A big thank you to AnnieB for recommending this book on food allergies. Here is the link if anyone is interested.

http://www.amazon.com/Food-Allergies.../dp/047138268X

I am posting this here again because I am finding that my MG gets less severe when I reduce my allergies. I think for me, allergies and MG go hand in hand. Maybe other people suffer from this combination.

I have been experimenting with food a lot since I got MG, because this can make a big difference in how severe my MG symptoms are.

My food allergy symptoms are minor and I've never considered them anything more than an irritation, until now. This book describes the exact trouble I've had my whole life. I don't have typical food allergies, but rather an allergic reaction to any food if I eat it in large quantities. I've had skin and blood allergy tests and I am allergic to most foods, but I have to eat...

This book points out that if a person has this kind of food allergy, they often need to minimize sugar, MSG, acidic fruits, and artificial sweeteners.

I have been testing my reaction to sugar, acidic fruit, and foods that naturally contain MSG (I refuse to eat artificial sweeteners ), and I am noticing that all of these give me both allergic reactions and increase my MG symptoms. Now I am working on reducing sugar and fruits in my diet, luckily it seems I can eat small amounts of these things.

For example, I love ice cream...I can eat about 2 small scoops and be ok, but a third scoop gives me a slightly scratchy throat and itchy skin, and then within an hour or so I get more MG weakness (the specifics vary). If I go for 4 scoops, I get red irritated bumps in my throat and I have difficulty speaking, mostly due to the MG. I don't know why I didn't notice this before. I guess because the irritation goes away, and plus it happens all the time, for most of my life, I had gotten used to it.

Perfect timing to read this book, since my food experiments have come to a similar conclusion as this book, so the book was extremely helpful, like a confirmation of sorts.

Does anyone else suffer from allergies or notice a connection with MG?

I am hoping that I can further change my diet and maybe have less MG weakness.

Thank you again, AnnieB!

I'm so glad you liked the book. It's hard to explain to someone. I took out additives, MSG, etc. back in 1997 and it really helped. I did away with dairy last year and was shocked at how that helped. My dairy reaction got so bad that I was having an immediate inflammatory response in my mucous membranes. Not fun.

This guy is super smart and knows how additives impact our bodies little cell "furnaces," a.k.a., the mitochondria. They put a kink in the biochemical pathways. There have been studies that show people with MG can also have mito issues as well and may benefit from CoQ10.

Since getting celiac, it's hard to do any kind of rotation diet, which he recommends too. Except for the occasional dark chocolate, I stick to the no sugar diet.

I hope making changes continues to help your overall health.


Annie

YES, I have no doubt that there is a connection between MG and allergies. I've been allergic since I was a toddler -- my mom had to remove all of my stuffed animal, curtains, and bedspread from my room............had to wash the blanket and sheets in hot water once a week (no air conditioning back then). I am allergic to EVERYTHING -- animals, grass, trees, flowers, foods, chemicals, perfumes.....the list just goes on and on. It used to take WEEKS for me to get tested -- and then re-tested for my shots. I took shots for YEARS -- and they DID help. But, only to a point. And, the shots don't do much good for food allergies (at least they didn't for me). BUT, antihistamines help TREMENDOUSLY!! I've gone into anaphylactic shock several times due to wasp stings (I carry epinephrine in my purse) -- but, once Claritin became available, I found that it "knocked" my reaction back enough that a sting wasn't life-threatening.

I take Claritin or Zyrtec EVERYDAY of my life -- without it, I wouldn't be able to eat (and my nose would run, eyes would water). Before that, I relied on Alka-seltza Gold (sp?) -- something my allergist told me about. It changes the ph of your system and stops an allergic food reaction (or so they theorize). Anyway, it always worked for me. But, the antihistamines are BETTER.

I prefer the Claritin -- Zyrtec dulls my mind. But, in the spring and fall, Claritin ALONE isn't quite enough -- I have to supplement it with either a half or whole Chlor-tab.

My MG is MUCH worse when my allergies "break" through. When I got stung by the yellow-jackets, I thought I was going to go into an MG crisis. When my asthma is in full swing (my asthma is allergy related), my MG kicks up its heels, too.

