| Author | Message | ||
     Eulalia |
Hello, Congratulations for your wonderful web site, so pretty, useful, and interesting! I found it by chance while looking for answers... During many years I've been experiencing a bad body reaction to carbohydrates and mostly starches. When I eat them I get strong palpitations and my pulse races like a wild horse to 120-140 or who knows how much because I get too scared to check it, so I feel awful during the digestive process. The food triggers are: breads, cookies, pastas, rice, cornmeal, beans, potatoes, yucca, bananas, grapes, oranges, etc. And the most awful combination I can think of is that of wheat+sugar, for example, a birthday cake, donuts with glace, dried fruits, and desserts which are too sweet (like anything in heavy syrup). If I could live ONLY eating proteins, vegetables, salads, milk and dairy products, I will never experience palpitations due to foods. But carbohydrates and starches are in my table every day. I have told this problem to several doctors at different times. Some didn't seem to believe me at all. Others said that maybe I was allergic to those foods. Other mentioned that maybe flatulence was the cause of the palpitations. Another decided to run glucose tests on me just to make sure, but they came out negative more than one time, no diabetes. Finally, a doctor said that my problem was probably due to a chemical reaction of the body caused by the ingestion of starches and carbohydrates (I wonder about potassium), but that it would be very complicated and costly to pinpoint the problem and define when or how it all began, so he ended up prescribing Tenormin (50 mgs daily) to keep the palpitations under control. Since then, I've been doing much better. I even tolerate more those foods despite the fact that I still get palpitations (I was miserable, absolutely miserable years ago, I couldn't eat anything!). Now, eating less amounts of the triggers and taking Tenormin daily helps a lot, but the problem is that I depend entirely on the Tenormin supplies from the pharmacy because I feel horrible without it! So although I'm not a drug addict, I certainly am a Tenormin-addict! I wonder whether this problem is related to blood chemistry (my blood type is A) because I do much better in a vegetarian diet -but without too much carbohydrates and starches. Anyway, I'm naturally inclined to be a vegetarian (the body knows!), with very little meat (if any), some chicken and some fish. I also love milk and dairy products. I digest them wonderfully and find interesting the fact that despite the carbohydrates contained in the milk, it doesn't give me any palpitations. Well, as you all see I'm still trying to find some answers to this old problem. I really thought I was an abnormal case for years! However, I've found that a lot of people get palpitations when they eat wheat, carbohydrates, or starchy products. I'm sure that many more get the same palpitations too, only that they haven't associated yet their palpitations with those foods. It took me a while to realize it, a lot of tests and keen observation, so they probably think it's stress-related or a physical ailment. Do you have any ideas, suggestions, that can help? I discovered your web site because I'm very interested in occult healing and astro-heal. Thank you so much, and keep up the good work! Eulalia | ||
| Ingrid |
Eulalia, This is a strange question for this bulletin board. You might want to spend some time visiting http://www.kitchendoctor.com. However, the short answer to what I imagine your problem to be is that one of those attempting to diagnose you was probably close. Some people do not have enough digestive juices--hydrochloric acid, enzymes, bile, etc.--to metabolize their food. When this happens, food is broken down by fermentation rather than digestion and this throws off gases that cause palpitations, erratic pulse, and sometimes spasms, fluctuating blood pressure, and a host of other symptoms ranging from panic attacks to dementia. So, while part of the issue may be food intolerance and/or allergies, another part may be food preparation, appetite, quantity of food, and so forth. If you are very hungry, odds favor being able to knock off a big meal, but if you are eating because it's lunch time, you might not metabolize everything you eat. Some foods are very easy to digest. For instance, though one needs to be very careful of dairy products, fermented dairy products, like yoghurt (the really sour type) are easier to digest than milk and ice cream. Artichokes are easier to digest than zucchini. Tempeh is easier to digest than steak or even tofu. These are general comments, but individuals sometimes have very specific intolerances. These days, many people test negative for wheat and corn, but I suspect it is because of genetic engineering, toxic chemical residues, and so forth. It's really important to eat organic food. Moreover, the weaker the digestion, the more important this is because inability to metabolize also implies inability to detoxify. The toxins would therefore tend to accumulate. Also, I am personally 100% opposed to microwave ovens and will not eat or drink anything that has been warmed up or cooked in one. I made the contractor remove the microwave from the house before I moved in. He thought I was weird, but who cares what he thinks? Welcome to the board, but do visit the other sites. | ||
| Jeanette Willis |
Hi Eulalia, I was very interested to read what you wrote on here. I have been suffering with palpitations and other symptoms for around three years now. Just today it has dawned on me that it may be food related because I get a very high heart rate after I have most meals. So you can understand why I was so interested to read what you had put. I am surfing the net at the moment to find out where I can get tested for food intolerance. I too have had the same problem with doctors. When I first went to my doctor about my palpitations I was sent away with some anti depressants and told to destress. I didnt take these and knew my problem was physical and not mental. After 18 months of persisting I was seen by a consultant and diagnosed with supraventricular tachycardia. However, its only now that I am realising that this problem is food related. | ||
| Laura Tristram |
Hello Eulalia, first of all let me thank you for giving me some hope to be able to deal with my palpitations, which occur everyday of my life. Every doctor I've spoken to has said indigestion would not cause palpitations, but I have always been sure it does, as when my indigestion clears, so do my palpitations!I get chronic indigestion after most meals, but I have noticed especially after bread, pasta, potatoes etc. Its just nice to know that I'm not the only person in the world who was in despair about why the palpitations kept occuring. Well thanks for your page, and now I'm going to cut out wheat of my diet and hope it helps! Laura | ||
| Sue Stevens |
Eulalia, thank you! I just got back to work from lunch with a friend only to get the miserable feeling and palpitations that I get after eating a lunch with starch. This has been worrying me for years, so I decided to do a search on the internet. I found no answers, but what a a relief to see that others have experienced the same thing. If I have a salad or protein for lunch, I'm fine. But if I "cheat" and have something with carbohydrates in it, I get the palpitations and an "icky" feeling about 30 minutes later. It is disconcerting to know that no one's doctor has an answer, but very good to know that I'm not alone and not crazy. Thanks. | ||
| Emil |
Hi Eulalia, Great post! I was glad to see someone else have a similiar "Mystery condition" that I have. Immediately after eating, my heart pounds through my chest. It is VERY uncomfortable and hard to deal with. I also get very fatigued and a headache and generally a real lousy feeling, kind of like a hangover. I hope to one day figure out the cause, but for now its comforting to know I'm not the only one on Earth with this strange symptom! If anyone finds any additional info about this please feel free to email me at EMIL152@comcast.net I'd appreciate the info! Thanks |
