Our son’s pediatrician wasn’t familiar with a palm oil allergy, palm oil intolerance, sensitivity, or anyone getting sick from palm oil. We requested a referral to an allergist, and at our appointment, we asked if a person can be allergic to palm oil.
Our son gets sick from palm oil. We’re not sure what to call his reactions because doctors haven’t been able to label it… or even acknowledge it. Yet our son has symptoms and allergic-type reactions from palm oil.
Perhaps it’s inflammation and/or reactions from a leaky gut. All we know is he reacts to anything with palm oil, palm kernel oil, and ingredients with palm oil derivatives, including palm olein, stearic acid, tocopherols, glycerin, vegetable glycerin, red palm oil, mono- and diglycerides, glycerine, magnesium stearate, and more.
Because of this, we consider him to have a palm oil intolerance, palm oil sensitivity, or inflammation due to palm oil. We’ve also heard the term non-allergic food hypersensitivity.
He reacts to palm oil in foods as well as products such as lip balm, deodorant, shampoo, and soap. These personal care items typically contain palm oil. You won’t see “palm” on the label but it’s used to make 500+ other ingredients.
PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS NOT HEALTH ADVICE. I am explaining our family’s situation and the reactions my son has to palm oil. PLEASE TALK TO YOUR OWN HEALTH PROFESSIONAL.
Experience talking to allergist about symptoms from palm oil
Our son’s allergist said there aren’t proteins in palm oil, so it wouldn’t be considered a palm oil allergy. Yet, our son has experienced congestion, throat clearing, hives, itching, a sense of doom, etc. — all allergy symptoms — from palm oil.
The allergist said there isn’t an IgE test for a palm oil allergy or intolerance. He said we couldn’t do a blood test or a skin test to test for it. He didn’t give us an EpiPen / Epinephrine Auto-Injector.
Instead, the doctor encouraged us to “build up” his system. He suggested we supplement with pre-biotics. He reminded us to avoid processed foods, to eat a wide variety of vegetables, and to increase Vitamin D exposure from the sun. In addition, he told us to minimize gluten in his diet.
We took his advice. For years, my son worked on changing his diet. Fast forward several years later, he doesn’t eat processed foods, candy, or any desserts, etc. I have learned to bake and cook everything from scratch. My family eats so many more fruits and vegetables and real, whole foods. So this experience has been very positive from that aspect.
He is very healthy now. When he is out of the house, he eats as healthy as he can but is often at the mercy of having to rely on fast food, various restaurants, etc.
Back then though, meeting with doctors was frustrating. No one could explain why he was having allergic reactions to palm oil.
It was upsetting the allergist didn’t acknowledge someone could have a palm oil allergy, palm oil intolerance, or a sensitivity to palm oil. He didn’t listen to us.
Does palm oil cause allergic reactions?
It was frustrating to try to convince his allergist that our son gets allergic reactions from palm oil. The doctor never heard of it and wasn’t particularly interested in hearing what we had to say about it. He dismissed the idea that our son could be reacting to it. He is a renowned allergist in our area.
In addition, the allergist didn’t discuss the possibility of problems with digesting palm oil ingredients or that he could be sensitive to palm oil. (Nor did our son’s pediatrician.)
He said there wasn’t an IgE allergy test for palm oil, so there was nothing he could do. He didn’t acknowledge palm oil could cause a non-IgE immunoglobulin response or a non-IgE mediated food allergy.
He dismissed the idea that palm oil could cause allergic reactions, dietary issues, or health problems. No doctor has ever mentioned that palm oil could be causing inflammation in his body or that it could be a sign of a leaky gut that he was reacting to palm oil.
It was frustrating. However, whether or not our son’s symptoms to palm oil have a diagnosis or a name, we know he needs to avoid it. Whether he is or isn’t allergic and whether or not someone can’t be or can be allergic to palm oil isn’t as important as knowing that for us, our son needs to avoid it to stay healthy.
Sick from palm oil
Palm ingredients are prevalent in packaged foods and snacks along with cleaning products, and self-care items, like soap, deodorant, shampoos, and toothpaste. It’s been very difficult finding safe foods to eat and products to use. I started this website as a way so I could reference and remember what I was learning. I also didn’t think he could be the only one getting reactions.
Palm oil allergy
If palm oil is causing allergy symptoms for you or your child, it won’t matter if it’s organic palm oil or from sustainable palm oil products.
We know for certain our son has allergic reactions to palm oil so we avoid them all. We think it’s not a problem digesting palm oil because even topical / non-food products affect him.
However, it took quite awhile to figure out palm oil was making him sick. He had been sick for months with congestion, coughing and throat clearing. Sometimes he had a sore throat. Often, he would miss a few days in a row from school.
He would use boxes of Kleenex each week.
We thought it was environmental allergies but when he eliminated all packaged and processed foods, he was better in days.
At first, we thought he was allergic to sunflower oil or coconut or some other foods.
However, when we eliminated foods, performed our own food intolerance test, and logged every food he ate and product he used, we were able to figure out it was anything that included palm oil, palm kernel oil, and palm oil derivatives, like glycerin and stearic acid.
If you are wondering about a palm oil intolerance, palm oil allergy, sensitivity, inflammation, leaky gut, etc. it is important you speak with your doctor.
And if you do, please note in the Comments below anything you learn. We’d love to hear from you and are hoping more medical professionals acknowledge someone could have a palm oil intolerance, become sick from palm oil, or have adverse reactions from palm oil ingredients.
Palm oil intolerance
How did we find out he has an intolerance to palm oil? It took a long time to figure it out. I remembered how a year prior he had gotten sick after eating a Great Value brand of sandwich cookie (a generic Oreo) while at his grandpa’s home. Palm oil was in it, and I thought it was unusual.
This happened several times over many months. Finally, I told my son to just decline them politely. I wasn’t familiar with palm oil and hadn’t recalled seeing it in foods we ate.
Now, palm oil even more prevalent. (Palm oil is in name-brand Oreos now as well which is disappointing.) The FDA’s ban of artificial trans fats in foods went into effect mid-2018. Processed food manufacturers turned to palm oil as an inexpensive, trans-fat-free replacement.
Could I be allergic to palm oil?
We started thinking about all the foods he had been eating when he was sick those months.
It was in the fall, and he was eating taffy apples and Halloween candy in addition to the usual processed and packaged foods like cereal, microwave popcorn, peanut butter, and granola bars.
My son started tracking his foods and his symptoms. When we looked at the ingredients, we couldn’t believe palm oil was in every single one of those products.
Palm oil is in Skittles and Starburst candies. It’s in Ritz Crackers. It’s in most all bakery and desserts from the grocery store.
After that, we started reading all food and drink labels.
We let him have packaged foods again, trying to be sure they didn’t contain palm oil, palm kernel oil, Vitamin A Palmitate, palm olein, red palm oil, and any ingredients containing “palm-.”
At the time, we didn’t know there are hundreds of additional names for palm oil, including glycerin, glycerol, propylene glycol, tocopherols, and mono- and diglycerides.
Palm oil can also hide in “Natural Flavors.”
While it is a huge undertaking to find safe, palm oil-free foods, we were able to find some cereal, peanut butter, snacks, candy, and more products. We’ve featured each of these as posts on this website.
Ask allergist to do palm oil scratch test
We heard from a reader who shared a suggestion about getting tested for a palm oil allergy. She said before making an appointment with the allergist, ask if they can make in-office scratch tests from items you bring in.
After ruling out the top allergens, this family’s allergist asked them to bring in items from their pantry, 10 at a time. They brought in red palm oil. The patient tested positive. She also tested positive to other items that had palm oil derivatives in them.
The allergist confirmed a palm allergy through the scratch tests.
If you are making an appointment to see if you are allergic to palm oil, it’s worth finding out if they can make a scratch test in the office. Perhaps you can bring in foods you think are causing issues. If you have palm oil or shortening or other products that contain palm oil, bring them in to see if they can make a scratch test from them.
More products contain palm oil
Demand for palm oil continues to increase because the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) banned the use of partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. This is the main dietary source of artificial trans-fats.
Food manufacturers are using palm oil as a replacement for the artificial trans-fats. Trans fats were cheap; that’s why companies used them.
Palm oil is versatile and inexpensive as well. It can remain semi-solid at room temperature, unlike most oils. Also, palm oil prolongs the shelf life of products and is often used to preserve freshness in foods.
Palm olein can remain a liquid at room temperature. It’s also highly heat resistant.
Companies use palm oil and derivatives to fortify their foods and drinks with vitamins.
When you see cereal or milk with a Vitamin A content of 10% or higher, it most likely has Vitamin A Palmitate in it.
You will see palm oil in the form of Vitamin E and Tocopherols in foods as well.
It’s prevalent in personal care and cleaning products, again because it’s so versatile and works in lots of capacities.
Palm oil in medicine causing reactions
Once you start trying to avoid it, you will see it’s very difficult to find vitamins and supplements without palm oil. We didn’t realize we had been giving my son a vitamin with palm oil. We have yet to find a child’s vitamin without it.
Even worse, his allergist suggested we give him Allegra on a daily basis as maintenance. He recommended it because we told him we’d occasionally given him children’s liquid Allegra.
After several weeks, we read the label and saw it contains propylene glycol. This ingredient is usually derived from palm oil!
Can you imagine how we felt when we learned we were giving him medicine with palm oil derivatives to alleviate his palm oil allergy symptoms?
To this day, we cannot find an OTC antihistamine or allergy medication without propylene glycol, magnesium stearate, glycerin, and/or polyethylene glycol. These ingredients are often derived from palm oil. The allergy medicine companies didn’t respond back when we emailed to ask the source of the ingredients.