I have done the rotation diet AND the caveman diet. At one time, there were a few foods that I was NOT allergic to -- I ate ONLY them for a couple of weeks -- and developed allergies TO them -- LOL!! Oh, well!!

Now, I just eat in moderation. I gasped when you said FOUR SCOOPS of ice cream!!! I do NOT eat like a bird -- but, if I ate THAT much of anything -- I would be as sick as a dog!! I try to eat a variety -- fortunately, wheat doesn't bother me any more than anything else -- no celiac, here. The only thing that I TOTALLY avoid is Chocolate (yes, THANK you for your sympathy ) -- it gives me migraines -- I haven't had even a bite of chocolate in more than 15 years. *sigh*

My allergist was praising CoQ10 25 years ago -- and my mom's PCP is INSISTING that she take it NOW! There has gotta be SOMETHING there.

I'm taking D3 right now -- have been since late September, when I could no longer get enough sun to make my own vitamin D. I just feel better this winter -- I still have MG -- and my speech is PATHETIC -- but, I'm just not miserable like I was last winter.

AnnieB,

I have thought about trying the CoQ10...I've already talked to my neuro about a whole list of supplements including this one and, while he didn't think any of them would help, he didn't see a problem with me taking them.

I think this rotation diet is a great idea. I seem to be allergic to most foods, especially if I eat them every day. Luckily I don't have any severe food allergies and can eat wheat and milk, although I try to eat them in moderation because I tested positive as being allergic to them a long time ago. The only thing I have never had a reaction to is green vegetables.

I need to find more things that taste good for breakfast. Recently I have been skipping breakfast because everything I usually eat for breakfast bothers my throat. I think it is the sugar/fruit. My favorite breakfast is oatmeal with bananas. In the last few months bananas have started bothering me, too.

I may have a mitochondria problem, you are right. I looked up some of the possible symptoms, and I don't have any of the symptoms I read, but I do think there is something that doesn't quite work right in my body, more than MG alone. I read that Mestinon often helps people with mitochondria disorders...

I do enjoy a bit of dark chocolate now and then, delicious...

Jana,

I can relate to your experiences. I took Claritin for many years, it is the best allergy medicine for me, too. I have severe perfume allergies and for a while I worked with someone who refused to stop wearing perfume to work even after I asked nicely and explained what it does to me. I spent a long time with a constant runny nose and eventually I ended up really sick...I quit working with her but I developed new allergies and everything I breathed in bothered me for about 6 years, I had to regularly take Claritin. I don't think Claritin helps my food allergies either, at least I haven't noticed anything helpful, so I have quit taking it.

It sounds like we have similar food allergies.

I love ice cream and usually only eat small amounts...I tried eating varying amounts out of curiosity (I tried similar things with other sweet foods), when I was wondering if sugar bothered me. I won't do that again, but that was the thing that confirmed for me that food was a big issue for my allergies and my MG. So now I am eating everything in small quantities and trying not to eat so much sugar since it seems to be the biggest food that effects my MG.

You can't eat chocolate, and I can't eat cinnamon. I love the taste of cinnamon... I guess I do have one severe food allergy and it is cinnamon, it makes my whole face and chest swell up with welts, and I itch like crazy, I have no idea what it does to my MG since I haven't ate cinnamon for a long time. I can't even handle the scent of cinnamon, it makes my MG get really bad, I get itchy but that is nothing compared to cinnamon's effects on my MG, scary.

Sunlight is a big help for my allergies, I think the vitamin D is very helpful for allergies and MG. I try to go outside for at least 15 minutes on most days and notice the effects. Vitamin C and E are also helpful for my allergies, and seem to make a small difference for MG.

I think I'll try some CoQ10, this topic has convinced me.

I am on my second day of not eating sugar and I feel great! It is noon and I don't feel weak yet, haven't taken Mestinon today yet, although I will shortly. I do still have that heavy feeling in my muscles that never goes away with MG, but I am amazed at how good I feel.

