Working Through a Moderate Food Allergy/Sensitivity

March 3, 2020 6:46 PM

I am really sensitive to soy in all its forms (except soy lecithin.) It gives me weird acne and occasionally stomach issues. This is majorly cramping my style when it comes to eating out with my friends/dates because it means I pretty much can't have any Asian cuisine. Is there *anything* I can do to desensitize myself?
posted by Kitchen Witch to Food & Drink (4 answers total)

I had a sensitivity to MSG, (I got a rash and astma attacks, but I have grown out of it), and had the same problems until I met a Chinese-American person who showed me which Chinese dishes had no soy, because of course there is Asian food without soy. From Chinese, I gradually expanded my knowledge to other cuisines. Vietnamese was my favorite then, still is. Maybe buy some good cookbooks, or find ressources online to learn about your options. My Chinese cookbook is 500 km away, so I can't come up with suggestions right now. As I said, I've grown out of it, so I don't remember the dishes now.
posted by mumimor at 12:52 AM on March 4, 2020

Do antihistamines help?

Otherwise, bad news: you will have to stop eating soy.
posted by bile and syntax at 6:22 AM on March 4, 2020

Oh yes, originally, I wrote that I believe keeping a very strict non-msg diet for about several years is how I grew out of it. I can't prove that, though, which is why I deleted that part of the comment. There is a connection between the state of your gut microbiome and your allergies/sensitivities and that may be the explanation.
posted by mumimor at 7:28 AM on March 4, 2020

Talk to an allergist about going through de-sensitizing. Some food allergies can successfully be desensitized. Some food allergies will just change over time.


I have three allergies: wheat, white potato, and melons that make eating out a bit of a challenge at times (wheat allergy is more problematic as far as reaction, but melon is the most violent reaction, but doesn't impact much outside of breakfast offerings). The wheat allergy includes staying away from soy sauce, which can knock out a lot of Asian food that have soy sauce as part of its sauce / flavoring. Some restaurants can and offer to cook with out soy sauce or make things with out wheat or soy.

Going for Japanese food can work well and eat sushi without soy sauce. Be careful of miso soup as miso can be soy and wheat based. Many Japanese restaurants have sauces that don't use soy nor wheat that can be substituted for soy sauce and can add flavor missing. Also, Viet Namese food can be a good option as well as fish sauce and vinegars are used more than soy sauce.
posted by vanderwal at 8:16 AM on March 4, 2020 [1 favorite]