Itchy nose but no allergies

[Acacia Voynar]

I’m hoping someone has some insight into something I’m experiencing. I get an itchy nose & sometimes face (from nose to cheek area) after eating nuts. There’s no other food I’ve been able to link it to. The only other time it sometimes happens is when I go outside (not always, only occasionally). I’ve been tested for food & environmental allergies by skin prick & by blood twice. No allergies on any of the tests. My diet is extremely restricted & I’m very underweight so eliminating more from my diet isn’t a possibility. I do eat a lot of nuts because of all the other restrictions, low weight & need for high calorie food. My body is also always asking for them anytime I try to avoid them. I would like to understand what this is & if it’s somehow harming me. Thanks! 😊

[Wheatwacked]

Hi and welcome to the forum.

"Eat the foods that love you back." - Dr Amen.

Why the restrictive diet?

Calories don't build muscle. You need choline, potassium and iodine. Carbs become either energy (if you have enough B vitamins) or gets stored as fat.

I love finding new connections to vitamin D.

     "The role of vitamin D in allergic rhinitis The hormonal form of vitamin D3 has been recognized as an immunoregulatory hormone for 30 years. Experimental studies have demonstrated that 1,25(OH)2D3 affects a wide range of immune cells and cytokines and is associated with many immune diseases."

Products allowed/disallowed in the Gluten Contamination Elimination Diet

[Acacia Voynar]

2 hours ago, Wheatwacked said:

Hi and welcome to the forum.

"Eat the foods that love you back." - Dr Amen.

Why the restrictive diet?

Calories don't build muscle. You need choline, potassium and iodine. Carbs become either energy (if you have enough B vitamins) or gets stored as fat.

I love finding new connections to vitamin D.

     "The role of vitamin D in allergic rhinitis The hormonal form of vitamin D3 has been recognized as an immunoregulatory hormone for 30 years. Experimental studies have demonstrated that 1,25(OH)2D3 affects a wide range of immune cells and cytokines and is associated with many immune diseases."

Products allowed/disallowed in the Gluten Contamination Elimination Diet

The restrictive diet is due to celiac + intolerances to dairy, soy, corn, eggs, sucrose & starch. I seem to have some trouble with fructose too. 

[knitty kitty]

@Acacia Voynar, hello!

Nutritional deficiencies are common in Celiac Disease.  Correcting nutritional deficiencies is part of proper follow up care.

Multiple food intolerance can be caused by histamine intolerance.  Too much histamine builds up in the body and has trouble breaking it down due to certain vitamin shortages.  B12 Cobalamine and Vitamin C are instrumental in breaking down histamine.

Neuropathy can occur in fingers and toes as well as the face.  I used to get localized neuropathy in my face when I ate really crunchy foods like nuts or potato chips.  Some of the B Complex vitamins, Thiamine, Cobalamine, Pyridoxine, and Niacin help reverse neuropathy and keep nerve cells healthy.

Fructose malabsorption can occur with CeD causing gastrointestinal symptoms.  Best to avoid high fructose corn syrup and fruit that's high in fructose.  

Inability or difficulty gaining weight can be a symptom of Thiamine deficiency.  Thiamine cannot be stored for long in the body so it runs out quickly.  Weight loss is one, gastrointestinal symptoms (Gastrointestinal Beriberi), light sensitivity, and neuropathy are other symptoms.  

Have you talked to your doctor or nutritionist about supplementing while you are healing?  Are you taking any vitamins?

What sort of foods do you include in your diet?  

[Acacia Voynar]

14 hours ago, knitty kitty said:

@Acacia Voynar, hello!

Nutritional deficiencies are common in Celiac Disease.  Correcting nutritional deficiencies is part of proper follow up care.

Multiple food intolerance can be caused by histamine intolerance.  Too much histamine builds up in the body and has trouble breaking it down due to certain vitamin shortages.  B12 Cobalamine and Vitamin C are instrumental in breaking down histamine.

Neuropathy can occur in fingers and toes as well as the face.  I used to get localized neuropathy in my face when I ate really crunchy foods like nuts or potato chips.  Some of the B Complex vitamins, Thiamine, Cobalamine, Pyridoxine, and Niacin help reverse neuropathy and keep nerve cells healthy.

Fructose malabsorption can occur with CeD causing gastrointestinal symptoms.  Best to avoid high fructose corn syrup and fruit that's high in fructose.  

Inability or difficulty gaining weight can be a symptom of Thiamine deficiency.  Thiamine cannot be stored for long in the body so it runs out quickly.  Weight loss is one, gastrointestinal symptoms (Gastrointestinal Beriberi), light sensitivity, and neuropathy are other symptoms.  

Have you talked to your doctor or nutritionist about supplementing while you are healing?  Are you taking any vitamins?

What sort of foods do you include in your diet?  

Thanks for your reply!  I do take multiple vitamins & supplements.  Labs in May showed low vitamin D, so my doctor had me add 5,000/day to what I was already taking.  It's been about 6 weeks since I've been on the increased dosage. 