(Update: See our post for what we are doing for medicine without palm oil. We went to a compounding pharmacy to get allergy medications, a fever reducer, and other medicines without fillers, preservatives, etc. Please talk to your doctor before changing medications.)
Palm oil allergy symptoms
So, what happens to my son when he uses something with or consumes something with palm oil? What palm oil allergy symptoms and allergic reactions does he have? Some symptoms are delayed but most are immediate.
Allergic reactions from palm oil
When he ate foods with palm oil, palm kernel oil, and hydrogenated palm kernel oil, almost immediately, he would:
- Become congested
- Start to clear his throat
- Cough
- Go through dozens of Kleenex
- Hives — sometimes he would get hives
- Fever with a sore throat; both lasting for days
- Lip and mouth sores from using toothpaste with palm oil derivatives
Example of a delayed reaction:
- The next morning, he would wake up with a sore throat and need a box of Kleenex from blowing his nose so much. Sometimes this would last for days, other times, weeks. He often would miss school.
Reactions from palm oil derivatives
It’s difficult to know if palm oil may be affecting you. In our case, some of the symptoms were delayed and others were immediate.
Symptoms from Tocopherols and Tocopherols / Vitamin E
There were other times when he was getting sick from foods, and we didn’t know why. I’m grateful we kept the cereal and cracker boxes from these foods that made him sick because we learned they all contained tocopherols. Tocopherols are sometimes made from palm oil.
When he would eat foods with tocopherols — used to preserve freshness or as a Vitamin E supplement — some or all of these symptoms would happen:
- He became so lethargic and exhausted, completely wiped out
- He would have a change in mood/temperament
- Became itchy
- Would get a few hives
After my son went through these experiences of being so tired, itchy, and very upset, there was no way we would ever take a chance on him having palm oil derivatives again.
Tocopherols aren’t usually labeled as to where they are derived from.
Some candy manufacturers are making their new flavors with “Mixed Tocopherols (to Preserve Freshness).” These are typically derived from palm oil.
We avoid all products with tocopherols and Vitamin E.
Glycerin and Glycerine cause symptoms
These are ingredients also typically made from palm oil. They are very prevalent in nutrition bars and other types of granola bars. Glycerin is in hard candy, cough drops, liquid soap and bar soap.
My son gets congested from products with glycerin and glycerine.
Symptoms from Mono- and Diglycerides
We avoid these ingredients At All Costs. These are man-made ingredients which are often made from palm oil.
Food manufacturers use mono- and diglycerides as a replacement for trans-fats. You will see these ingredients now in ice cream, sherbet, baked goods, Pringles, sliced bread, store-bought baked goods, candy, and many chocolate bars.
Companies use mono- and diglycerides to create “mouth feel” in creamy-type products. This ingredient is less expensive than using “real” ingredients such as cream, milk, cocoa butter, etc.
These make my son so incredibly sick even to the point of sometimes changing his personality. He often becomes completely exhausted and wiped out. They also give him allergy symptoms — congestion, sniffles, throat clearing, sometimes hoarse voice, coughing, etc.
Symptoms from Propylene Glycol
His children’s allergy medicine contains propylene glycol and gave him sore throats as mentioned above. Another time, we gave him a liquid children’s pain medication because he had a bump on his tongue (he bit it) which was painful.
Afterwards, he had a sore throat. Regrettably, we continued to give him the medicine every 12 hours for two days.
I finally thought to look at the ingredients and saw there was propylene glycol in it. I couldn’t believe I gave it to him without reading the label.
We stopped giving it to him, and his sore throat lessened the next day and then was gone the day after that.
Symptoms from Lecithin
After my son had a piece of gum that I thought was palm oil free, he started scratching his head — he felt so itchy. It contained lecithin. (Also, chewing gum often contains glycerin or glycol which also can be made from palm oil.)
If you see lecithin in an ingredient list, know that it’s a substance found in the oil component of certain plants. Manufacturers use it as an emulsifier so ingredients don’t separate.
Unless the lecithin is clearly labeled, as in “soy lecithin,” you won’t know if it’s made from palm.
Reactions for palm oil derivatives not on label — including Natural Flavors
Some new symptoms from palm oil are bumps around his nose and/or a recurring sore between his mouth and chin: facial dermatitis. The latest concern has been the ingredients at the source.
The really unfortunate thing about this is that these symptoms occur despite us reading labels. We know the names for palm oil ingredients and avoid them. These reactions occur to foods we think are safe.
So in addition to avoiding the hundreds of ingredient names for palm oil derivatives, we are even concerned about spices, seasonings, cereal, granola bars, and other additives in foods in their Natural Flavors.
When this happens, l email the company about the SOURCE of whatever the questionable ingredient seems to be. Most of the time, companies do not answer.
Sometimes they are responsive enough to check with their Research & Development department who often needs to verify with the supplier.
Each time my son had experienced a reaction, and I checked with the company and they got back to me, the ingredient was treated with or processed with or made from palm oil. The ingredient came from the supplier and didn’t need to be labeled on the final product.
This makes it really daunting to try new foods.
Again, many foods with palm oil and palm oil derivatives are not healthy anyway, so no loss. But he’s a kid and that’s what makes it more difficult. Also, when the palm oil is in the spice, seasoning, or sauce and not clearly labeled, it make it very difficult.
In our home we can control the food; but when we are out, it’s a huge concern.
Nervous to eat new foods
He and I do a good job of reading labels and avoiding problematic foods. Yet, it’s frightening giving him new foods at home, someone else’s house, or when we have to go out to eat. On vacations, we usually rent a place with a small kitchen. We carry snacks around so we don’t have to eat out as much.
In addition, we try to encourage play dates at friends’ houses around non-mealtimes. We can send him with fruit as well as other safe snacks.
While everyone is always great, we don’t want it to be an inconvenience to anyone. We also don’t want to risk him eating something he can’t have, however, well-meaning the host is trying to be.
Report symptoms from palm oil to FDA
The U.S. Food & Drug Administration has a MedWatch Voluntary Reporting online form you can complete and submit to easily report your symptoms. You just need to have the product information.
Bookmark this link for later and click on Consumer/Patient. It’s easy to complete. You can also call them at 1-800-FDA-1088.
This will create awareness and alert the FDA that palm oil is causing health issues. At the very least, it may make them require companies to list palm oil derivatives on ingredient labels like companies must do in Europe.
Allergic to palm oil
Even though my son has allergic reactions to palm oil, his allergist insists he can’t be allergic to palm oil. The allergist was certain there isn’t a way to test for a palm oil allergy or a palm allergy intolerance.
It’s frustrating because we wanted a solution or a least an allergy test to confirm what we already know. We felt it would validate our findings. Also, it would make companies aware that this is something consumers avoid.
Instead, the allergist ordered blood work for food allergy testing. They ran tests for common food allergies, a cereal panel, a nut panel, and a general foods list for him.
Also, he did a skin prick test for 40+ environmental allergens. We wanted these tests done but we still knew we needed to eliminate palm oil from our son’s diet.
Palm oil intolerance
Left without a medical name or reason, we continue to avoid all products and foods that contain palm oil and the 500+ names it goes by. This is very difficult to do, but it can be done.
Palm oil intolerance symptoms
We’ve had several readers write to us about palm oil intolerance symptoms, including stomach pains from palm kernel oil. Others wrote to share their stories about pain, bloating, cramping, diarrhea from palm oil.
So while it’s not our experience that palm oil causes diarrhea, it has happened to others. Palm oil causes contact dermatitis in some people as well. Others wrote to say palm oil causes inflammation. I had someone write to say they get headaches from palm oil. It seems palm oil affects people in many ways. This isn’t medical advice.
Scientific name for palm oil
Elaeis guineensis is the scientific name for the palm oil companies use in foods, cleaning products, self-care items and more. It’s commonly known as the African Oil Palm.
The United States Department of Agriculture has a website where you can learn about the classification of plants.
Below is the information for Elaeis guineensis from the Kingdom — Plantae — to the Species — Elaeis guineensis Jacq.
Coconut oil allergy
There’s concern about coconut allergies being related to palm allergies. Many people who have a coconut allergy think they should avoid palm oil. Please speak with your doctor.
Also note, if you experience allergic reactions and think you have a coconut allergy or coconut oil allergy, be sure to discuss with your doctor.
It may be interesting to compare the USDA classification for African Oil Palm with Coconut. According to the USDA, both share the same:
Kingdom (Plantae) Plants
Subkingdom (Tracheobionta) Vascular plants
Superdivision (Spermatophyta) Seed plants
Division (Magnoliophyta) Flowering plants
Class (Liliopsida) Monocotyledons
Subclass (Arecidae)
Order (Arecales)
Family (Arecaceae) Palm family
Genus — This is where palm oil and coconut differ:
Genus Cocos L. – Coconut palm
Species — Cocos nucifera L. — coconut palm
Genus Elaeis Jacq. – Oil palm
Species — Elaeis guineensis Jacq. – African Oil Palm
Species — Elaeis oleifera (Kunth) Cortes – American Oil Palm
This is not medical advice; it’s from the USDA’s website. I included it here so you can see the botanical similarities between palm oil and coconut.
Please talk with your doctor if you have allergy symptoms or allergic reactions or get sick after eating certain foods or using certain products.
Coconuts and dates
Also, we are happy he is able to eat dates. Like palm oil and coconut, dates are also from the Arecaceae palm family, from the genus Phoenix L.
