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Question about RAST results


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As I mentioned in earlier posts my son had lots of tics last spring/ early summer and after eliminating dairy from his diet he is tic free. We tested this probably 6 or 7 times and each time he had any dairy we would see tics for about 3 days. He has been without tics for about a month and his bedwetting has stopped as well. (He still stutters) He had the RAST test 2 weeks ago and they tested for whey, caisen and soy. Today I called to see if they had the results in and the nurse said the doctor would be out for the next 2 weeks and I could talk to him at our next appointment in Sept.- and that he had not signed off on the bloodwork yet. She said all she could tell me was that he had a less than 1% allergy to milk and whey and the doctor might want to "peek" at that. Does anyone know what this means? I am so confused. Would this be considered a sensitivity to milk and should he be able to tolerate soy or lactose- free milk? Is he really not allergic to dairy? Please help me if anyone understands these results. Thanks!

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Hi Tom's Mom & Pamela Kay,

 

Tom's Mom, absolutely stay the course if you are seeing those kinds of results!

 

Here are some articles that will help you understand the difference btwn IgE and IgG responses. I really like the last of these three. I think it's got some really good info.

 

 

http://www.labtestsonline.org/understandin...lergy/test.html

Allergy Testing

 

Also known as: RAST test, Allergy screen

Formal name: Allergen-specific IgE antibody test

 

http://www.directlabs.com/ImmunoLabs.php#IgGFood

 

IgG Delayed Food Allergy Assay

The majority of adverse immune reactions to foods classified as Type II, III, or IV with delayed symptom onset, are mediated by IgG and are termed food sensitivities. It has been estimated that 90% of immune reactions to foods are non-IgE, or delayed symptom onset food allergies. A single blood test can identify food specific IgG antibodies and thus identify patients’ food sensitivities. Recommended treatment for food sensitivities is elimination of reactive foods from the diet for a period of 3 to 4 months followed by reintroduction and rotation. There are 115 foods tested in the Standard Panel Immuno 1 Bloodprint™.

 

http://www.gdx.net/home/assessments/allerg...uide/index.html

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Thanks for the info Kim and Pam! I have been busy with school starting, but want to look into the IgE testing. Thomas had the IgG test, and I'm not sure if his allergist will agree to the IgE testing- Do regular allergists typically believe in/administer this kind of testing? I know environmental and intergrative doctors use this test, but I am trying to work with doctors that are covered by our insurance. What about nutritionists- do they do the IgG testing?

 

I've noticed some tics this week with school starting- I think maybe he had some things with milk in it this week - its harder to monitor now that he's in school! I also wonder about other foods he may be sensitive to and whether or not he could have the soy milk - that would open up a lot more options for him with the soy milk, ice cream, yogurt etc. Thanks for your help.

 

Mary

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Tom's Mom,

 

I think you are confusing the IgG and IgE. Rast is IgE. Now I think you are saying that you would like IgG. I know how easy it is to get tripped up with all of these initials!

 

You know, our traditional old Pediatrician actually did order a form of IgG testing for me. He had no idea that it existed. It was covered by our insurance too.

 

It was ordered through Labcorp, who then sent it on to Mayo labs.

 

It covered 20 foods.

 

It was horrible to get ordered then done, and took me quite some time on the tele. to get them to order the correct test. Noone knew the coding for the tests and apparently each food like soy, milk, wheat, corn, etc. had it's own code # for IgG. Then the girls who did the draw in the lab, didn't know how much blood was needed or how to write up their end of things.

 

When the test results came back, under milk they had IgE (the rest were right, with the IgG) and that was one that I HAD to know. Luckily, I called MAYO, had a mini fit, and the lab tech called me back and said they still had the speciman and they would run the IgG on milk. It was one of his highest reactive sbustances. The other was peanut, and he had a weird one, pork. Mild for egg, grains.

 

Just a tip, that someone else here shared with me. If you decide to pursue this, DO NOT MENTION TS OR TIC SYNDROME. Tell the Dr. that your son is having stomach aches or constipation or typical allergy (stuffiness etc.) after eating certain foods. Insurance will not cover, if the test is ordered for a symptom like tics.

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Kim,

Yes you were right - I got the initials confused! My son had the IgE testing - My pediatritian seems very open to helping me so I may see if he will order the IgG test for my son. I will use your tip about the reason for the test though- and my son does have the constipation and stuffiness so we will not mention the tics. Thanks for that tip! One more question though- from reading the articles about food sensitivities it sounds like these allergies are typically outgrown. In your sons case did he outgrow his allergy to milk? Or any of the other foods that he was sensitive to? And can new ones crop up- or once you have the testing done you are aware of the reactive foods and don't have to worry about that anymore? Thank you so much for your responses.

 

Mary

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Mary,

 

I'm sorry that it has taken me so long to respond. Sometimes, I have to physically move the computer so I stay off for a while. By the time I'm done reading the new posts, somedays, my mind is so full of things that I want to respond to, that I just get overwhelmed and have to shut down. I physically feel the pain and frustration of every single person going through this ordeal.

 

Anyway, I did try really hard to keep my son off of cow's milk, but he started to lose weight. He hated rice and soy milk (extremely taste sensitive and suspicious of every different food). The only thing I can get into him before school, is a Carnation Instant breakfast drink. I decided to ditch the milk avoidance (also I felt this was one of his only sources of methionine and sulfur) and start using digestive enzymes instead. We did avoid peanut butter for about 2 mos. You have no idea how hard food restrictions are, unless you have one of these kids who literally exists on 4 to 5 foods. Milk and peanut butter are two of the only foods that can even remotely be associated with any nutritional value that he eats. Other things like pretzels, crackers, french fries, just don't provide much, although I do wonder if he needs the salty things for iodine (thyroid).

 

One of the biggest improvements that we saw with the use of enzymes was the frequent stomach aches stopped. This was an improvement that was really a "wow," however, he did not start adding new foods, which was my biggest hope.

 

A while back, another parent shared with me, that maybe I was focusing on a particular food too much, when the main issue with many of these kids is the overall condition of the gut. If there is damage to the mucosal lining, or leaky gut, caused by yeast overgrowth or gut flora issues (overgrowth of "bad" bacteria in relationship to benefical bacteria) you may lose one sensitivity and just develope another. This made sense to me. So we started probiotics, continue to use Houston enzymes, and I am always on the lookout for new ideas for gut healing (there are MANY). It is an ongoing, hopefully healing, process here ;)

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Kim,

Thanks for your reply. I totally understand the need to stay off the computer for a while! I am lucky that my son will eat almost anything you put in front of him and doesn't complain about the rice milk or the fruits and veggies in place of sweets- it makes me wonder why I fed him all of that junk food before! However, I am worried about him developing other food sensitivities so I would like to try probiotics. He still suffers from constipation so I'm wondering if that is a symptom of gut problems. Thanks again, Mary

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Kim,

 

What probiotics do you use?

Yes, I was wondering that from anyone that uses probiotics as well. Also, dosages for an 8 year old and also an adult. Itsme? I know you use them for both yourself and son. Anyone else with info on probiotics. Would a yogurt a day be sufficient for an 8 year old?

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