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Sulphite allergy

(15 Posts)
kittylester Thu 20-Oct-16 07:59:39

Recently I have had some funny symptoms including fast heart rate, feeling breathless, headache. I've mithered the gp a few times and had ecg, blood tests, BP checks, urine tests etc. Nothing is apparent.

After reading about it, i am wondering if I have an allergy to sulphites and I think I remember someone else mentioning that they had the same thing - maybe Anno.

Anyone have any experience of this?

thatbags Thu 20-Oct-16 08:01:41

Give up alcohol for a bit (month or so) and see if anything changes.

kittylester Thu 20-Oct-16 08:05:55

That's the worry bags grin

Nelliemoser Thu 20-Oct-16 08:59:23

Keep a record of what & when you eat and drink.
How much coffee do you drink? A colleague had to stop her strong coffee habit as she was getting palpitations.

kittylester Thu 20-Oct-16 11:53:37

I don't drink any coffee at all Nellie just 4 cups of tea, water, cherry juice, an occasional hot chocolate while I'm hygge-ing on the window seat and my glass or two of white wine while I'm cooking.

aggie Thu 20-Oct-16 12:10:43

No joke , but it could be Sulphites in the wine ?

Liz46 Thu 20-Oct-16 12:28:59

I have asthma and have been wondering if sulphites affect me. I drink white wine and on doing a bit of research, find that things like dried apricots (which I put on my cereal every morning) also contain them. My GP didn't seem to think it was very likely but I am not so sure.

I lead a fairly healthy lifestyle but do enjoy a drink some evenings and really don't feel like giving up alcohol for a month!

gretel Thu 20-Oct-16 13:27:16

I have an intolerance to sulphites. If I drink white wine I have an upset stomach. One New Year's Eve we were drinking Prosecco with some neighbours and the whites of my eyes turned pink. Dried apricots cause IBS type symptoms too and also nuts which I love. Sulphite intolerance is well known.

kittylester Thu 20-Oct-16 13:44:50

It's because wine contains sulphites that I asked the question. Allergy websites say dried fruit, prawns, pickles and table sauces (among other things) as Liz said, contain sulphites - I'm going to have to develop a taste for g and t!

Liz46 Thu 20-Oct-16 14:12:26

I think it is possible to buy organic white wine but I guess it will be expensive.

Linsco56 Thu 20-Oct-16 21:25:10

As we grow older our ability to metabolize alcohol diminishes. You could try taking an over-the-counter antihistamine but many of these have a sedating effect and taken before drinking alcohol you will have a double-whammy and could be in the land of nod before you know it!

The effect of sulfites is mainly on the respiratory system of those who already suffer with asthma and allergy problems.

Chardonnay an Sauvingnon Blanc are low in histamine and tyramines and would be a better choice than red wines which are high in sulfites sad and remember to drink a glass of water between each glass of wine.

It's not great when we're denied life's little pleasures.

lizzypopbottle Sat 22-Oct-16 22:14:21

Check out this website:

www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=59

It's all about butter beans (aka lima beans) and in the 'health benefits' section, sensitivity to sulphites is right at the top! Apparently, molybdenum is needed to metbolise sulphites and butter beans have it in shed loads! There are many other health benefits listed too. Here below is a lovely butter bean recipe from Rick Stein:

www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/gigantes_with_tomatoes_47546

We eat this (modified) as a fasting day meal every week because if you half the recipe (use two tins of Napolina butter beans - other brands are available ?) and reduce the olive oil to one tbsp, the finished dish is as near as dammit one calorie/gram. This feeds two, fasting, with a portion left for the next day. With a little hot water added, we warm it, zizz it up in the blender with a drizzle of olive oil (about 1tbsp) and use it like hummus. It's lush.

Liz46 Thu 27-Oct-16 15:12:09

Thanks for the link to the recipe and the tips lizzypopbottle. I'll give it a go.

organicwineclub Fri 09-Jun-17 11:09:43

Have you checked maybe you have consumed some wine in the near time. However Natural wines or those made without added sulphites are produced with minimal intervention in the winery. If you want to read more about sulphites in wine then I have an interesting blog for you.

hildajenniJ Fri 09-Jun-17 11:20:53

I've stopped drinking any alcohol and coffee, and my stomach has thanked me for it. It was a wrench though, as I loved black coffee and a gin and tonic. ??