So there really is something about palm oil specifically that causes him to have reactions. What exactly? We still do not know.
Can you have tree nuts and peanuts with a palm oil sensitivity?
In addition to wondering about coconut and palm oil, many worry about allergies to tree nuts and peanuts, and if you should avoid palm oil. Again, please speak with your health team.
We are not advising you to include peanuts or tree nuts in your diet if you are sensitive to palm oil. We are sharing that our situation, our son can have tree nuts and peanuts. He has been able to have peanuts. Regarding tree nuts, he has safely had cashews, walnuts, pistachios, almonds, and filberts.
We try to only give him peanuts and nuts in the shell with just salt (no other flavorings or ingredients) because they have less processing.
Note, peanut butter often contains palm oil. Read labels before buying. Choose those with just peanuts and salt. Avoid “No Stir” labeling which is code for There Is Palm Oil Inside. Many labels will list mono- & diglycerides which are typically from palm oil in peanut butter.
Again, in our situation, even though he is sensitive to palm oil, he is able to have peanuts and tree nuts. If you are sensitive to palm oil, please talk to your doctor about the connection with nuts and peanuts.
MCT oil from palm oil
MCT stands for Medium Chain Triglycerides. These have become very popular in the last decade. People use MCT products in all sorts of ways — as supplements, cooking, etc.
While we have bought coconut oil to cook with, and buy products with coconut, we haven’t tried MCTs from coconut,. We won’t ever buy or try MCTs made from palm oil.
Palm oil sickness
Whether or not someone can be “officially” allergic to palm oil or have a palm oil sensitivity, we are diligent about avoiding it completely.
If you are someone who experiences allergy symptoms from palm oil, you should learn how to find products without palm oil.
A sensitivity to palm oil can manifest itself in many ways. Unless you are reading all labels and tracking the all the products you use, you might not be able to pinpoint what is causing symptoms.
Names for palm oil
After doing a lot of online research to learn everything possible about a palm oil allergy or intolerance or sensitivity — there isn’t a lot of information out there because it’s not typically recognized by the medical community — I found an amazing list of alternate names for palm oil.
It’s from the International Palm Oil Free Certification Trademark (POFCAP). There are over 500 alternate names for palm oil on it. You will be stunned by all the names palm oil goes by. We have a condensed version in the next section for you to print out.
Checking ingredients for palm oil
When we are diligent about following it — checking every single ingredient against this list of names for palm oil ingredients — he hasn’t had any issues.
I made and printed out a copy and referred to it — literally — in stores for two years before I bought my son anything packaged or processed. I walked around with the list in my purse. After doing this for three years, I know what types of products typically have palm oil and know the ingredients to watch out for.
We know what’s safe for him to have and repeatedly buy those products.
Still at home, before he eats a new packaged food, I double check the ingredients. For the first year, I checked it against the list of palm oil ingredient names.
All of his hygiene items are palm oil free.
My son and I have learned many of the hidden words for palm oil to look for so that we can scan ingredient lists quickly. This makes it a lot easier. It’s also been helping my son for when he is out places without me.
Also, this helps us to support palm oil free products and to do our part to not support the palm oil industry.
Please note, palm oil can be hidden in “Natural Flavors” on ingredient labels.
Using a palm oil free app
Thanks to a reader who commented below with the information that Spoon Guru is no longer operating. It’s unfortunate because it was a good palm oil free app. When I was first navigating grocery stores, I used it a lot to double check ingredient lists. Many other apps scan for sustainable palm oil. Spoon Guru scanned for any palm oil.
If you find an app that scans for any palm oil, please comment below.
How to avoid palm oil if it makes you sick
In addition to using the list, you can:
1. Look for the “palm” words:
- Palm oil
- Palm kernel oil
- Hydrogenated palm kernel oil
- Red palm oil
- Organic palm oil
- Organic red palm oil
2. Watch for these ingredients:
- Vitamin A Palmitate
- Tocopherols
- Glycerin
- Stearic acid
- Magnesium stearate
- Mono- and diglycerides
- Sulfates (in non-food items)
3. Look for these prefixes:
- Glyc-
- Laur-
- Palm-
- Stear-
4. Know what products usually contain palm oil and palm oil derivatives:
- Baked goods: anything baked and packaged
- Candy and gum
- Cereals
- Milk
- Nutrition bars and granola bars
- Packaged desserts: cookies, donuts, pastries, muffins, cakes/cupcakes, cinnamon rolls, etc.
- Shortening, margarine, frosting, spreads
- Toothpaste, shampoo, mouthwash, sunscreen, cosmetics, lotion
- Vitamins, supplements, medicine
5. Know what to watch for:
- Chewy, gummy or stretchy foods
- Foods with chocolate, caramel, peanut butter
- Fortified foods
- Vitamin A of 10% or greater
It’s so important to read labels every time. We were shocked to learn how some companies change ingredients and are now including palm oil.
In 2018 – 2019, HoneyComb Cereal, Peanut M&M’s, and Mr. Goodbar changed ingredients and are now using palm oil. In addition, several products that didn’t contain palm oil are now discontinued. This is the case with many snack bars, cereals, granolas, candy flavors, and more.
Companies that make new flavors and introduce new products often use palm oil derivatives.
They may try to hide them in Tocopherols, Mixed Tocopherols, Tocopherols (to maintain freshness), and Tocopherols / Vitamin E. They are also common in Mono- & Diglycerides.
6. Support products with Palm Oil Free labeling
Learn which products have earned Palm Oil Free certification and be loyal to them. Tell companies to apply to get their products certified.
Palm oil intolerance means finding palm free solutions
Like our family, you will find some products without palm oil, and you will be loyal to them. This will make it a lot easier. Be sure to only introduce one new packaged food (or personal care product) at a time.
Even when we checked ingredients closely, sometimes we missed an ingredient or didn’t know an ingredient was made with palm derivatives.
See some of our additional lists of palm oil free products:
- Products without palm oil
- Pretzels without palm oil
- Cookies without palm oil
- Peanut butter without palm oil
Fresh, whole, unprocessed foods are best.
Be willing to make changes. Instead of buying pre-made desserts and baked goods, make your own. (Be sure to make frosting from scratch; avoid fondant; avoid shortening. See our post about desserts without palm oil.)
I continue to research additional categories of foods and personal care products. Please look around this website. I update this site often.
This is what my son eats because of reactions to palm kernel oil, palm oil, etc.
Because he gets so sick from anything with palm oil, for now, I use vinegar, baking soda, and Norwex cloths to clean. They are among our favorite items to use to make it easier to live palm oil free.
Palm free personal care items to stay healthy
If you experience palm oil allergy symptoms, you may want find palm free soap, deodorant, and more.
My son had lip sores that wouldn’t heal. At the time, we didn’t know palm oil ingredients are common in toothpaste.
A friend gave us Lip Serum by Rodan + Fields to try to help him. While it healed his lips overnight, he woke up sick with a sore throat, runny nose/congestion, coughing, throat clearing, and other allergic reactions.
When I looked at the label, I saw there were at least two palm oil derivatives in the product. He missed two days of school from being so sick.
Another time, he used soap in a hotel and had the same allergic symptoms. Again too late, I looked up the ingredients online and saw it contained palm oil.
Now we bring his hygiene items with us when we travel. These are the personal care products he uses.
Palm oil allergy symptoms
If you have allergic reactions to foods and/or self-care items that contain palm oil and palm oil derivatives, it’s a real thing. It may not be an official diagnosis of being allergic to palm oil, but if it affects you, you should try to avoid it.
We can only hope the FDA takes notice. You can help by reporting your symptoms to them. If you find you have a reaction to palm oil or palm kernel oil in a product, save the packaging, and report it.
The increased demand for palm oil is a real issue — in our family it’s a dietary concern my son avoids for health. To be in solidarity with him, and because of the environmental concerns with palm oil, we shop palm oil free and make things from scratch when possible.
Hopefully some innovative companies will apply for Palm Oil Free certification labeling. They will advertise their brands as “palm oil free” just like companies promote “fat free,” “gluten free,” “no high fructose corn syrup,” etc.
There are two palm oil free certification labels you can look for. Two non-profit organizations, Orangutan Alliance and the International Palm Oil Free Certification Trademark (POFCAP), certify products Palm Oil Free. They ensure all of the ingredients — down to the source — are free from palm oil. They are registered in 20+ countries.
It can be great marketing for companies, especially when so many packaged products contain palm oil.
We hope more companies will eliminate it from their foods, cleaners, and personal care products.
Palm oil allergy test
Our allergist said there isn’t a palm oil allergy test as there isn’t an available serum-specific IgE to the oil. So officially, you can’t be allergic to palm oil.
He tested our son for the common food allergies plus dozens of others but he didn’t have any except for two false positives, according to the allergist.
Therefore, we continue to perform our own food intolerance test to see what his food sensitivities are. So far, it seems palm oil and palm oil derivatives (and grapes!) are the only problem.
We work hard to eliminate personal care products and food with palm oil so he can be healthy. Even though the allergist said he can’t be allergic to palm oil because there aren’t proteins in it, we know our son gets sick from palm oil.
Testing for palm oil allergy
Ask your doctor if there are palm oil allergy tests. Can they do allergy testing for palm oil derivatives, such as propylene glycol, ethylene glycol, vitamin E / tocopherol, or others?
See above for the idea to ask the allergist if the can make a palm oil scratch test.
Problem digesting palm oil
I learned palm oil is a medium chain triglyceride (MCT). Through my doctor and online research, I learned MCTs bypass “traditional” digesting. Meaning, palm oil is absorbed into the bloodstream from the gastrointestinal tract more easily and faster.
