Stick with me here ... I was out w/ a group of friends tonight, and one was talking to me about my hair and how long it's grown and how thick it is. I told her that I want to cut it again because it bothers my neck really bad, gives me rashes. She asked what hair care products I use and when I told her, she said "I think you have a Sulfite allergy" and I kind of brushed it aside but made a mental note of it. I had one alcoholic drink, chips and salsa and lots of water. As the night progressed I noticed that as we were laughing and talking, I was coughing more, which typically happens as winter sets in and my asthma starts to kick in. I have also had an ongoing "rash" on my back and chest that the doctors have not been able to identify nor 100% effectively treat .... Ok, so I come home a little while ago, head to google and enter Sulfite Allergy and OMFLIPPINGOSH the first site I click on describes the last umpteen years of my health problems with eerie accuracy! Migraines, rashes, hives, asthma, diarrhea, low energy, foggy brain... It's ME! No wonder my neck itches when my hair is longer, I'm reacting to my hair products (Yes Gwen ~ we just had this conversation), if I hadn't had this conversation w/ Lisa tonight I would NOT have discovered this.
Ok ... so here's my question ... if you are familiar with this type of allergy, what substitutions have you found effective? I obvious have to make changes as soon as I can. Fortunately, based on all the research I did tonight, I do not eat a lot of the foods that are triggers, but please include any you may use. (and yes, I will be talking to my doctor and pharmacist about this because different meds contain Sulfites as a compounding agent)
