Re: Re: beta carotene intolerance -- was Question about chicken soup

[Guest guest]

Too much beta carotene triggers immune responses -- hives and respiratory distress. The slightly unusual thing about my body's reaction to beta carotene is that although there are a few hives/welts are on my arms and legs, there is a high concentration of them across my abdomen and they itch like mad for an hour or two. Usually I get hives in relatively even amounts everywhere on my body. The respiratory distress isn't too bad when I react to beta carotene, unlike some of my body's responses to other medications or supplements. I just have to pant and breathe rapidly -- it isn't bad enough to send me to the ER.

I usually take a Zyrtec or Benadryl to cut off the response, but I prefer not to take an antihistamine very often so I just avoid the problem food. I do have to tell doctors and nurses about this allergic response to beta carotene as many prescription medications use this as a base.

So I limit the amount of carrots and other vegetables high in beta carotene I eat. I feel sure I built up a sensitivity to them since I ate nothing but soup for 6 months while I struggled to get a diagnosis, and then had soup frequently during the first 4 months on SCD. I stopped eating anything with beta carotene for 2 years, then started having a small amount of cooked carrot once a month. These days I can handle a small amount of cooked carrots once or twice a week, but I do have to wait 5 to 6 days between servings or my body reacts. I can use carrots in making soup stock (thank goodness, some flavor at last!) but I can't have soup more than once every 5 to 6 days. I still can't handle orange vegetables like pumpkin or butternut squash, but not all of the reaction is immune, some of the reaction is digestive (severe nausea, Right Upper Quadrant abdominal pain, right shoulder blade pain, my usual...) since my upper GI doesn't tolerate the high-carb veggies.

A lot of my food intolerances trigger immune responses along with digestive. I think I must have a very sensitive liver or immune system, and I know I have a very cranky upper GI.

Kim M.

SCD 5+ years

Sphincter of Oddi dysfunction & other upper GI malfunctions 6 years

neurological deterioration 3 years

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Kim, What kind of bad reaction were you having from beta carotene/too many carrots? I've been eating a lot of them in intro/stage I, and I just want to make sure I am not missing a basic intolerance...