This is interesting because depending on the palm oil ingredient, our son has some symptoms almost immediately. However, we don’t believe it’s solely a digestive issue or something to do with palm oil being a medium chain triglyceride.
Coconut is also a medium chain triglyceride. Our son can tolerate coconut perfectly fine. (Please discuss with your doctor if you suspect a coconut allergy; there are allergy tests for it.)
Or maybe he does have trouble digesting palm oil and palm oil derivatives, but there is something additional that it does to his body. Palm oil seems to be affecting at least one other system.
Some palm oil ingredients give him immediate, traditional allergy symptoms. Some give him a delayed sore throat which leads to a longer-term illness.
There are others that affect his entire body immediately (sniffling, coughing, throat clearing) or within 1-3 hours (changing his mood and making him lethargic, sad, feeling a sense of doom, hives, etc.)
On separate occasions, when he used deodorant, lip balm, toothpaste, and soap with palm oil derivatives, he had symptoms. Often he became very ill.
Sometimes his reactions happened quickly, within 1 – 5 minutes of using them. Other times, they were delayed. For example, he showered at night with hotel soap and woke up sick.
These ingredients were absorbed into his body and into the bloodstream through his skin, not digested per se.
Palm oil allergy or intolerance
After a year and a half of logging foods and symptoms, we are absolutely certain our son has an intolerance to palm oil.
It’s not a recognized allergen or common intolerance. The allergist focused on other things. For example, increasing Vitamin D exposure from the sun and boosting our son’s overall health with prebiotics.
We are working to improve his gut microbiome. We are giving our more son real, whole, unprocessed foods. For desserts, I bake from scratch. He has learned to do without. In addition, I am learning about ways fermented foods may help.
This is all well and good, yet, we know palm oil affects him negatively.
We want to know why he is sensitive to palm oil.
Palm oil allergy symptoms
My husband and I can watch him be completely fine, and then eat something with palm oil in it, and have symptoms within minutes. Because of this, we are always researching products without palm oil.
As you may be finding, palm oil is prevalent in the majority of packaged foods as well as personal care items and cleaning products. It’s difficult to live a palm oil free life.
I started this website as a place for others to find products free from palm oil. Also, we wanted to educate others who think they are getting sick from palm oil, think they are allergic to palm oil, or may have a palm oil intolerance.
Please leave a note in the Comments why you searched for this topic. Do you suspect you have a palm oil sensitivity? Why? Please share below.
It doesn’t seem the medical community recognizes people can be sick from palm oil. We are trying to create awareness. As companies use palm oil more and more, consumers are more exposed to it. Check with your doctor if you have any reactions to foods or other products.
Here, we want to give you some simple ways to help discover if you may have an intolerance to palm oil or a palm oil sensitivity.
We also want to encourage you to talk with your healthcare professional and encourage you to report symptoms to the FDA via their online form.
Palm oil is in many products
Demand for palm oil continues to increase. It’s in more products than ever before and goes by hundreds of names. Palm oil is hidden under many names, in many products, and it’s used in many different ways.
Yet, despite our increased and repeated exposure daily, allergists, pharmacists, and other medical professionals say you can’t be allergic to palm oil.
However, we know for certain it adversely affects our child. Sometimes he “just” has mild symptoms and sometimes he gets really sick from palm oil and derivatives.
How to find out if you have a palm oil intolerance
From our experience, we believe you may be reading food labels and being perplexed as to what is causing you or your child to have symptoms.
Perhaps you’re wondering if it might be palm oil or palm oil derivatives.
In this post, we’ve used our own experience to teach how to narrow down ingredients to see if it might be palm oil and palm oil derivatives that you are intolerant to.
We continue to update this site. Please search for other posts on this site, especially if there is a food, self-care product, or other product you think you react to. We may have written about it.
We are not medical professionals. Please seek medical advice from your physician.
Ways to determine if you have a palm oil intolerance
Log
Keep a food journal.
This is essential and can be a simple notebook. Write down everything you eat each day. Draw a horizontal line to separate out each meal and snack time.
Notice
What symptoms do experience?
Do you have any new or unusual symptoms throughout the day? Write down the symptoms in the same notebook you are writing down your foods.
Write your symptoms to the left. If you experience them in the morning, write them closer to the top of the page, near the foods you ate early in the day, etc.
Think
Are there any products you believe are causing you to have symptoms?
Start with what you’ve noticed or what you believe may be the issue. Pay special attention to these products, and be sure to include them along with symptoms in your food log. Follow your intuition.
Save
Be sure to save all the ingredient labels and packages when you can.
If you can’t save the package or box, take a picture of it. You will want to reference these in the future.
I break down all boxes so they are flat, and I stack them in the cabinet. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve referred to them to reread labels.
So many times, I have gone back to empty boxes and packages to read and compare labels and ingredients. Sometimes, it was because my son had symptoms; other times I wanted to compare the ingredients from products that didn’t cause him to become sick.
Saving ingredient labels
Once, he got so sick after a party at relative’s home. I was glad I took a picture of the ingredients from the ice cream he ate.
Weeks later, when I found a list of palm oil derivatives online, I went back to look at the picture with the ice cream’s ingredients. Sure enough, it contained mono- and digylcerides. At the time he ate it, I didn’t know they are often made with palm oil.
Introduce
Only use one new product at a time.
Your body comes into contact with so many different ingredients each day. If you can start figuring out patterns of what makes you ill, you can go back to look for common ingredients in products you’ve used before.
But if you go grocery shopping, and come home with lots of new foods and other products, and use them all in the next few days, it will be very difficult to find out what is causing your symptoms.
Think of it like a science experiment. Keep everything the same and change only one thing (the new product). Watch your variables!
Read
Review all ingredients.
Read the ingredients from everything, including from your soaps, lotions, toothpaste, lip balm, deodorant and cosmetics in addition to all food.
Do you drink milk? If so, look for Vitamin A Palmitate. If you drink vitamin or sports drinks, check those labels too. What for Glycerol.
Be thorough: If it has a label, you must read the ingredients.
When you see something has palm oil or palm kernel oil in it, note that. If you experience symptoms after you eat it or later that day, circle that food.
The more you read labels, the more you will learn what to look for in certain foods, soap, etc.
Reference
Reference lists about palm oil derivatives.
There are hundreds of names for palm oil derivatives. The International Palm Oil Free Certification Trademark (POFCAP) has made a public list for you to reference to help you avoid palm oil.
Check out this list of names for palm oil derivatives with common letters combinations to make it easier to look for palm oil derivatives.
Palm oil derivatives are in milk (less frequently in whole milk), RTE cereals, candy, bread, baked goods, toothpaste, soap, cosmetics, and so many more things. Start learning what they are.
Learn
Learn all you can about palm oil uses.
Sometimes they use it to fortify foods with vitamins, as in the case with milk and cereal. Other times, they use it to help the consistency, as in peanut butter. In soaps, toothpaste and shampoo, it’s used to create lather and foam.
Again, keep all labels
I cannot overstate the importance of keeping labels. It will help you in different ways.
The first way…
Even after I learned alternate names for palm oil ingredients, sometimes I missed some ingredients. This happened to me with Glycerin, Glycerine, Tocopherols, Magnesium Stearate, and Mono- and Diglycerides.
My son got sick from eating products with each of these, and I didn’t know why. I thought they were palm oil free. Palm oil and palm kernel oil weren’t on the labels.
It was only after keeping the food journal for months and looking back at the symptoms that I singled out these foods. I was able to go back and look through the ingredients again, and that’s when I saw these palm oil derivatives. I knew to not let my son eat them again.
The second way…
So many times, manufacturers change ingredients. When you save the labels, you will be able to compare the ingredients if you need to. Also, depending on where you live and where companies are sourcing their ingredients, ingredients and labels often differ.
You may wonder why a processed food that you ate awhile ago with no issues is now causing you to have symptoms. The reason could be a change in ingredients.
More products contain palm oil
There are so many examples of this happening to us. Here are some that come to mind as listed above:
- Oreo didn’t used to contain palm oil, and now they do.
- Ritz Crackers didn’t use to contain palm oil ingredients but they do now.
- Peanut M&M’s didn’t used to contain palm oil but now it’s on their labels.
- Post’s HoneyComb Cereal now contains palm oil in the form of Vitamin A Palmitate.
- Mr. Goodbar in 2019 uses it but it didn’t used to be on their labels.
- Most ice creams and frozen desserts contain palm oil and/or Mono- & Diglycerides.
- So many other products….
Why Is Palm Oil in So Many Foods Now?
It took us a long time to figure out some palm ingredients. We knew certain foods were causing him to have allergy symptoms but we didn’t know why.
Keeping your labels organized or at least all in the same place will make it easy for you to reference them as you try to figure out what’s causing you to have symptoms.
Avoiding palm oil because of a palm oil sensitivity
Again, it seems the medical community isn’t familiar with palm oil allergy symptoms and palm oil intolerance. However, when you look online and in forums, including Facebook and other sites, you will find communities of people who avoid palm oil and palm oil derivatives because they get reactions from it.
There are many people who avoid palm oil because of the devastating environmental impacts the palm oil industry has on rainforests, animals and people.
We researched palm oil health to learn what the experts had to say.
Palm oil intolerance
For our family, we do all we can to avoid palm oil because of the environmental issues as well.
Also, it’s one thing when palm oil would cause our son to cough and have sniffles. It’s another when he is miserable and sick for days or weeks. It was terrifying when his personality changed when he was experiencing a reaction. It’s a very serious thing to us. We don’t want to have our son be sick.
