Sulfite Sensitivity Symptoms

In October of 2011, I was really excited. Kraft had just released their seasonal gingerbread marshmallows at Wal-Mart.

Woot!

I bought a bag.

And ate half.

In one sitting.

Now, granted, that SHOULD have made anyone feel ill. But not by making their face go numb. Which was what it did to me.

As I stood listening to some friends chat, I kept rubbing my face and cheeks. My entire face was numb, and then, ugh, I felt terrible and got a headache.

That was my first big reaction to sulfites. It began to occur more and more often to starch, maltodextrin, dextrose, citric acid, etc., etc., etc....

These are my symptoms to SULFITES and SULFURIC ACID exposure:

Facial, tongue, mouth numbness (immediate)
Fatigue (within 30 minutes)
Malaise/Prostration (within an hour)
Nasal itching (within an hour)
Sneezing (within an hour)
Nasal congestion (within an hour)
Lightheadedness (within 2 hours)
Headache (within 2 hours)
Irritability (within 2 hours)
Increased sensitivity to sound and light (within 2 hours)
Feeling of doom (within 3-4 hours)

My symptoms to SULFUR DIOXIDE exposure:

No numbness
Sore throat (immediate)
Flushed face/non-raised hives (immediate)
Burning sensation in throat (immediate)
Throat abscess, weeping puss (within 3 hours)
Abdominal cramps (within 24 hours)
Upset stomach (within 24 hours)

I have never had respiratory symptoms, yet most recorded reactions in people are asthmatic in nature. Perhaps this is because asthma symptoms are TESTABLE; it's easy for a doctor or researcher to ignore or write off symptoms that cannot be quantitatively demonstrated.

Other symptoms reported with sulfite/sulfur dioxide sensitivities:

-asthma attack
-chest pain
-loss of consciousness
-coma
-seizures
-raised hives
-difficulty breathing
-eye redness
-tachycardia
-low blood pressure
-facial swelling
-vomiting
-loss of bladder control
-urinary urgency
-diarrhea

As you can see, even though it is widely thought that sulfite sensitivities are purely respiratory in nature, this is, in fact, a myth.




More information:

http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/securit/allerg/fa-aa/allergen_sulphites-sulfites-eng.php
http://www.freemd.com/sulfite-sensitivity/symptoms.htm
http://www.ehow.com/about_5150827_signs-symptoms-sulfite-allergies.html