I haven't eaten an apple in about twenty-two years. That dates back to when I had mycoplasmic pneumonia and many food allergies developed. I remember that month, but not fondly! I only made it to school for one and a half days for the month of June that year. And later I found out that one of the side effects from either the mycoplasma or the e-mycin (antibiotic) was a range of allergies to a sweet protein found in may kinds of fruit. I have also experienced seasonal hay fever since then. It was very distressing to discover that I couldn't eat apples, pears, peaches... and one of my greatest chagrins was when I discovered that I couldn't eat Saskatoons!
Well, my doctor in Yellowknife advised that I should try a series of injections to build up my tolerance for the allergens that were causing my hay fever due to my susceptibility to developing pneumonia. That worked pretty well as long as we lived in Yellowknife, and now I've decided to give it another try. I got my allergy tests a week ago, and now I'm considering whether to begin another series of needles, but a side benefit was some startling advice from my allergy doctor. When he took my story and saw my results, he suggested that I was probably experiencing problems with certain fresh fruit. I assured him that this was the case. I was surprised to hear his promise that he might be able to help me! He suggested that if I wanted to eat an apple, I should microwave it for possibly as long as a minute and then return it to the fridge. When it had cooled I could try to eat it! I'm still testing to get it just right without producing soft spots, but I have been able to eat apples again! What a pleasure!
Well, my doctor in Yellowknife advised that I should try a series of injections to build up my tolerance for the allergens that were causing my hay fever due to my susceptibility to developing pneumonia. That worked pretty well as long as we lived in Yellowknife, and now I've decided to give it another try. I got my allergy tests a week ago, and now I'm considering whether to begin another series of needles, but a side benefit was some startling advice from my allergy doctor. When he took my story and saw my results, he suggested that I was probably experiencing problems with certain fresh fruit. I assured him that this was the case. I was surprised to hear his promise that he might be able to help me! He suggested that if I wanted to eat an apple, I should microwave it for possibly as long as a minute and then return it to the fridge. When it had cooled I could try to eat it! I'm still testing to get it just right without producing soft spots, but I have been able to eat apples again! What a pleasure!
2 comments:
Crazy ... why the difference? Leslie
Well, Leslie, here's the best I can do...
Early on in my allergies I found I could eat the fruit when it was cooked. In fact my nasty Saskatoon experience happened one night after eating Saskatoon pie at the Machins, and then getting some fresh Saskatoons to take home. When I tried them with fresh cream, (ummm, delicious), I thought I was going to die. Swollen tongue, inflamed esophagus, difficulty breathing... you get the picture.
So, the current explanation is that cooking breaks the sweet protein to which I am allergic, into other proteins that I can enjoy. Apparently microwaving those proteins also breaks them!
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