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Allergic to Bananas!

Well, since I was a kid, bananas (especially really ripe ones) made my mouth tingle very slightly. Recently, I have been eating lots and lots of bananas (just ran the Chicago Marathon…ouch!) and today and yesterday after eating a banana my entire mouth itched like crazy (lips, throat, pallate) and then my scalp started to itch too, and my face!

I looked online and read that banana allergies are often associated to latex allergies as well as hay fever/pollen (which I have) and also with MANGOES, AVOCADOES, AND MELONS!!

I am freaked out! What if I become more and more allergic to my favorite foods? I LOVE avocadoes, bananas, and mangoes!

Does anyone else have a banana allergy?

Comments

  • ungratefulungrateful Raw Newbie

    I thank my stars (or whatever is in charge of that department) that I have an affinity with all foods and reactions are few, far between and mild to the point of not noticing. I am sure that will change with time if I keep eating raw foods, :)

    I hope it works out for you, I don’t know what I would do without bananas. Then again, I said the same thing about dairy about a month ago.

    :)

  • ungratefulungrateful Raw Newbie

    I thank my stars (or whatever is in charge of that department) that I have an affinity with all foods and reactions are few, far between and mild to the point of not noticing. I am sure that will change with time if I keep eating raw foods, :)

    I hope it works out for you, I don’t know what I would do without bananas. Then again, I said the same thing about dairy about a month ago.

    :)

  • ouch! Sorry, I have no words of encouragement on this one! I don’t know what I would do with out bananas AND mangoes! Lol, I had 10 large mangoes for lunch, usually that’s my dinner and I have about 20 medium/large bananas for lunch. I would not be a happy camper!! And then come summer time and NO MELONS??? No way. Couldn’t do it. I hope there was just some pollen/laytex on your hands that caused the reaction and not the fruit… Not that having pollen and or laytex on your hands that your allergic to is a good thing, but it’s better than the alternative!!

    LOl, once again sorry for this post :)

  • Annabelle77Annabelle77 Raw Newbie

    you know, it’s weird—I made it through 28 years without being allergic to ANYTHING! Two years ago my sinuses exploded in late summer and I had no idea what was going on. Now every fall sucks—I have to take prescription allergy meds to function, and I really don’t like taking medicine. I think I may have exacerbated the slight allergy to bananas by eating lots and lots of them recently. I still feel itchy, all over now, not just my mouth.

    Certainly sucks! I’ll have to get allergy tested, and I hope hope hope hope hope that I’m not allergic to any other fruits!

  • itouristitourist Raw Newbie

    I’m glad to see that no one else said they were allergic to bananas. I could be wrong but I think you ate something new recently and you are reacting to that. It could be a supplement you ate or something else you ate or drank.

  • RawKidChefRawKidChef Raw Newbie

    Maybe you’re more sensitive because you are eating raw. You’re body is healthier and it’s probably more sensitive and more “alert” to anything that could be wrong. The body’s “instincts” are kind of turned off when the body is filled with toxins.

    That’s a shame! I don’t eat many fresh bananas but they sure are good frozen and ground with flavorings for a shake!

    My favorite fruit is pineapple. Couldn’t live without it!

  • Annabelle77Annabelle77 Raw Newbie

    Hi itourist.

    I wish you were right—that it was a reaction to something else. But, a few years ago, I was surprised to find out that bananas diddnt slightly burn everyone elses mouth. I thought that was just how banans were—like sweet but slightly spicy.

    I’ve had a minimal allergic response to them for as long as I can remember. But, as I mentioned earlier, the week before I ran the chicago marathon, I was eating more than 1 banana per day, and from what I’ve learned, consuming a ton of something that you are only slightly allergic to can trigger a much larger allergy.

    After looking online, turns out that the burning mouth/throat with bananas is caused by an original allergy to a specific pollen. The body then mistakes the protein in the banana for the pollen.

    My doctor said that since I had a relativey severe reaction that I should not try and press my luck.

    WHAT AM I GONNA PUT IN MY SMOOTHIES!?

  • RawKidChefRawKidChef Raw Newbie

    lol are you allergic to plantains too? They are larger and drier bananas but close enough.

  • 1sweetpea1sweetpea Raw Newbie

    Annabelle77, my experience with allergies is that some are discovered early and hang around for life, while others develop at any time and may later disappear as your body develops defenses against them. 9 years ago, I had a summer that was so bad for allergies that I went to my doctor and got a nasal spray and some meds. But, the next summer, the symptoms didn’t reappear. My body overcame the allergies. I still get a runny nose from freshly cut grass and bad pollen days, plus the odd bad sinus day, but it’s nothing like that one summer.

    With food, though, it can be tricky. If your mouth tingled from eating bananas as a child, but now the symptoms are worse, it could be an anaphylactic allergy, which will get stronger with each exposure, hence the major reaction after eating them every day for a while. You should definitely find an alternative for the smoothies. How about thickening a smoothie with frozen fruit? You can either quick-freeze your own fresh fruits on a tray, then transfer to an airtight bag, or else seek out a commercial (preferably organic) brand that flash freezes the fruit completely raw. You could also stir in a tablespoon of a nut or seed butter. The last, and possibly best, suggestion would be to soak some chia seeds or flax seeds in room temp or warm water for at least 20 minutes, then add the “gel” to your smoothies. Good luck!

  • 1sweetpea1sweetpea Raw Newbie

    Thought of one more suggestion: avocado. You’re a runner, so I’m sure the added fats won’t be an issue. Keep it to half or less, if you want. It will thicken a smoothie, for sure.