• O.N.E. Multivitamin (pure encapsulations)
• Calcium: 1,000 mg/day
• Vitamin D (a total of 9,500 IU/day including what is in my multivitamin, calcium & additional D3 supplement)
• hcl for low stomach acid (1 w/ every meal)
• Digest gold for digestive enzymes (1 w/ every meal)

I do suffer from neuropathy in my feet, one foot can get quite bad at times.

I should add that I am also currently being treated for a bad case of candida overgrowth and bacterial dysbiosis.  Treatment from my neuropathy dr includes dietary restrictions (noting significant from what I already was following), supplements (candidase, milk thistle & reduced glutathione) and monthly acupuncture.

My diet includes:

• Fresh meat: chicken, turkey, salmon & beef
• Nuts/seeds: Almond butter, pecans, walnuts, chia seeds, flax seeds, tahini 
• Fresh vegetables: zucchini, yellow squash, celery, spinach, bell peppers, cabbage, green beans, broccoli, lettuces
• Fruit: berries (raspberries, strawberries & blackberries), avocado, lemon & lime (all fruit is fresh except strawberries which I use frozen in smoothies)
• Oils: olive, avocado, flax & coconut
• Other: coconut milk, sunwarrior protein powder, stevia (liquid drops), herbs & spices (fresh & dried)

 

[knitty kitty]

@Acacia Voynar,

Oh, Candida and SIBO!  I know how miserable that is!  For mine, I followed the Autoimmune Protocol Diet (AIP diet) and supplemented with B Complex vitamins and extra (high dose) Thiamine and Riboflavin.  

The AIP diet is basically meat, vegetables and some fruits.  No nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers and eggplant).  No dairy, no nuts and seeds, no legumes.  These contain plant Lectins that can be irritating to the small intestine.  Dairy can promote an autoimmune reaction just like gluten does.  It was a much easier diet to digest.  After several weeks, I was able to start adding foods back in slowly.  It made a big difference.  The AIP diet starves out the SIBO bacteria.  SIBO bacteria like carbohydrates and high fructose corn syrup.  

I also chose low histamine foods.  High levels of histamine are produced in the body as part of the autoimmune response.  Eating high histamine foods can add to the burden, frequently overwhelming our bodies.  

I supplemented with high dose Thiamine (500 mg or more of Thiamine Hydrochloride and Benfotiamine).  Thiamine can keep Mast cells from degranulating and releasing histamine (Mast Cell Activation Syndrome).  Thiamine also helps control SIBO, keeping bacteria out of the small intestine.  I also supplemented with extra Riboflavin Vitamin B2.  Riboflavin helps control Candida overgrowth. 

 I supplemented with additional Niacin Vitamin B3.  Low stomach acid is a symptom of Niacin and Thiamine insufficiencies.  

The eight essential B vitamins are water soluble and nontoxic.  Higher doses are needed by the body when we are ill (physical stress) and worried (emotional stress).  Even though I was taking a multivitamin, it wasn't enough for my body's needs.  High doses of Thiamine and additional B vitamins really helped me recover.  

Hope this helps!

Edited July 26, 2023 by knitty kitty
Typo correction

[Acacia Voynar]

14 hours ago, knitty kitty said:

@Acacia Voynar,

Oh, Candida and SIBO!  I know how miserable that is!  For mine, I followed the Autoimmune Protocol Diet (AIP diet) and supplemented with B Complex vitamins and extra (high dose) Thiamine and Riboflavin.  

The AIP diet is basically meat, vegetables and some fruits.  No nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers and eggplant).  No dairy, no nuts and seeds, no legumes.  These contain plant Lectins that can be irritating to the small intestine.  Dairy can promote an autoimmune reaction just like gluten does.  It was a much easier diet to digest.  After several weeks, I was able to start adding foods back in slowly.  It made a big difference.  The AIP diet starves out the SIBO bacteria.  SIBO bacteria like carbohydrates and high fructose corn syrup.  

I also chose low histamine foods.  High levels of histamine are produced in the body as part of the autoimmune response.  Eating high histamine foods can add to the burden, frequently overwhelming our bodies.  

I supplemented with high dose Thiamine (500 mg or more of Thiamine Hydrochloride and Benfotiamine).  Thiamine can keep Mast cells from degranulating and releasing histamine (Mast Cell Activation Syndrome).  Thiamine also helps control SIBO, keeping bacteria out of the small intestine.  I also supplemented with extra Riboflavin Vitamin B2.  Riboflavin helps control Candida overgrowth. 

 I supplemented with additional Niacin Vitamin B3.  Low stomach acid is a symptom of Niacin and Thiamine insufficiencies.  

The eight essential B vitamins are water soluble and nontoxic.  Higher doses are needed by the body when we are ill (physical stress) and worried (emotional stress).  Even though I was taking a multivitamin, it wasn't enough for my body's needs.  High doses of Thiamine and additional B vitamins really helped me recover.  

