Itching after meals

[Achilles]

iterally EVERY time after i eat,no matter what i eat.. i get really itchy, mainly around my arms and legs.. sometimes my back, and then i get these weird bumps.. they arent red or anything.. they kinda blend in with my skin color but you can tell they are there because they pop up basically everywhere after i itch my skin? what should i do, is it an allergic reaction

[lovesradio]

OOps it sounds like an allergy but is there a time lapse between eating and itching as if its a food allergy you would expect it to be once digestion has occurred?

[Achilles in reply to lovesradio]

Hi Lovesradio, it will start once i eat, within 10-15mins. However, noticeable thing is, there is not much relationship with with what i eat, grossly, sometimes it will occur when i eat wheat based substances. Any suggestion? its very irritating.

[lovesradio in reply to Achilles]

My loopy suggestion would be to see if you can get your GP to refer you to a nutritionist who has an awareness of allergies or a dermatologist who has an interest in nutrition. In my experience the dermatologists I have seen generally regard skin conditions as sensitive to external stimuli rather than internal. But a naturopath that I consulted at one time explained that the skin is the last organ of excretion. So difficulties with digestive system can ultimately show up in the skin. This broadly ties in with the ayurvedic system of health management. So an alternative approach might be to consider might be to get your digestive system checked out first!! Good luck with getting a solution

[Achilles in reply to lovesradio]

Hi

Thanks a lot for your suggestion. I will first visit a naturopath to get the digestive system in place. From last year or so, to get my stomach a relief i have been keeping a habit to eat just fruits for whole day once a week. However, I will still check with the GP first and then a naturopath to get my digestive system checked.

[Milano123 in reply to Achilles]

Ive had the same problem.

Itching went away when i started eating more fiber. Also, i lost 30lbs and stopped eating carbs except for breakfest.

I would see a dr and have blood work done.

Check kidneys and liver

[lovesradio]

Best of luck and do post the results of your endeavours

[Shell567]

Hi Achilles,

As lovesradio says it sounds like you might have an allergy. It is also possible that you have coeliac disease.

People with the autoimmune condition coeliac disease need to be on a gluten free diet to manage their condition. It is a condition that causes a variety of symptoms, including the skin condition dermatitis herpetiformis (DH). The symptoms of DH are extremely itchy bumps/rash, and sometimes blisters.

It would be advisable for you to see your GP to be tested for coeliac disease. You'll need a blood test to look for antibodies specific to this condition. Do not put yourself on a gluten free diet until you've received the test, as this may lead to a negative result even if do you have coeliac disease.

All the best,

Shell.

Coeliac Disease: NHS Choices. nhs.uk/Conditions/Coeliac-d...

Dermatitis herpetiformis: DermNet NZ. dermnetnz.org/immune/dermat...

[earthwitch]

I got referred to dermatology for allergy testing. They were able to do the first stage of testing (ELISA blood tests to common allergens) but unfortunately even though my total reaction showed some kind of allergy, it wasn't any of the common ones. I didn't qualify for skin-testing (which has to be done in hospital) as I hadn't had an anaphylactic reaction). I now believe it is maize/corn that triggers first a burning mouth, and then itching skin in me. Corn is a really odd allergen, as it doesn't seem to be just the protein part of it that has the allergen, as you can get reactions to the corn sugars and starches as well. My reaction wasn't considered a particularly strong reaction, but it was one of the different types of allergy/sensitivities. Unfortunately I can't do a lot about it except avoid maize/corn (which is extremely difficult to do). You can test it a bit, by taking antihistamine when you get the reaction (or before you eat to try and avoid the reaction) - if antihistamine relieves it even a bit, then thats ammunition to take to your GP to ask for further allergy testing.

I also have another type of allergy/sensitivity reaction to avocado, where I can eat it once (if Ihaven't had it in a long time) but if I eat it again within a few days I will get a really bad gut reaction to it. Thats the type of reaction where the first eating sets up an immune response, and the second triggers the real reaction.

You might find out more on the allergy UK website.

[earthwitch]

I also remember some other advice I got when I was having more and more difficulty finding things safe to eat - that was to vary your diet as much as you can, and not eat the same foods every day, rotating the worst offenders at most once every four days. That method allowed me to keep eating foods that I appeared to be getting reactions to. Also, eating "whole" foods as much as possible, rather than highly processed foods, i.e. cooking from scratch.

[Achilles]

Hi all

something has happened suddenly and my skin irritation and itching has gone and it is not occurring as of last 2 weeks. In between thought of visiting my doctor, but refrained myself and tried something suggested by my mommy. I have changed my eating habits little bit. But that does not seem to have created miracle. I have started drinking warm water and totally avoided colas and processed foods...Specially those which might have colouring agents in it. I am on only indian home made food diet.

Last few weeks i am free from itching. Hope that continue. and it does not bounce back. No medicines yet which i had decided that i will try to avoid medicines

Thanks a lot for your help on this and for your valuable suggestions

[rthebest in reply to Achilles]

Hi Achilles, I'm encountering this same exact issue that you've described as well. I've also been eating mainly indian home cooked food and cut out gluten and soy and it's been better. Did you come up with any solutions on this? Would appreciate any insight you might have.