My Enterolab Results - Nothing is "neutral"?

[UkuleleLady]

Tex, feel free to add these to the list if you want.

I'm not sure where these fall w/in the range of others' results.

I am still not sure WHAT to eat :(

If anyone has advice I'm all ears. I don't care about the gluten/soy/dairy -- but I'm upset about the eggs.

Doesn't seem like even beef, corn or cashew are "safe". I could live on them if I had to.

I am not sure, still, which foods would be safe. I could cry right now.


MY RESULTS:
______________
Gluten/Antigenic Food Sensitivity Stool Panel
Fecal Anti-gliadin IgA 89 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)

Fecal Anti-casein (cow’s milk) IgA 44 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)

Fecal Anti-ovalbumin (chicken egg) IgA 23 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)

Fecal Anti-soy IgA 41 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)

Fat Malabsorption Stool Test (Fecal Fat)
Quantitative Microscopic Fecal Fat Score 566 Units (Normal Range is less than 300 Units)

Expanded Antigenic Food Sensitivity Stool Panel
Mean Value 11 Antigenic Foods 43 Units (Normal Range is less than 10 Units)


____________
While all of the foods tested can be immune-stimulating, the hierarchy of reactions detected were as follows:

Food to which there was no significant immunological reactivity:
None

Food to which there was some immunological reactivity (1+):
None

Food to which there was moderate immunological reactivity (2+):
Oat
Rice
Corn
Pork
Beef
Almond
Walnut
Cashew
White potato

Food to which there was significant and/or the most immunological reactivity (3+):
Tuna
Chicken

____________
Within each class of foods to which you displayed multiple reactions, the hierarchy of those reactions detected were as follows:

Grains:
Grain toward which you displayed the most immunologic reactivity: Oat
Grain toward which you displayed intermediate immunologic reactivity: Rice
Grain toward which you displayed the least immunologic reactivity: Corn

Meats:
Meat toward which you displayed the most immunologic reactivity: Tuna
Meat toward which you were next most immunologically reactive: Chicken
Meat toward which you displayed intermediate immunologic reactivity: Pork
Meat toward which you displayed the least immunologic reactivity: Beef

Nuts:
Nut toward which you displayed the most immunologic reactivity: Almond
Nut toward which you displayed intermediate immunologic reactivity: Walnut
Nut toward which you displayed the least immunologic reactivity: Cashew

Nightshades:
You displayed immunologic reactivity to white potato, the member of the nightshade family usually consumed most often and in greatest quantities. While this does not necessarily mean you would react to all other nightshade foods (tomatoes, peppers, eggplant), it is possible. In the realm of elimination diets for immunologic disorders, nightshades are usually eliminated as the entire food class (i.e., all four previously mentioned foods in this class). This is especially important to the clinical setting of arthritis.

[JFR]

Looks like you hit the jackpot. I also tested reactive to the big 4 and my total score for the 11 foods was 38. I did have a few foods that were +1. You can see my results and others on the Enterolab test results board. Do you eat lamb or turkey? I seem to be able to tolerate both of these. I can also eat haddock. I lived primarily on ground lamb and kale chips for a while. I also make macadamia nut butter and eat that along with bone broth from non-reactive sources. I have some turkey broth bubbling away in my crock pot right now. I avoid all grains. I eat no sugar. I don't bake. I only eat a small handful of veggies, not even every day. I can also eat a small quantity of blueberries but I didn't add these in right away. I still only eat a small number of foods. It seems like a daunting task at first but it is doable. You'll figure it out.

Jean

[UkuleleLady]

Thank you Jean. I feel as though if you can do it, I can too. I feel a little better.

[JLH]

I'm going to eat Entocort, I think. I still hate the idea as much as I did 5 years ago but I am sick of being sick. Tired of being stressed and depressed, too. Seeing my GI on Tuesday.

[Gloria]

I hope that Entocort brings you some relief, if you choose to take it. Except for my diet restraints, I live a normal life. That's worth a lot.

Gloria

[Lesley]

Gloria - it sure is!

UkuleleLady - My tests are pretty bad too. I know what it feels like.
I cannot eat turkey, but I can eat lamb.
I have only 2 foods to which I don't react. Oats and potato.
So basically those foods are what I am living on.

Good luck!

[tex]

Nancy,

I agree, those are rather harsh results. Still, in addition to the foods that Jean suggested, you might be able to eat beef, corn, and potatoes, if you don't overdo them, especially if you don't eat them everyday. Sweet potatoes may be another option that you could try.

You have a significant amount of small intestinal damage (as evidenced by your fecal fat score), suggesting that you've probably been reacting to gluten for several years or more. Have you had the celiac screening tests?

Thanks, I'll add your test results to the list.

Tex

[UkuleleLady]

Thank you all for your replies.

Joan, I think you should try the entocort if you haven't. I'm sorry you've been unwell for so long. It sounds like you need a break from all the inflammation. Some respite so to speak. Good luck with your GInext week. let us know how it goes.

i dont know what your insurance situation is, but, I ordered mine from inhousepharmacy in Vanuatu and it came in ten days not three weeks. Less than 200.00. I unfortunately don't have prescription coverage, so it's $1333.00 for a 30 day supply if I buy it in the US. My understanding is that US citizens subsidize R&D for big pharma throughout the World, so it's usually cheaper to buy from a foreign country. But i digress...