While he is a healthy eater and does great eating protein, fruits and vegetables, he still eats processed food. He needs to be able to eat safely at a restaurant. We want to be sure he can find safe choices.
We want him to have a piece of candy or gum and not get sick.
Our goal is to find a safe vitamin without palm oil.
He can only use few self-care products. We bring them with us on vacation.
Allergic to palm oil — palm allergy — palm oil intolerance
Do you get allergic reactions from palm oil? If so, you are not alone. (Thank you to everyone who has taken a moment to Comment below!)
Depending on the palm oil processing, you may not have allergy symptoms to all food with palm. To the best of our knowledge, all palm oil products and palm oil causes allergic reactions and affects our son adversely.
Avoiding palm oil
Once you know what products contain palm oil — there are so many more than you think — you will be able to more safely avoid those products.
It’s so important to let companies know we want more products without palm oil and to support palm free products.
Please share your Comments below.
- Do you get sick from palm oil?
- Do you think you have an intolerance to palm oil?
- Why do you think you have a palm oil allergy?
- Have you talked with your doctor about it?
- What else?
Will you talk to your doctor or healthcare professional about palm oil? The more attention we bring to this issue, the more manufacturers might start eliminating palm oil from their products.
Already it’s a huge environmental concern. Learn how to use less palm oil each week which will help reduce demand.
Discuss palm oil allergic reactions with your doctor
Please note, we are not medical professionals. This is not medical advice. Please consult with your physician about your self-care and food allergy symptoms and the possibility of a palm oil intolerance or palm oil allergy or inflammation.
Your allergist or other doctor may suggest allergy testing or other tests.
The information is based on my own personal experience. While palm oil causes allergic reactions in our situation, yours may be different. If you have allergic reactions or other symptoms, please consult with your healthcare professional.
We’d love to know your experience with palm oil. Do you think you have a palm oil intolerance or allergy? Inflammation? Do you have reactions from palm oil? Please let us know in the Comments so we can all help each other.
Also, please report your symptoms to the FDA. Thank you for reading. Please share your experience below.
Thank you so very much for sharing your research and personal story on this. Palm oil is also very damaging to heath in the long run, so its best to avoid it all together. Europe is considering a ban on it which makes so much sense. Only a few years ago the food and cosmetics industry could do well without it. Its fueled by greed as it us cheaper than any other oil. I am happy you found a solution to your child’s intolerance and that he is healthier and happier now. Do look out for professors and university researcher on this topic – they might have more insights into it than average doctors. Good luck!!
Thank you for reading and for taking the time to comment with such helpful information. I also appreciate your idea of looking to university research. Once people know how companies use palm oil and where to look for it, it does get a lot easier to find products without it. Many thanks to you!
Thank You. I am sorry to hear the effects this ingredient has had on your son & the lack in which the medical community has shown concerning. I am so grateful for the information you have provided. I have experienced reaction to palm oil / palm kernel. Years ago, become quite noticeable after eating malted candy eggs during easter time or any other item where it was listed in first few ingredients.Itchy, hives, facial swelling, etc. I knew to avoid them. I’ve also suffered from congestion, nasal drip, never making the connection. I have also been to an allergist. Prescribed desloratadine & told me to do sinus rinse, which I do religiously every evening, w/ not much reprieve…
So here we are, a few days after Halloween. I don’t think I have to explain. Palm oil in everything now. Was not, just 2 or three years ago.
Doing research, found this site. I do have a hunch, this ingredient is highly inflammatory. It is just that some, such as your son are showing intolerance (immune response) & you his parents have the keen sense to make the connection of diet, then symptoms.
I myself, am a home cook. Not Much processed food at all. Olive oil, Canola and butter – that is it. The problem is, that on occasion, package items, such as an Entemanns crumb cake, just one of hundreds, which was fine a few years ago, now no good. When I eat a package product & experience a problem, I read the ingredients and sure enough – palm oil. Have to check every time before I eat now. Even things that were ok a year ago, may not be ok now. The true definition of “junk food”. Probably the cheapest oil out there. Not just for food either.- Palm is a HUGE cash crop. Alias hundreds of different names-
As other reviewer stated, Europe is trying to ban Palm Oil & actually being blamed of inciting a trade war because of it.
For now, personal responsibility, which you have clearly illustrated will be your salvation. Thank You Again.
There is a company called bulk supplements that is sold on Amazon that sells individual nutrients in powder form without any additives. What I like to do is measure a small amount of the ones I really want like the b vitamins and magnesium and c and sprinkle them in some oj. Thanks for this work you are doing to inform people who have ears to hear. I just started to make the connection that the palm kernel oil in a yogurt that I ate and was causing repeated migraines and this was the first resource that I found when I did a search for palm oil allergies. It’s very eye opening but awesome that you have figured this out for your son. I’m going through everything I own and checking for the ingredients you have painstakingly researched, and I’m shocked at how prevalent it is indeed.
I also just realized that aspirin that is marketed for pets doesn’t have many additives, but it’s the same aspirin. I just thought I’d add that since you mentioned needing medications for your son.
Here is a link for additive free aspirin
I’m 62 years old and I have a intolerance to palm oil. It started about 5 years ago. I can’t eat anything with it. In my case within 10 minutes it starts a urgent bowel release and will continue for hours till it’s all out of my system. I have to read every label.
Thank you for writing and sharing your story, Edith.
It is interesting to learn the adverse ways palm oil affects people.
It’s difficult reading labels all the time, even for products we purchase regularly, but you know how important it is.
We are continuously writing companies telling them we want to see more palm oil free products and that we support palm oil free labeling.
Please write again if you discuss this with your healthcare professional. Best wishes.
Thank you for thinking of us, Alyssa!
Hello Alyssa. Thank you for writing. I am interested to learn about your migraines and appreciate you suggesting the bulk supplements.
I went to a compounding pharmacy and was shocked how most every product on their shelves contained Magnesium Stearate or Stearic Acid, both typically palm oil derivatives. Also, the pharmacist we spoke with there didn’t know about palm oil in medicines.
Good for you to be diligent about reading the labels for everything in your home. We can vote with our dollars when we choose the products without palm oil. Best wishes to you.
Thank you so much for writing. I apologize for the delay in replying. I wanted to thank you because the timing of your response and your mention of Halloween candy containing palm oil was perfect.
A few weeks ago, I was able to refer your comment in an email exchange I had with a top executive at a major candy corporation.
Typically, when we first write a company, they respond back with their standard “we use sustainable palm oil” response. In this instance, after getting past the customer service person and up a few more levels, I was referred to this person and was able to explain the health component some people experience from palm oil.
It’s important for companies to know consumers are reading labels and are choosing palm oil free options for both environmental and potential health reasons.
Also, please refer to our post, Halloween Candy Without Palm Oil, as a starting point for some candy we found to be palm oil free. Please continue reading labels as well.
Palm oil IS one of the cheapest oils available. Unfortunately as you and I are finding, it’s very versatile which is another reason it’s so prevalent.
Like you stated, avoiding processed foods is key. We’ve found avocado oil to be a great cooking and baking oil if you are looking for additional options.
And yes, the labels have changed dramatically, especially this year/2018 as the trans fat ban in the United States is now in effect.
Thank you so much again and best wishes to you!
Thank you for your research on Palm oil. I have this allergy to this also. I did not think to look on the tootsie roll bag I bought. I now have blister in my mouth and my glands in my throat are swollen. I usually read everything before eating it!
Thanks again, Alyssa. The link for the additive free aspirin you sent got me thinking about getting “stripped down” versions of medicine.
I have updated the post above to include how I was able to get two palm oil free medications for my son. We asked his pediatrician to write us the prescriptions to a compounding pharmacy.
We are grateful to have these options that don’t include the typical palm oil derivatives, including Propylene Glycol, Magnesium Stearate, Glycerin, Polysorbate 80, Polyethylene Glycol, and/or Sodium Lauryl Sulfate.
We will no longer be purchasing OTC medications for anyone in our family if possible. Thank you again!
Thank you for the informative website,
I diagnosed myself 2 years ago with having severe a palm intolerance. It only took 2 months of journal entries to narrow it down after my doctor and allergist said a palm allergy was very unlikely.
When I ingest foods with palm, I immediately get red, itchy, burning eyelids, sometimes my cheeks too. Within a minute of eating this happens. Other forms of palm oil in soaps and shampoo don’t seem to have an impact, although I do my best to avoid them. I also find a sensitivity to many laundry detergents more of a body rash.
Thank you also for the list of alternate names of palm. Another website I found:
http://www.palmoilinvestigations.org say they are developing a phone APP for palm allergy product identification.
One benefit of developing a palm intolerance (that seemed to appear all of a sudden) Is that it has forced me to eat a much healthier diet.
M
This is fantastic. I thought I was the only person in the world allergic to palm oil. My lips swell and I get (the beginnings of) anaphylaxis. It’s a terrible thing, added to all my other allergies that have landed on my plate at age 55 post-chemo. Palm oil is in freaking everything. Even chicken broth. Just terrible. Anyway, good job. And thank you.
Thank you for taking the time to comment, Diane. We are sorry you too have been having reactions to palm oil. It’s frustrating when the medical community has no knowledge of this or way to test for it. We wish you much patience as you read labels trying to find safe products.
Be sure to print out the hundreds of names for palm oil derivatives and refer to it before you buy, eat or use any products. Also, we are constantly updating this site with new products.
We are afraid to buy chicken broth or even spices. My son became sick from organic garlic that was in a squeeze bottle. All we use for my son now is salt. We buy herbs or use actual lemon, lime, garlic, onions, peppers, etc. for seasoning. I’m going to learn to make bone broth soon!
