clearly. My body was reacting long before I had the language — or the knowledge — to connect the dots.
Adulthood: Food Sensitivities and Fertility Challenges
Fast forward to adulthood, when Steve and I married, we weren’t trying to prevent pregnancy.
For the first few years, we were content and enjoyed our early married life, believing it would happen when the time was right.
But after five years with no success, my OB/GYN, who noted my inconsistent periods since my teen years and referred us to an endocrinologist. I was diagnosed with PCOS — something that explained my irregular cycles and high androgen levels.
It was incredibly challenging to grapple with the idea that we might not be able to conceive naturally.
Clomid Treatment and Fertility Specialist Insights
After initial treatments with Clomid under the guidance of our OB/GYN didn’t yield results, we were referred to a fertility specialist.
Our first meeting with the specialist was a turning point.
They suggested that I might have gluten sensitivity, explaining that emerging research indicated a link between gluten sensitivity and infertility. Studies have shown that women with undiagnosed celiac disease or non-celiac gluten sensitivity can experience reproductive issues, including infertility .
Taking this advice to heart, I decided to eliminate gluten from my diet. It was a significant change, but I was determined to do everything possible to increase our chances of conceiving.
Gluten Sensitivity and Infertility Link
Going gluten-free was more than just a dietary change; it was a lifestyle overhaul. Over the next six months, the transformation was remarkable. I lost 50 pounds, primarily by cutting out gluten and focusing on fresh, nutritious foods.
This dietary change not only helped me shed the extra weight but also made me feel healthier and more energetic.
The shift wasn’t just physical. Emotionally, I began to feel more hopeful and empowered, knowing I was taking proactive steps towards our goal. The fertility specialist’s insight into the connection between gluten sensitivity and infertility was a game-changer. It brought a new perspective and hope into our journey.
Dietary Changes and Improved Health
The benefits of eliminating gluten extended beyond weight loss. As my diet improved, I felt more vibrant and less bogged down by the usual fatigue that had plagued me.
- Increased Energy and Weight Loss: With each passing week, my energy levels soared. The pounds dropped steadily, and by the time I reached 125 pounds, I felt like a new person. The improvement in my overall well-being was undeniable.
- Successful Conception with Hormone Shots: Alongside these dietary changes, we continued with hormone shots under the guidance of our fertility specialist. The combination of improved health and medical intervention worked wonders. By the second round of hormone shots, we received the news we had been longing for—I was pregnant! It was a moment of pure joy and relief, knowing that our perseverance and the significant dietary adjustments had paid off.
Pregnancy and New Sensitivities
Once I was pregnant, I kept up with my gluten-free lifestyle. It had become a natural part of my routine, and the benefits were undeniable. But, pregnancy has a funny way of throwing new challenges your way. As my pregnancy progressed, I started noticing symptoms similar to those I’d experienced with gluten, now triggered by dairy.
Dairy and Soy Sensitivities
Morning coffee with creamer? Instant stomach cramps. A slice of cheese? Fatigue that made me feel like I hadn’t slept in days.
The more I paid attention, the clearer it became that dairy was the new culprit. It wasn’t just the occasional upset stomach; it was a consistent pattern of digestive issues and debilitating fatigue every time I consumed dairy products.
Recognizing these symptoms was frustrating but also empowering. It meant I could take steps to manage them. So, dairy went out the window. But, as luck would have it, soon after, soy joined the blacklist. I found that soy-based products caused similar reactions—digestive discomfort and an overall sense of fatigue.
By the end of my pregnancy, I was avoiding gluten, dairy, and soy. It wasn’t easy, but the benefits were worth it. Amazingly, after our little girl was born, I noticed another significant change.
Once my menstrual cycle resumed, I experienced something entirely new: a regular period every 28 days.
For the first time in my life, my cycles were consistent. This newfound regularity was a revelation, offering a sense of normalcy that I had never experienced before. It was clear that cutting out gluten, dairy, and soy had a profound impact on my overall hormonal balance.