Hope this helps!

I cannot thank you enough for all of that information!  Would you be able to provide me with some recommendations?

• For the thiamine, riboflavin & niacin supplements, are there any you can recommend that have high doses, or will I just need to take multiple pills of those daily?
• I've researched online about the AIP and low histamine diets but the foods list change based on various sources.  Do you have trusted resources for those?

[knitty kitty]

@Acacia Voynar,

I like Life Extension brand (available on Amazon).  Their Benfotiamine (250mg capsule) is a form of thiamine I use. 

You want to get lower doses of B vitamins and take with each meal throughout the day.  Our bodies can absorb a limited amount at a time, so taking vitamins throughout the day helps us absorb more.

Niacin can cause flushing which is harmless and goes away as your niacin stores are replenished.  If you dislike that, you can take Niacinamide, the non-flushing form.  500 mg over the course of a day should suffice.  At very high levels (above 1500 mg), niacin can lower LDL (bad cholesterol levels) but this needs medical supervision.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/niacin-benefits#TOC_TITLE_HDR_5

And...

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Niacin-HealthProfessional/

And...

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Riboflavin-HealthProfessional/

Riboflavin can cause your urine to turn bright green-yellow.  No harm there.  In fact, riboflavin will glow under black light.  (There's a recipe for glowing rock candy for Halloween in the forum recipe section.)

The Paleo Approach is a book by Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, a Celiac herself.  Her diet has been shown to promote intestinal healing.  This book has been very helpful to me.

 

[Acacia Voynar]

16 hours ago, knitty kitty said:

@Acacia Voynar,

I like Life Extension brand (available on Amazon).  Their Benfotiamine (250mg capsule) is a form of thiamine I use. 

You want to get lower doses of B vitamins and take with each meal throughout the day.  Our bodies can absorb a limited amount at a time, so taking vitamins throughout the day helps us absorb more.

Niacin can cause flushing which is harmless and goes away as your niacin stores are replenished.  If you dislike that, you can take Niacinamide, the non-flushing form.  500 mg over the course of a day should suffice.  At very high levels (above 1500 mg), niacin can lower LDL (bad cholesterol levels) but this needs medical supervision.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/niacin-benefits#TOC_TITLE_HDR_5

And...

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Niacin-HealthProfessional/

And...

https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Riboflavin-HealthProfessional/

Riboflavin can cause your urine to turn bright green-yellow.  No harm there.  In fact, riboflavin will glow under black light.  (There's a recipe for glowing rock candy for Halloween in the forum recipe section.)

The Paleo Approach is a book by Dr. Sarah Ballantyne, a Celiac herself.  Her diet has been shown to promote intestinal healing.  This book has been very helpful to me.

 

I really appreciate it!  With your mention of bright yellow urine, that is something I have been experiencing (without the B vitamin supplements).  My recent labs did show higher than normal levels of B12 and Folate.  Curious what that could mean? 

[knitty kitty]

It could mean there's not enough of the other B vitamins to function with B12 and Folate.  

The B vitamins are all interdependent on each other to do their various jobs.  

[ForwardMotion]

Knitty Kitty's comments are good.  From my many years working for a national biochemical imbalance/mental health clinic in Illinois, I would caution taking folate, especially high levels of folate, if you have symptoms of undermethylation.  Signs and symptoms of this biochemical imbalance are:  calm exterior-tense interior, depression, OCD like behaviors (i.e., rituals, routines), competitiveness and perfectionistic, addictions, etc.  Recommended reading:  Nutrient Power: Heal Your Chemistry, Heal Your Brain by William J. Walsh, Ph.D. (available on Walsh Research Institute website, Amazon, through your public library, at bookstores).  Imbalance is diagnosed through specialized lab work and extensive health history through any one of the Walsh-trained physicians in the U.S. and abroad:  https://www.walshinstitute.org/

[Wheatwacked]

In the US the terms "folate" and "folic acid"  can be used interchangeably on nutrition labels.  Folic Acid has an RDA upper safe limit of 1000 mg. Folate from food has no limit.

       Folic Acid and Risk of Prostate Cancer: Results From a Randomized Clinical Trial   "In contrast to the direct association of folic acid supplementation with risk of prostate cancer in the randomized analysis, there were possible indications of inverse associations of prostate cancer risk with dietary folate intake"

Folate reduces cancer risk. Folic Acid supplementation increases cancer risk.

[ForwardMotion]

Hi Wheatwacked - I was referencing what Knitty Kitty recommendations on taking B Vitamins (folic acid or folate) and recommending caution if you suffer from specific symptoms such as anxiety, depression, OCD, etc.:  https://www.walshinstitute.org/biochemical-individuality--nutrition.html

 

[knitty kitty]

I thought this article was interesting.  It discusses under-methylation and vitamins in cancer.  Choline and Betaine, and methylated forms of some B vitamins donate methyl groups.  

Methyl Donor Micronutrients that Modify DNA Methylation and Cancer Outcome

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6471069/