We wish you the very best. Please come back and comment when you find palm oil free products you can safely enjoy. Thanks again for your positive comments.
Hello. I apologize for the delay in acknowledging your thoughtful comments. Thank you for taking the time to write about your experience. We are sorry to learn you are suffering from a palm oil intolerance.
That’s great you have the list of palm oil derivatives to reference and that you’ve found another great resource. We have linked to them in some of our posts and consider them a valuable resource as well.
Being the FDA has banned the use of PHOs — also known as trans fats — palm oil is in more products than ever than ever before.
I loved reading what you said about the “benefit” being that you eat healthier. We too have looked back on our time since realizing it was palm oil causing the problems and recognize how much healthier we are all eating. It’s a great way to take control of a situation that seems very out of control at times.
We wish you the best. Thank you again for your insightful and positive comments.
Edith, me too. After looking on line I was beginning to think there wasn’t anyone else out there who had this reaction. I began around the same time, 5/6 years ago to eat Fish & Chips (I’m British) and have violent cramps and urgent need to visit the toilet. I tried fish on its own and no reaction, made Fish and Chips at home no reaction…eventually came to realise it was what they were frying it in. I asked at the restaurants and it was all fried in palm oil, often just labelled vegetable oil.
I mention this to anyone willing to listen and just get a shrug and shake of the head. I had scans and a colonoscopy before self diagnosing and wonder how many other people out there are diagnosed with IBS when they just have a palm oil allergy!!!
Spread the word.
I can’t believe I came across this page today. I have been researching palm oil allergies for years without finding much of anything online. First of, I would like to thank you for creating this page to share information so that those of us that suffer don’t have to feel like we are crazy. I too mentioned it to my doctor and he had the same reply that it couldn’t possibly be the palm oil.
I figured it out almost 20 years ago when my sister tried to convince me that I was lactose intolerant. I had no problem eating whole fat cheese or milk. So I started a food log and quickly realized that the vitamin A palmitate in low fat milk was the culprit. 20 years ago, every item in the cookie/cracker isle didn’t have palm oil in it but I quickly found out that 95% of cereals contained Vitamin A palmitate. This way they can say “our cereal contains 27 different vitamins and minerals.”
Yesterday I took my friend’s daughter to the movies and stopped to get candy beforehand. I got Mike and Ike’s (0% fat) and she picked Milk Duds. I of course completely forgot that milk duds had palm oil. A LOT of it. I usually read the labels but I guess I just wasn’t thinking. We shared candy at the movie and didn’t even get through a whole box. As we were walking out of the movie I thought oh no, I must have eaten too much candy. I had horrible stomach cramps. Then I remember the Milk Duds had palm oil in them. I had to drop her off at home and make my escape before I blew up their bathroom. Luckily I live close, but those are my only symptoms. I get severe abdominal cramping and then the palm oil just wants out.
Also, I believe I just have an intolerance and that I can handle small amounts. It seems like a cumulative thing for me as well, wherein I am fine until I ingest enough of it to make me sick. I recently found out that most pizza and pie crusts contain palm oil now. Frozen pizza and all the pizza places that post ingredients online use palm oil. And while I love your idea of making your own desserts, a few years ago when ALL the candy companies started using palm oil instead of cocoa butter, I decided to make my own candy. Unfortunately, they had started using palm oil in the chocolate baking chips.
Lastly, I want to thank you for taking the time to write to companies that use palm oil. I do this often in the hopes that they will go back to their original recipe. Good luck everyone in your quest to stay palm oil free. Please excuse me, I think I need a bathroom.
🙂
Garlic in a squeeze bottle? fresh garlic is so much healthier, and easy to grow.
You could try Miso paste for a good broth base, dried mushrooms work well too.
Not sure if this is helpful as I had an “iron gut” and lots of good health until western and eastern practitioners alike decided to improve me. Disaster magnified. In any case, during one of these life overhauls post-consult, I joined the coconut oil craze and was a coconut oil popcorn popping, stir-fry making fool and seemed to do just fine. Years later while trying an oil-pulling experiment to apparently detoxify (it was the internet this time jacking me up), coconut oil started to trouble me much more than previous month’s inklings. I thought I needed to go to the ER for the pain. And then further years down the road with another health overhaul, plantain chips became holier than thou. I again thought I might need emergency assistance after eating a handful of them fried in palm oil. After some internet research, I also stumbled upon a very thorough MCT-oil explanation and its adverse impact on digestion. I can’t seem to find it again, but it was convincing. Not to be Debbie Downer, but maybe keep an eye on your son’s coconut oil tolerance, too. My iron gut is kinda devastated, and those two oils do stand out on a molecular level and clump together for many with digestive issues. Good luck.
What a relief it is to have found this page! I started supplementing with MCT oil several weeks ago, as one of the herbalists at my local Natural Grocers had highly recommended it. She did note that it would probably impact my intestinal track, so encouraged me to start with one teaspoon daily and gradually increase to one to two tablespoons a day. Within a week, not only was I experiencing severe intestinal distress, but I developed a major rash or possibly hives on my chest. I’ve also had intermittent pain in my gut and a runny nose. At first, I was stumped, as there hadn’t been any change in my diet – as I mostly consume organic whole foods and healthy oils, and steer clear of processed food and products high in carbohydrates. I was more concerned about the itchy, raised rash on my chest, and realized that my only dietary change had been the recent daily consumption of MCT oil. So, I started researching allergic reactions to MCT oil and came up empty-handed. I have been convinced that MCT oil was the culprit, and it wasn’t until yesterday that I decided to research allergies to palm kernel oil. Of course, I stopped taking the oil within days of starting it, but decided to reintroduce it, using considerably less. The rash came back. So, I went off it again several days ago, and the rash is just now starting to go away. I can’t help but wonder, however, if coconut oil may also be a culprit. So, from here on out I will start reading labels much more carefully, and concentrate on olive oil and avocado oil. Thank you so much for this post, your meticulous attention to detail, your tireless efforts to get to the bottom of your son’s allergies, and your decision to share your findings and journey with the world! Much, much appreciate!
Thank you for taking the time to comment with your experience, insight and suggestions.
For a long while, we eliminated coconut because it bypassed “traditional digesting” like palm oil does. We have been able to reintroduce coconut sparingly without issue (popcorn made with coconut oil) though we haven’t tried cooking with coconut oil yet. Being they are both MCTs, it’s definitely something to watch out for.
If you ever find the MCT explanation, please post it here. Thank you so much for sharing your knowledge!
Thank you so much for your kind words, Brooke. I appreciate you taking the time to write.
It is very interesting to learn of your experience. Are there ingredients listed on the MCT oil you have? It would be interesting to know if it includes palm oil.
Let us know if you can. Wishing you the best. Thank you!
It was organic! 🙂
I have learned so much about “convenience foods” and am only using only fresh garlic now. It tastes so much better and stays fresh for a long time. I know for sure it won’t have been preserved or treated with palm oil derivatives.
Thank you for writing!
Thank you so much for your comment. It’s remarkable you were able to discover Vitamin A Palmitate makes you sick so many years ago. You for sure then have seen how the labels have changed through the years and very much so in the last few years.
We researched Halloween Candy Without Palm Oil. If you haven’t seen it on our site already, please look it up. It’s incredible how so many candies include it. Tocopherols, mono and diglycerides, magnesium stearate, glycerin… it just goes on and on. Even Peanut M&M’s contain palm oil now though their regular/original (and a few others) do not.
And yes, sadly the chocolate baking chips and almond bark we used to use all contain palm oil as well. It’s in bread and all the crusts you mentioned. We have yet to find a grocery store bakery dessert that doesn’t contain it.
Thank you for writing companies. If you are inclined, please report your symptoms to the FDA as well.
It’s really incredible you were able to determine a palm oil intolerance so many years ago — kudos to you.
Thank you for writing and helping everyone with your knowledge and experience. Wishing you the best….
Yes, thank you for writing…. Spread the word indeed!
So many people have been finding this post. Palm oil is causing health issues.
We look forward to when the medical community acknowledges and researches palm oil. We also look forward to when companies start recognizing it’s a marketing advantage to have No Palm Oil labeling.
Best wishes to you….
My latest palm discovery, anything chocolate! If it says chocolate of any type (semi/unsweetened) it is processed cocoa with a plant based oil. Chocolate with cocoa butter or chocolate liqueur, both are made with palm oil. Hershey’s has a good website for finding their real ingredient list, but I had to email Lindt, and Cliff bars. They both use palm oil in their cocoa butter.
I make my own soap and I buy ingredients instead of processed food as much as possible. My doctors want me to take a multivitamin, but I have yet to find one that doesn’t contain palm. I understand what the allergist is saying, because having allergies I have heard often enough that I fam allergic to proteins in certain items. Not sure how a kiwi fruit has any more protein in it than palm fruit, but I KNOW they both make me miserable… so I avoid them. Trying to avoid palm products as much as possible because they give me angio edema and make me exhausted. So glad I found you site!
Thank you for writing.
It’s so important you emailed the companies to ask about palm oil in their products.
It’s essential for companies to know consumers care about the products not containing ANY palm oil. If palm oil makes you sick, palm oil makes you sick whether it’s sustainable or not.
We hope more people reach out to them — especially on social media — to let them know we want products without it entirely.
It’s important to report symptoms from palm oil to the FDA. If enough consumers report, they can learn palm oil causes symptoms and reactions in some people.
