Why Choose a Mammal-Free Lifestyle?
Most veteran Alpha-Gal Syndrome patients know that we don’t all react the same. Even though we have the same allergy, we all have differing levels of tolerance. Some of us are on a completely mammal-free diet, and some are not.
I am not extremely sensitive, but I have people in my circle of friends that can no longer have pets and react to fumes of cooking mammal.
On the other hand, I know others in our community that refuse to give up mammal. They eat it and then use their Epi pen to give Alpha-Gal the finger (so to speak).
Why would someone like me go all-out in eliminating all mammal meat and mammal by-products? Let me tell you why I chose a completely mammal-free diet, then eliminated mammal from my lifestyle completely.
Natural Remission Is Possible
Shortly after my Alpha-Gal diagnosis, I found out there was much more to Alpha-Gal Syndrome than avoiding red meat. That’s when I began the journey of cleansing my life of all mammal products. I started by eliminating all mammal ingredients from my diet.
My thought process was that avoiding all mammal meat would give me a better chance of going into remission. Over time, some people diagnosed with AGS have had their symptoms lessen. While I might never achieve remission, I wanted to give my body the best chance possible.
I had absolutely no idea what I was getting myself into. The more I read and researched, I learned about the proliferation of mammal by-products in everyday items like medicines, sugar, and even skincare items! I realized this was going to be an enormous lifestyle change.
Even today, five years later, I am still learning about new things that contain mammal by-products. And yet, I still choose to eliminate as much as possible and stick to a mammal-free diet and lifestyle.
Avoiding Allergic Reactions & Inflammation
Even though minimal exposure to mammal in my system does not send me into anaphylaxis or even cause hives to break out, it does cause inflammation in my joints. I can feel it in my hands and feet and anywhere I had an old injury.
To me, this signaled that any mammal exposure was pushing my body one step closer to another anaphylactic episode. And that is something I never want to experience again!
I only get one life and one body. So this may be the most important reason for choosing a mammal-free lifestyle. This is it. I don’t want to damage my body by allowing inflammation to continue unnecessarily.
Not long before my Alpha-Gal diagnosis, I had seen my integrative doctor because I was constantly feeling inflamed and miserable. The bloodwork data showed that my c-reactive protein levels were high. C-reactive protein levels indicate inflammation levels in your body and can show an increased risk for disease, especially heart attack and stroke. High levels can also indicate an autoimmune disease.
Looking back after my diagnosis, I realized that the high c-reactive protein was probably from my Alpha-Gal Syndrome. Even photos of me pre-diagnosis were very telling. I was so puffy! I lived on Advil because I ached and hurt regularly.
How could I lower my reactive protein and feel better? I switched to a mammal-free diet and got rid of all the mammal exposure I possibly could.
Today, I feel so much better. My c-reactive protein levels are down in the normal range and I no longer live on Advil. I don’t even take allergy medicine on a regular basis. However, I do continue to keep my Epi-pen and liquid Benadryl handy at all times.
I don’t want to miss out on all the memory-making with my family because I’m sick or in pain from mammal exposure!
Enjoying My Life to the Fullest
Finally, I just want to enjoy my life. Yes, I miss out on some things like home-made ice cream full of dairy and a thick and crispy slice of pork bacon. But it’s not so terrible! I never really knew what it was like to just grab any food and eat it without thinking, because I had other food allergies before Alpha-Gal Syndrome. This is just my life and my life overflows with good things. Switching to a mammal-free diet has definitely been a huge lifestyle change, but I can better enjoy my life with a mammal-free lifestyle.
I choose to have a positive outlook. I choose to live without some things so that I can live fuller. I choose to live dairy and carrageenan free so that I feel good each morning. I choose to use skincare products without mammal so that my joints are no longer swollen and I can walk 10,000 steps a day. I choose to be very picky about where I eat out so that I can breathe without a stuffy head. I get to see the smiling faces of my loved ones and feel well enough to enjoy laughing and hanging out with them.
Is a Mammal-Free Lifestyle Worth It?
Yes, and yes a million times. YES! The work of avoiding mammal and mammal byproducts is definitely worth the losses for me. I would rather take my own food to a party than miss a day in life with my family. I would rather just ride along and not get to eat what the crew is eating so that I can be there to hold my grandchildren.
The way I see it, I am one blessed woman. Alpha-Gal Syndrome can not rob me of my blessings.
I count those blessings every day. I am healthy. I feel good. I sleep well. I am loved. I am safe. I have friends. I have a great job and co-workers. I have a great church. I laugh often. I live in a small town in the good ole USA with my high school sweetheart. I have five children that I love. I get to meet new people each day and encourage them that life can be amazing despite a life-threatening allergy like Alpha-Gal Syndrome.
If you have Alpha-Gal Syndrome, adopting a mammal-free lifestyle is definitely worth it. You will be healthier and happier. It is hard to stick to a restricted diet, but we’re alive, and that in itself is a gift.