  • Annabelle77Annabelle77 Raw Newbie

    Thanks for the advice! I was considering avocadoes; I am a runner, but running season for me is over until spring (i like to mix it up) so weight gain does concern me. Frozen fruit is a great option too.

    RawKid, I’ll have to check about the plantains. My guess is that they would share the same protein, but you never know! I will be going to get my allergies tested the first week in november… very curious about what the results will be!

  • I don’t know where you are from, please try baby bananas, if you can get them. Here in Austin, they are abundant. Plantain is used like a vegetable, I don’t think you can eat them raw, even if they are ripe. Also plantain is starchy (sometimes it’s used as substitute for potatoes) and it may be more itch-y than regular bananas.

  • I feel for you! No bananas?!? It would be one thing if you lived somewhere where there was an abundant amount of different types of fruits, but living in my climate we have to have exotics shipped to us. Besides that we get apples, pears, berries, vegetable fruits, concord “grapes” (which I have been recently told that they aren’t really grapes, they are berries? Not sure on validity of source though), peaches, yada yada yada.

    I’d try dates in the smoothies, one of my favorites.

    I don’t think they will be good for your smoothie situation but I recently fell in love with Figs, I use to never like them before I went raw!

  • Annabelle77Annabelle77 Raw Newbie

    I should try figs again too. I hated fig netons when I was a kid… but I bet fresh ones are good! I wish it was easier to get to the soft meat in young coconuts, and I wish there was more of it, because that could substitute bananas in a lot of things.

    It takes A LOT of effort to open those babies up!

  • newbienewbie Raw Newbie

    Plantains – yes you can eat them raw and they have higher nutritional value than regular bananas (ref http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts/fruits-and-f…. You have to wait until they turn black, but they have a wonderful sweet/tart flavor. When ripe, the flesh turns slightly pink. I use them in my smoothies, but my 4 yr old likes to eat them plain. One of the nice things about plantains is that you can clearly see the little black seeds inside. Makes me feel like they’ve been less mucked around with :-)

    Please let us know they work for you.

  • I work at a raw gourmet restaraunt, and we open coconuts quite often. It is pretty easy. Take a cleaver and strike the coconut on the top. It usually takes four strikes (connect them, going around, 4 strikes = square :) ). The top will come off, we then pour the water into a bowl through a strainer to get any of the “splinters” out. After, you take a spoon and scrape.

    Now if you were in the wild, that is another story. Which goes to show that we should only have them every once in a while…

  • Annabelle77Annabelle77 Raw Newbie

    I searched a bit online and it seems that banana allergies apply to all members of the genus (bananas, plantains, etc)

    BOOOOOOO!

  • I’m allergic to kiwis :( It really burns my mouth, and lips. Extremely uncomfortable. So I kind of feel for you, except I’d wrather be allergic to kiwis not bananas!

    Sorry, I know, I know. I keep stabbing you a little deeper.

  • Annabelle77Annabelle77 Raw Newbie

    wierd, I just replied to you and it disappeared!

    what I said was:

    you better watch out cuz banana allergies are HIGHLY related to kiwi allergies!

    seriously,,, google “banana allergy kiwi”

  • newbienewbie Raw Newbie

    Oh, that’s too bad. When I found out about how bad Chiquita was, I stopped buying those bananas. For smoothies, I most often use berries (all kinds), pear, apples, and dates. The dates are the only things that don’t grow locally where I live, but the rest does depending on season. Also, the dates help to make up for the lack of intense sweetness that bananas are good for. I think you can have great smoothies without bananas! There are so many options.

  • RawKidChefRawKidChef Raw Newbie

    Yes, fresh figs have a wonderful banana-like texture! Grab some at the health store quick as it’s the tail end of the season.

  • Annabelle77Annabelle77 Raw Newbie

    Thanks Cherie!

  • sallywsallyw Raw Newbie

    Hi Annabelle77 - I used to eat bananas every once in a while and would by them at the store just to have on hand for a snack and to share with others. Then, when I went vegan and started making smoothies, my hubby and I would put two bananas in our morning smoothie - one for each of us. After a while, I developed a rash above and below my eyes of all places. I never had any itchy or tingling feeling when I ate them before. But the rash thing was new so my doctor ran allergy tests on my blood samples and turned out I have a sensitivity to bananas, among other things like asparagus, which I had been eating a lot of too as it was spring time. In any event, I stopped eating both foods and the rash went away. I can have these foods, I just can't eat them everyday now. So strange because I've always been able to eat these foods with no problem. I've also read that mangoes and avocados have similar issues as bananas but I have mangoes every day and never get any reaction from them and I eat avocados two or three times a week and no problem there either. I use both in my smoothies to make them thick and creamy. laughing

  • toddhtoddh Raw Newbie

    There are plenty of other fruits you can eat to have lots of energy and get the nutrients you need. I regularly eat apples, oranges, grapes, strawberries, pears, etc.

  • ~Sz~Sz Raw Newbie

    Yes I am allergic to bananas! Also, latex and avocado. Watch out for kiwi and strawberry too!

    One big problem with bananas are that each commercially produced banana is a clone -- all bananas are exactly the same -- it's a monoculture. Anyway, like someone above said, try other "homegrown" varieties, like at farmers markets. You may not have the same reaction. For me, I'm too afraid to try it :(

     

    It's a drag, this allergy, so I commiserate.

  • ClaireTClaireT Raw Master
    Maximbme said:

    I'm sorry to hear that! Frankly speaking, I thought that bananas are hypo-allergenic. 

     Never trust the safe foods, ha. 

    I'm allergic to honey - the thing people suggest to take when you have allergies. 

    It took me years to figure it out. 

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