Our understanding from Lindt (from their website) is: “For our plain chocolate, we use only pure cocoa butter as vegetable fat. Only for some fillings, palm and palm kernel oil is used among other vegetable fats.”
The FDA has requirements about what can be called “chocolate.”
According to consumeraffairs.com, ingredients on “chocolate” must contain “chocolate liquor” < or > “cocoa” and “cocoa butter.”
If a label reads “chocolate flavored” or “chocolaty,” it contains compound chocolate which is flavored with cocoa but gets the fat from vegetable oil instead of cocoa butter.
We are very interested in reading what Lindt and Clif Bar wrote you about their cocoa butter containing palm oil. If you are inclined, please post it here or email us at editor@ productswithoutpalmoil.com
Thank you again for writing.
Read the labels, learn the words,the names and the codes, cook everything from scratch. My wife is palm oil intolerant, it effects her by causing her to ingest large amounts of air which can last for days. We cook everything, make virtual everything from scratch. Bread,ice cream, biscuits,cakes, don’t use margarine, avoiding all pre processed ingredients We have learnt to speed read ingredients lists, palm oil pops out rapidly, anything that is doubtful we leave behind In the UK /Europe E470 – E471 additives =Palm oil plus lauryl and all the others mentioned. I suspect that the part of the obesity crisis is being fuelled by palm oil disrupting normal digestive process in some way, or the absorption of certain key things are out of kilter, that’s really just a suspicion!
Thanks for writing about what you are doing as you deal with your wife’s palm oil intolerance. It’s helpful for everyone.
And yes to speed reading ingredients. Once you know the types of foods it’s in and the ingredients, words, names and codes, they are very easy to spot. Cooking and baking from scratch minimizes the problem.
Great point about disrupting normal digestive process or the absorption process…. We are left to figure it out because there isn’t anything in medical literature about palm oil intolerance or people having reactions from palm oil ingredients.
Hello I am Cristina from Romania and I am allergic to palm oil.
Then IgE test for palm oil allergy exist at Synevo laboratory, they get the sample of blood from you and send it to Germany for examining.
Hello, I am allergic to palm oil. I am from Romania, Europe. In Romania the Synevo laboratory makes igE test for palm allergy and send the sample of blood to Germany for results.
I have this allergy for 2 years. It is agresive. I am not only allergic to palm oil food, I also am allergic to air pollution of palm oil.
I have all the allergic reaction that you described, but I have more, I am suffocateing in the worst reaction from the inhalation of palm oil from the air.
I wos about to die. I use Ventolin inhalation to rehabilitate from a suffocate crises.
I am trying to find a cure for this allergy .
Thank you for posting this information for the public. I have all of these symptoms and have for decades. I had discovered through the same process that I had a soy allergy 20 years ago despite my allergist claiming that I didn’t. I did well until the last few years, it’s getting much worse again. Now I realize that palm oil is another culprit. Thank you so much for clarifying this for me. I suspected it but it is difficult to find affirmation.
Thanks so much for your thorough article. I discovered I have a Palm Oil “allergy” by a process of elimination.
My story. A few years ago I started going to bed every night thinking I was simply going to die one night from what seemed like sporadic, massive waves of head allergies, sore throat, lethargy. The attacks were sporadic enough for me to write it off as seasonal allergies. I would go into mild panics until a Benadryl kicked in. I decided I needed a life change so I began exercising, eating better and removing processed foods from my diet. My sympyoms calmed down… until I introduced protein bars into my healthy plan. I figured protein bars were a good way to get through a long work day. On the 3rd day of eating protein bars (differnt brands) my allergy symptoms came on with a vengence. I had itching, I was irritated, but my most alarming symptom came when my cheeks became numb and I could feel the tingling creeping down my throat. At this point I went on the hunt for the culprit. I kept those protein bar wrappers because I knew there was something in them that was common. By a lengthy process of elimination all signs pointed to palm oil. I am now a human petri dish for any palm oil derivitive. I carry benedry everywhere I go in case I accidently ingest.
Today, I sometimes forget I have the allergy because I pretty much stay away from anything Palm (which leaves me eating what some would call bland). If I accidentally eat something with Palm, I now recognize the symptoms and can ward it off… unfortunately with Benadryl (which has it’s own problems) My Palm Oil symptoms are
1. Roof of mouth begins feeling irritated or numb,
2. cheeks eventually tingle or go numb,
3. throat can hurt and/or go very dry.
At this point I have normally swallowed my Benadryl.
Tonight however, I lay here typing as my “allergy” has progressed down my throat because I wasn’t paying attention and I’m patiently waiting on my friend Ben… Frustrated, I went to the internet to see if anyone has finally posted something worthy about Palm Oil allergies and I found your site. I applaud you for telling your story. I will write the FDA. It has been a long journey for me but the impact is equally exhausting on my family as I’m sure it was/is on yours. Thanks so much.
Cindy Mik
Thank you so much for taking the time to create this website. As others had mentioned it’s very difficult to find out about palm oil allergies.
I was having stomach issues for about a year which caused an irritation of my stomach. I felt like I couldn’t catch a full breath, felt overly full all of the time, my stomach was in pain and it hurt to touch my abdomen. I was convinced I had gallstones due to the pain and eventually did an elimination diet. I found the culprit as soon as I ingested palm oil for the first time. It happened to be a rice cracker and the only other ingredient was palm oil so I feel lucky I was able to diagnosis so quickly.
Before this I didn’t even know what palm oil was which is crazy considering it’s in so many products. I’m sure there are so many people out there eating it and have no idea what is causing their problems.
This week I started eating a bag of dried organic coconut slices from costco and as the week progressed my symptoms started to come back and got worse as the week went on. I finally realized today it’s probably the coconut. Interesting to read that there is a correlation for people with these two foods/allergies.
Thanks again for all of your work, Sarah
Thank you for taking the time to write, Sarah. That’s wonderful you were able to figure it out. If you talk with your healthcare professional, please write back. We’d love to hear if the medical community is becoming aware of people’s issues with palm oil. Best wishes!
Thank you so much for writing this. I believe I have a palm oil allergy as well. I have had allergy testing done and was told that palm oil shouldn’t be the cause of my symptoms. I did my own elimination and found that palm oil was the common ingredient. It is definitely difficult to find palm free foods! I knew of it’s common names, but am so thankful to you for posting all of the names for it. I will be copying that and carrying it with me!
My symptoms are similar to your son’s. I also have anxiety, tightness in my ears and head, sore throat or ears, sinus drainage (which was almost constant until I started to eliminate palm), loss of energy, bloating and other intestinal issues, shakiness, and just not feeling right. I know right off if I see a palm name, other times I have been stumped, but now will look for the other names for it.
This started about 9 years ago when I purchased red palm oil from Trader Joe’s. I used it once to cook fish and was very sick. Initially i thought it had been the fish. It wasn’t until a few years later that I realized it was palm oil. I actually never used that oil again though, the thought of it with the fish made me sick.
I searched this today due to feeling unwell. My family and I went to a movie last night. I get Mike and Ikes because they do not have a palm ingredient like other candy, although now I will recheck the ingredients. I’m not feeling well. Head and sinus pressure, sore throat, upset stomach. I know that microwave popcorn contains palm, so probably movie theater popcorn does as well…I did have some.
Thank you again for this post. I pray that more companies turn away from palm oil, and that your son can also find some relief.
Thank you for sharing your experience with palm oil and your symptoms. That’s great you are reading labels and learning the ways it’s hidden. While we are diligent about everything my son eats, there have been times he reacts to an ingredient. Once I contacted a company because he had a reaction, and it turned out the “natural flavors” were derived from palm oil.
In your instance, it may have been the popcorn. In addition, it may have been the candy.
While ingredients and vendors change, the Mike & Ike’s we’ve seen typically contain Medium Chain Triglycerides. We haven’t confirmed with the company they are palm oil derived; however, palm oil is a medium chain triglyceride.
Additionally, we avoid non-chocolate candies — especially ones in pieces or any chewy ones — as they often contain palm oil derivatives. Please see our post, Halloween Candy Without Palm Oil for some safe options but please read labels before buying them.
Thank you for sharing your experience of the medical professional saying palm oil shouldn’t be the cause of your symptoms.
We really appreciate you taking the time to write. It helps everyone who is trying to learn about getting sick from palm oil. Best wishes to you….
Hi there. It has taken me 15 years to figure out Palm oil is the cause of my migraines. Thank you for sharing your son’s experience. My heart goes out to him and you guys for sticking by him!
Thank you for writing and for your kind words, Jen. How terrible you have been experiencing migraines from palm oil for so long.
We are hoping the medical community gets on board with the fact that palm oil makes some people sick. We continue to be amazed by how many people view this post each day; you are not alone.
Best wishes and thank you again!