Is it possible that not eating sugar and other foods that give me a sore throat can make this much of a difference and so quickly? I must admit that I am craving sugar, maybe I also have some kind of a yeast problem, even though I have no symptoms...I think craving sugar is a symptom of a yeast infection, maybe that is why I am getting a scratchy throat when I eat sweet things...I wonder, am I feeding yeast in my throat?

I have been taking two doses of Mestinon daily (reduced from previous 4 to 5), yesterday the second dose bothered me, made me nervous and my facial muscles tightened and I ended up with face cramps because I couldn't relax my face. I was jittery and kept dropping things because I was moving too fast last night, and I was having difficulty speaking because I was talking too fast, I don't like this side effect of Mestinon.

When I mention this nervousness effect of Mestinon on me, a few people here have mentioned that I may have Graves (hyperthyroid). I want to say here that I have looked up the symptoms multiple times and I am pretty sure I don't have hyperthyroid. The symptoms, other than the nervousness (and a few overlapping MG symptoms such as weakness and double vision), don't fit me at all. If anything, I am hypothyroid because I have a tendency to be cold all the time, but hypothyroid symptoms don't fit me either. I think my nervousness is from the Mestinon, and the nervousness gets worse as my MG symptoms get less, and it is always after I take Mestinon.

I am confused as how to alter my Mestinon dosage so I don't get these symtoms when I am feeling better. I feel like I should be enjoying good days instead of dealing with side effects from Mestinon. I don't get side effects anymore from Mestinon when my MG is bad, only when I am feeling good.

I think I'll lower my Mestinon dose again if I still feel good later today.

If I continue feeling like this, I should be able to work again. Of course, I need to be careful, because last year I started feeling better, and I went back to work and my MG got worse and it has only recently recovered.
No point in finding a job if I can't keep working.

Does anyone else have trouble with Mestinon when your MG symptoms are minimal? How do you adjust your dosage?

Maybe I am feeling better recently due to this work on reducing my allergies and because I finally quit working.

Sorry for the rambling, but I got excited, and I LOVE to hear when others are doing well, it has always given me hope.

I think I'll play some music and dance a little, I haven't been able to do that for a while, I feel bouncy, like a weight has lifted...I wonder how long this will last.

Susan,

Have you ever considered that you could have a systemic yeast infection that is driving your body crazy? I have a friend who was plagued for years with some of the same things you are describing - - and she finally found relief with a yeast remedy .... packets of stuff that she mixed with water. There was a treatment phase followed by a maintenance phase.

Huge difference it made in her life!! I'll post the website as soon as I get. Might be worth a look.

Here's one of the sites...www.candidasymptoms.net/

There is a lot of info and infomercials on systemic candida to be found when doing an internet search. I was not inclined to be a 'believer' until my friend had such great results. See what you think.

Thanks,

I just read the introduction (on amazon) and loved it-

This allergist says-I asked myself-what should I trust-what is written in my books or what my patients tell me, and I chose to trust what my patients tell me.

Sue,

Thank you for the reminder!

I have had systematic yeast infections two times in my life. Once as a child from being overmedicated, and at that time either the drugs or the yeast infection almost killed me (most likely the drugs). The second time I had a yeast infection was when my allergies were really bad...hmmm...there is something similar now, I may have another yeast infection. I don't get the typical yeast infections most women get, my symptoms seem to show up as allergies.

I was thinking about the candida connection yesterday, for some reason I hadn't thought of it until when I was typing my previous post. I think I'll go back to taking the pro-biotics, and avoiding sugar and other foods that feed the candida. This worked last time. I've slowly let my diet go back to eating more sugary foods...

I remember now the book my previous doctor recommended, it is "The Yeast Connection" by William Crook. I found this book very helpful in learning what kind of diet changes to make. Here is a link to his book:

http://www.amazon.com/Yeast-Connecti...tt_at_ep_dpi_1

I wonder if the packets you are referring to is Threelac. I have not tried this brand but have taken other probiotics in the past and found them very helpful.

I do think there is a connection, at least for me, with allergies, candida and MG...