Developed egg white intolerance -- at 27?!

[alessa1235]

Hi all,

I was used to getting a huge chunk of my daily protein from eggs and egg whites. Then, at the beginning of the summer I started experiencing some severe sharp stomach pain. Fast forward to now, and I discovered that what makes my stomach hurt so much are egg whites. If I have hard-boiled whole eggs (no more than 1), my stomach is ok but if I have any more egg white in a different form (or pure egg whites) my stomach will kill me. I never experienced anything like this before and I was wondering if it has happened to anyone else and if it got better (I read some stories about people who got better after they stopped eating eggs for a while).

Thanks in advance!

[loganhart]

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=169009093

[Domicron]

http://forum.bodybuilding.com/showth...hp?t=169009093

the thread is actually handy, right! it's not just me being a dick!

anyhow OP get you to a doctor

[alessa1235]

Its the egg whites CAUSING the pain. As in, I eat egg, I have pain. I eat anything else there is no pain. No need to "enlighten me" with a bodybuilding.com thread on correlation v. causation; I understand they are different. I was just looking to see if this had happened to anyone else.

[alessa1235]

the thread is actually handy, right! it's not just me being a dick!

anyhow OP get you to a doctor

I understand correlation and causation already. The egg CAUSES the pain. Ok?

[Domicron]

I understand correlation and causation already. The egg CAUSES the pain. Ok?

a DOCTOR is the only person who should be giving you medical advice. so you need to schedule an appointment and ask your doctor "what should i do if egg whites are causing stomach discomfort?"

until then i'd suggest that maybe, JUST MAYBE, keep in mind i'm not a medical professional, but maybe you should not eat egg whites.

[nakkiz]

It seems like you're confusing correlation with causation.



Swing by the doctors office and tell them whats up. Nobody on an internet forum is going to be able to fix that one for you.

[desslok]

Then I would suggest eating one of the other hundreds/thousands of sources of protein.

[nakkiz]

Then I would suggest eating one of the other hundreds/thousands of sources of protein.

no pain no gain.

[magician27]

I understand correlation and causation already. The egg CAUSES the pain. Ok?

how did you isolate it from all other factors ? and whats special about egg whites that can cause pain ?

[EjnarKolinkar]

Its the egg whites CAUSING the pain. As in, I eat egg, I have pain. I eat anything else there is no pain. No need to "enlighten me" with a bodybuilding.com thread on correlation v. causation; I understand they are different. I was just looking to see if this had happened to anyone else.

Maybe you are allergic to eggs? It's a common allergy. You could get food allergy testing if you really want to know more.

[alessa1235]

Maybe you are allergic to eggs? It's a common allergy. You could get food allergy testing if you really want to know more.

Thank you for your response! That's what came to mind after researching for a while.

I isolated it from the other foods I eat just by trying the egg alone after an overnight fast, or late at night about 4 hours after last eating something. Every time it was egg (versus chicken or beef or some other food not containing egg) I got excruciating pain about 45 minutes after eating. It's been the same each time. So I looked it up and egg allergy (or mild intolerance not producing an inflammatory response outside the stomach) is what came up. I had gone to the doctor before I had figured out it was the egg and she ran tests for everything except allergies--they all turned up nothing.

And obviously I'll stop eating them. (last time I ate an egg was 4 days ago and that was the last time I was in pain). I just wanted to know if anyone else had gotten a food allergy as an adult.

[ShyGuyXS]

Thank you for your response! That's what came to mind after researching for a while.

That is possibly the case (having dietary needs change as a result of disease/allergies isn't unheard of for adults), but your doctor will be the best one to go to for confirming that.

I myself have been very fortunate not to have discovered any food allergies. I know other adults in my family who have allergies to seafood (i.e. clams) and the like - unfortunately I don't know whether they've lasted since childhood or are more recent developments.

[desslok]

I just wanted to know if anyone else had gotten a food allergy as an adult.

Its quite common actually. Like for example dairy/lactose. I read somewhere that you may have a finite supply/potential of certain enzymes.

[MetilHed]

I just wanted to know if anyone else had gotten a food allergy as an adult.

And theee's no way Google could tell you something like that.

On a more serious note, make sure you throw the shells away.

[Jetigen]

If I have hard-boiled whole eggs (no more than 1), my stomach is ok but if I have any more egg white in a different form (or pure egg whites) my stomach will kill me. I never experienced anything like this before and I was wondering if it has happened to anyone else and if it got better (I read some stories about people who got better after they stopped eating eggs for a while).

I isolated it from the other foods I eat just by trying the egg alone after an overnight fast, or late at night about 4 hours after last eating something. Every time it was egg (versus chicken or beef or some other food not containing egg) I got excruciating pain about 45 minutes after eating. It's been the same each time. So I looked it up and egg allergy (or mild intolerance not producing an inflammatory response outside the stomach) is what came up. I had gone to the doctor before I had figured out it was the egg and she ran tests for everything except allergies--they all turned up nothing.

And obviously I'll stop eating them. (last time I ate an egg was 4 days ago and that was the last time I was in pain). I just wanted to know if anyone else had gotten a food allergy as an adult.

From your description it doesn't look like you have the actual allergy to eggs. You are saying that you can handle eating 1 hard-boiled egg with no reaction. Then you state that your pain is caused only after eating eggs. Do you realize that eggs are present in many kinds of foods like baked products, sauces, candies, coffee drinks, etc and even wine?

Obviously you need to get a qualified opinion from a doctor. To me it sounds like mental reaction that is causing physical symptoms.

[alessa1235]

And theee's no way Google could tell you something like that.

On a more serious note, make sure you throw the shells away.

I did google it and looked in scholarly databases and found some stuff. I wanted to see if anyone in in here had experienced it and what their experience was like. I am sorry if I am wasting precious forum space with such a question </sarcasm>.

[alessa1235]

That is possibly the case (having dietary needs change as a result of disease/allergies isn't unheard of for adults), but your doctor will be the best one to go to for confirming that.

I myself have been very fortunate not to have discovered any food allergies. I know other adults in my family who have allergies to seafood (i.e. clams) and the like - unfortunately I don't know whether they've lasted since childhood or are more recent developments.

Thank you. Will be heading to my doctor next week to see if she can run the allergy/intolerance tests on me.

[alessa1235]

From your description it doesn't look like you have the actual allergy to eggs. You are saying that you can handle eating 1 hard-boiled egg with no reaction. Then you state that your pain is caused only after eating eggs. Do you realize that eggs are present in many kinds of foods like baked products, sauces, candies, coffee drinks, etc and even wine?

Obviously you need to get a qualified opinion from a doctor. To me it sounds like mental reaction that is causing physical symptoms.

You're right. It would not be a full-blown allergy because if it were I would be getting the hives and difficulty breathing and so forth. However, there are food intolerances which produce a localized histamine/inflammation response in the digestive track. Here is the entry from webmd for what its worth:


"It’s pretty common to have a reaction to a certain food, but in most cases it’s an intolerance rather than a true allergy. Why does it matter? Although they may have similar symptoms, a food allergy can be more serious.

These clues can help you figure out if it is an allergy or intolerance. A doctor can help you know for sure.

Food Allergy:

Usually comes on suddenly
Small amount of food can trigger
Happens every time you eat the food
Can be life-threatening

Food Intolerance:

Usually comes on gradually
May only happen when you eat a lot of the food
May only happen if you eat the food often
Is not life-threatening"

[alessa1235]

Its quite common actually. Like for example dairy/lactose. I read somewhere that you may have a finite supply/potential of certain enzymes.

Oh wow. That's scary/interesting. Will look that up. I think the lactose one may be more common too.