Pregnancy was a journey of discovery in more ways than one. It not only brought the joy of our daughter but also led to crucial insights about my body and its relationship with food.
Uncovering an Oxalate Sensitivity
After giving birth to our daughter, I quickly learned that I had an oxalate sensitivity that led to vulvodynia. The intense pain and discomfort made me dive deeper into understanding this new sensitivity.
Managing a low oxalate diet became crucial, and I soon realized that oxalates had been causing more issues than I initially thought. They were behind kidney stones in my twenties and the migraines I had suffered from since puberty.
Adjusting my diet to reduce oxalate intake brought significant relief and helped me manage these painful symptoms.
MCAS Diagnosis and Histamine Sensitivity
It wasn’t until I was almost 40 that a major piece of the puzzle finally was identified. My diagnosis of MCAS was like turning on a light in a dark room. Suddenly, all those years of unexplained reactions made sense.
The histamine sensitivity that had been wreaking havoc on my system was identified, and I could finally understand why certain foods, especially leftovers, had such a negative impact on me.
After my MCAS diagnosis, I felt a sense of relief knowing that there was a name for what I had been experiencing.
But the journey didn’t stop there.
I joined multiple online forums where others shared their experiences with food reactions similar to mine. It was like finding pieces of a puzzle that began to make sense of my own health struggles. From baby eczema to oxalate sensitivity, I started to see how all these reactions were linked to my overactive mast cells.
Salicylate Sensitivity
Being part of these communities helped me embrace the role of a citizen scientist, paying close attention to what my body was telling me based on the food I ate. One significant realization was about my reaction to salicylates.
During a particularly rough period, known as my MCAS crash, I had an anaphylactic response to NSAIDs. This alarming reaction made me even more vigilant. About a year after my diagnosis, I started noticing that eating too many nuts high in salicylates would trigger symptoms like shortness of breath and dizziness.
These dizzy spells were not just minor inconveniences; they were episodes where I felt light-headed and unstable. Alongside this, I experienced shortness of breath, making it feel like there was a weight on my chest. These symptoms were often accompanied by low blood pressure, leaving me feeling weak and exhausted.
Through careful observation and research, I identified that a low salicylate diet was the key to managing these symptoms. This diet helped reduce the frequency and severity of my reactions. For more information on how salicylates can impact individuals with sensitivities, you can read this study.
Understanding salicylate sensitivity has been another critical step in managing my health. By listening to my body and learning from others, I have been able to make dietary adjustments that improve my quality of life significantly.
Reflecting on my Food Sensitivity Journey
My journey with food sensitivities has been long and challenging, but understanding and managing these sensitivities has greatly improved my quality of life.
For those of you dealing with similar struggles, I hope my story offers some encouragement.
Pay close attention to how different foods make you feel. Your body is incredibly insightful and often signals what it needs or can’t handle. Trust those signals and make changes that support your well-being.
While it might feel that you need to completely eliminate a trigger, you may not need to. But you may.
The best food approach for each individual with food sensitivities will be different, depending on your unique triggers. Ideally, you’ll achieve a personalized diet that is mostly whole foods that meet all of your nutrient needs. Sometimes that means eliminating certain foods, but other times it’s more about understanding the chemistry of the foods you’re eating and making sure you’re not overdoing it in any specific category in a short time period.
If you suspect food sensitivities might be affecting your health or fertility, seek professional advice for personalized dietary management. It could make all the difference.
Share your experiences and join the conversation on our Pinterest pins to connect with others who understand what you’re going through.
Understanding these additional sensitivities has been a critical step in my journey towards better health and well-being.
From baby eczema, to infertility struggles, to the complexities of oxalates and salicylates, my sensitivities have shaped how I eat, travel, and live.
But they’ve also taught me resilience. If you’re navigating your own food sensitivities, know this: you’re not alone. There are ways to uncover your triggers, manage your symptoms, and still live a full life.
That’s what I hope Hearts & Beaches provides — a place to learn, connect, and feel supported as we figure out this messy, unpredictable, but still beautiful journey together.