Lesley, thank you for chiming in. You seem very kind. I am sorry your diet is so limiting. I'm going to be looking at your and Jeans posts for meal ideas. I haven't missed dairy or gluten so far, but, I don't know if I am going to lose it on such a simple diet. Mostly my husband is supportive but he doesn't really get what these results really mean and he's having a hard time believing why I will need to be so strict. It's a little hard to get though to him and my friends.

I am feeling hopeful that after I stay off gluten dairy and soy for an extended period, and manage my stress, I will be better in a few years. This is what I keep repeating to myself. I will be better.

Tex, you must be right about the damage, and I can't believe how damaged my intestine must be! all those years of GERD and asthma must have been trying to tell me something. I'm depressed that I didn't figure out the food connection, e.g, gluten sensitivity sooner. I have not been tested for celiac, but, when I had my upper endoscopy supposedly my doc checked for it and didn't find evidence. I haven't had the gene test. I am just assuming I either have it or am close enough so that I will need to keep gluten out of my life for good.

I'm so disgusted with the GI doctors I've seen over the years who said NOTHING about diet/food. I mean it's the gut that they treat! But no mention of what goes in or out. They sicken me these doctors.

Thank you all again for your replies. I'm trying not to rant like a madwoman.

[JLH]

I think there is generic now. We have Medicare and other insurance.

[mcnomore]

My results were just a little better than yours and I feel the same way--what can I eat?

My diet right now consists of millet bread that I make and ground pork. That's it. I was eating bananas and a vegetable, but only when I stopped did I feel fine with no symptoms except multiple stools one day a week.

I am on Asacol-800mg x 3 and 10mg of Doxepin. Once I began the Asacol I felt much better in about 2 1/2 weeks, but still have multiple kind of soft stools one day a week.

In general, I feel like a new person.

I had experimented for several years with my diet because it was obvious I was reacting to something, however, I didn't know until a couple of months ago that there is a diet/mc connection.

During those years I eliminated corn, soy, eggs and legumes and many other foods, but not gluten or dairy. I gave those up in June.

From my experience, you may need to eat as few foods as you can and then go from there slowly. Tex and others seem to agree that we shouldn't worry about nutrition at this point.

xoxo

[JeanIrene]

Sounds like some challenging times ahead, but I know you will get it figured out. Do you like avocados? I seem to do well with those, and squash, both summer and winter varieties. I do better without grains, but as a treat will sometimes have a corn tortilla.

I agree with you that it is difficult trying to make some people understand that you can't eat like you did before. They sort of look at you like you have an eating disorder. But always the bottom line is working toward getting well and doing what you need to do. I know it's difficult getting results like yours, but you seem to have the determination to get well even when it involves a lot of work and sacrifice. I wish you well.

Jean

[carolm]

Ukulele lady, I know what you mean about others impressions of your restricted diet. When I decided to get MRT testing done my husband said "are you sure it won't just make your eliminate more foods?" . Well, yeah, I thought it probably would but that's the point-- to eliminate all those problematic foods. It wasn't too painful.

You've already gotten good advice here. Like others have said try turkey and possibly fish, and as you get better you can food challenge beef. If you rotate your foods around and don't eat beef 2-3 times in a row you may be okay. Eat it twice or 3x a week and you may be okay. There are some foods I have to do that with. I also had to give up eggs and that really stunk. No more egg drop soup-- I was not a happy person but you do what you gotta do because getting well is worth it. Carrots are my go to veg now and I've learned to make cauliflower in different ways, even though I wasn't a fan before.

Mcnomore-- I also had that same pattern you are describing. I'd have one day a week where I would have numerous BMs then go 2-3 days with none, then just when I think it's going to even out to one a day, BOOM, another day with numerous BMs. Unfortunately these were accompanied by fatigue and obvious an aggressive motility. I worked on trying to find the cause of that cycle for 10 months. Polly and I were private messaging, working with and eliminating things based on my MRT testing, I kept a meticulous log, tracked my foods, the quality of my sleep, my stress and activity, and I still could not come up with the cause. Then one day my GI doc and I were looking at my log (I kept it on a calendar where you could look at the month as a whole and I highlighted the days of numerous BMs) and considering all the things I had tracked. We decided that whatever the cause we would have to address the aggressive motility and she put me on 10mg Amitriptyline. What a difference!! Within 2 days I could tell a difference. I can't even remember the last time I had a day like that. Now if I have a stressful day, I may have 3-4 bms but they will be spread over a 10 hour period and I no longer have the nausea and fatigue I had before the amitriptyline. If yours continues you may want to consider something for motility. It's added more predictability to my life and that was worth a lot to me.

Edited -- I should add that along with the amitriptyline my GI also put me on a very small amount of Citrucel titrating up until I found the amount that worked to act as a binder but not an irritation. I was healed fairly well at this point obviously. We never would have done this early on.

take care, ladies,
Carol

[mcnomore]

Thanks for detailed post. For some reason it helps to hear what others have learned along the way with regard to foods and meds.

[carolm]

Mcnomore-- when I was tracking my 'pattern' I posted here to see what others had done and the feedback was that no one else was having this, so the conclusion was that this was not a typical pattern. No one else was experiencing the 'dumping' every 7-8 days like I was. It was really helpful to track it on a calendar.
It was a tough thing to sort out.

Hang in there.

[mcnomore]

I am actually on Doxepin which is an antidepressant with some antihistamine in it. My allergist put me on it for motility issues in 2010.

Interesting that others don't have the 7th day bad day.