Good day. Two years ago I went to an urgent care facility after arriving from vacation with a terrible migraine. Aside from a narcotic for the pain, I was also given Benadryl. Within seconds my heart rate accelerated to 180 beats per minute. I literally felt I was going to die and the nurse practitioners must have felt the same because they panicked and injected morphine. I was referred to a cardiologist after that and all tests showed normal. Later that day my heart starting palpating fast again so my husband rushed me to the hospital. I also still had a bad migraine. I was hospitalized for 3 days and all tests made showed normal. They prescribed blood pressure medication and narcotics but I did not take them because they made me feel worse. Time passed by and recently I have come to the conclusion that I am allergic to anything with coconut oil and palm oil. Within seconds of eating anything that has palm oil in it, my heart begins to race and I feel exhausted. It lasts for hours until it’s all out of my system. I am 42 years old and I had never been allergic to anything. In fact, I did not even have a family doctor since all my life I had been healthy. All this has taken me by surprise and considering I have never been on a diet, it has proved super challenging. It is something new to me. Your site has definitely shed a lot of light so thank you for that. A few months before being hospitalized, I began feeling as if something was stuck in my throat (more towards the right side of the throat) and I had a gastroscopy done but they found nothing. I believe I probably had a severe allergic reaction to either coconut or palm oil but I did not know anything about it then. While on vacation, I consumed quite a few pina colodas and applied lots of coconut oil on my hair. I am sure that’s what led me to the hospital. A few months after being hospitalized, we were celebrating the holidays and again, without still knowing, I had a few sips of pina colada and boy, oh boy. My heart began racing and I had an anxiety attack. Now I avoid anything with coconut oil and palm oil and I was doing sort of ok. I did not realize I was still consuming foods with palm oil until I read your site! No wonder I was still getting some symptoms. Palm oil has many names. I will definitely continue doing more research. Thanks again for all your valuable information.
Hi. I used to just avoid fried foods because they would cause flu-like symptoms. It was difficult to explain that, no I was not contagious, I just ate a potato chip or a shelf-stable dessert. No fried chicken, or even pizza! My throat gets scratchy the moment I eat something with Palm oil, and it took years for me to figure that out. What do you do to mitigate the sinus problems after consuming palm oil? I just let it ride for three weeks, like it was just a headcold, but what other things can I do to speed up my recovery.
I only recently discovered what I am fairly certain is a palm oil allergy, but my symptoms are interesting, as I scanned through some of the comments and it seems most folks’ symptoms are different from mine. My symptoms were that I would get a dermatitis around my mouth (perioral dermatitis). They’d be small bumps that would look like pimples, but would get scaly and flaky, and were definitely not pimples. I had this for NINE YEARS. I realized I’d been drinking the same coffee creamer for years and that when I was traveling, my rash was getting better. There were so few ingredients in the creamer (Hershey’s Chocolate Caramel by International Delight), that it was easy to narrow down. And then I noticed I was having an issue when I ate Oreos. The only two ingredients that they both had were cocoa and palm oil. And I eat chocolate all the time, so it had to be the palm oil! It’s so nice to not have to cover up the rash with makeup all the time anymore. But my point is definitely add facial dermatitis to the list of symptoms for this stuff!
Thank you so much for writing with your experience and reactions from palm oil.
Facial dermatitis is a newer symptom for my son. It’s wonderful you were able to narrow this down — what a relief after so many years! It will be interesting to see if palm oil derivatives affect you as well.
Keep reading labels every time. Just last week, we saw a product that was once palm oil free now contains it. Companies use it because it’s very versatile and inexpensive.
Thanks so much for taking the time to write and to help everyone reading. It really adds to the discussion.
Thank you so much for this. I am also palm oil intolerant and have never found anyone else that has suffered from this. It has been extremely difficult to find any information on this. My reaction to palm oil is migraines, extreme fatigue and nausea. Thank you again.
We are glad you found our site. Thank you for taking the time to post a comment. The more people who write about their palm oil intolerance and symptoms from palm oil, the more attention it brings to this medical issue.
We also hope it will help encourage companies to use palm oil free alternatives and to certify their products as palm oil free.
Please return to this site; we update it frequently. Best wishes!
Thank you so much for this info!!! I have been searching the internet for over 2 years about palm oil allergy, as soon as I was onto it as being the culprit to my issues. After all of my food journal logging, and my husband hearing about my reactions to it, we all know that I can’t have it at all. I am deathly afraid of it. And thank GOD for all your helpful info! Now I know why I can’t stop clearing my throat after drinking Silk coconut milk! And my belly is tender and sore the next day or more. Especially since I was drinking it daily! I thought it was just the food or candy I consumed that contained palm or palm kernel… and yes, those seem to be a heck of a lot worse for me!! Feels so good to have found this and yes, I reported to the FDA as well now!! 🙂
It means a lot that you took the time to comment. Thank you. Our son’s throat clearing was constant. Now that we avoid palm oil, he never does it! We are so glad you are finding some answers. You are not alone in having symptoms from palm oil. We expect it will become more common as companies use it more. Thanks for using our site (we update it regularly) and for reporting your symptoms to the FDA. Keep reading labels, cook and bake from scratch, etc. We love readers’ comments, so please write anytime with your experiences.
Hi there, As this article is a couple yeas old, I hope you have been able to find an allergist to confirm. My daughter’s allergist did a palm oil test and she tested positive. She is horridly allergic to the stuff. I recently found a supplement company called Viridian for vitamins, and all their products are palm free. It sure is challenging navigating life with a palm allergy. Thank you for sharing about compounding medicines. Hadn’t thought of that, and will be doing it. We have been doing herbal remedies with some-ish success.
Hi there, As this article is a couple yeas old, I hope you have been able to find an allergist to confirm. My daughter’s allergist did a palm oil test and she tested positive. She is horridly allergic to the stuff. I recently found a supplement company called Viridian for vitamins, and all their products are palm free. It sure is challenging navigating life with a palm allergy. Thank you for sharing about compounding medicines. Hadn’t thought of that, and will be doing it. We have been doing herbal remedies with some success.
We are sorry to hear about your daughter. Thank you for taking the time to comment with this helpful information. We’d love to hear more about the palm oil allergy test including her results, symptoms, other tests she took, etc. (We will keep everything confidential.) Please email us at editor@productswithoutpalmoil.com if you are inclined to write. If not, that’s okay! Thanks also for confirming about Viridian vitamins being palm oil free. We bought some from Viridian a few months ago but have yet to try them. (It’s always scary trying new things with a palm oil allergy, as you know.) Thanks so much again.
Thank you for your informational post! My experience may be a one-off problem but I thought I would add it to your research.
I purchased a chickpea snack recently and just tried it After eating a few, I suddenly had a sore throat and some swelling. I couldn’t finish the handful I had placed in the dish. I don’t generally have food allergies but my family does.
I did not think that I was sick because we’ve been quarantining due to Covid. Gargling didn’t immediately help. Eventually my pet allergy routine worked and I felt better with no lasting problem today.
I wondered if it was the snack, as I never tried it before and my throat issue occurred while I was eating. Of course, I eat chickpeas and sea salt with no problem. The only other ingredients are: organic red palm olein and organic sunflower oil. I will avoid this red palm olein in the future.
I gargle with warm salt water. If it doesn’t improve in 5 minutes, I take a quick acting allergy medicine that melts on the tongue or if I don’t have that, I just take a regular allergy pill. Gargle again with salt water every hour until symptoms are gone. This keeps mucus from building up. If I have any sign of wheezing, I use a prescription emergency inhaler. This is the routine that I use for pet allergies but it worked for palm oil too.
I’m glad you read the ingredients and recognized red palm olein was the issue. We’re noticing many organic and “healthier” chip-like snacks now contain palm oil. Thanks for the reminder to always read labels. It was so great of you to write to share your story. Thank you!
Thank you for taking the time to write these suggestions. That’s a great idea to gargle with salt water. I’m glad your routine worked for the palm oil reaction as well!
I am very allergic to palm oil- hives, swelling lips, face, stomach cramps, very severe and terrible. My allergist suggested logging my reactions and eliminating foods to see what the culprit was and it is clearly palm oil.
Thank you for taking the time to explain your symptoms to palm oil and how it negatively affects you. It’s helpful to others. I hope companies realize people get sick from palm oil and that it’s an advantage to make and certify their products palm oil free.
I just recently realized my son is allergic or intolerant to palm oil along with many other allergies. Doctors don’t know about it and so fail to accept or understand. But according to what I have got from different sources, my understanding is that palm oil is made up of highly saturated fats which is not easy to digest especially for babies. Don’t know the whole science but overall it’s not good for babies delicate tummy.
My son has a bad skin allergy to palm oil. We found out when he was playing with my makeup and it burnt his eye. Our doctor said it was most probably a reaction to the palm oil in the makeup as he’s already highly allergic to mangos (most the time palm oil is from the palm of mangos). Luckily he doesn’t seem to have to much of an allergy to eating it just touching it. But we do find a lot of his free from foods don’t have palm in and we mostly go Iceland’s tho and get their home brand foods as they have stopped using palm oil in them. We are use to reading labels anyway as our son is allergic to gluten and mango
So my son is 6 months old and breastfed.
He has been having flare ups of congestion, hives, eczema, itchiness, sickness, diarrhoea, mucuossy stools, tummy pain etc.
Cut a long story short we were told to cut out dairy, he then reacted to products containing soya, then eggs. I requested formula as it started to affect my health. We tried 2 prescribed formula both contained coconut oil, so we assumed it was this (I have a coconut allergy too.)
Fast forward 2 months and we are still awaiting allergy specialist….he has now tried another formula and instantly reacted. He is still having flare ups from my milk but not as bad as the formula. Now the common ingredients that are in most of the products I have used as a replacement and the new formula are….sunflower oil, rapeseed oil and PALM oil.
My other son is under the same specialist for a fish allergy so I know they do “skin prick/ scratch testing” as we managed to narrow is fish allergy down to just pollock.
I am now going to try and cut out palm oil from my diet and see if that helps, going to prove difficult with everything else I have to avoid but I am willing to try anything whilst we await an appointment.
Thank you so much for that info!
Ever since going to a “clean eating” diet 3 years ago I have discovered sensitivities, starting with propylene glycol – it causes intense body aches like the flu if too much is ingested and a burning blistering rash if applied externally. I avoid it like the plague now.
Propylene glycol was named American Contact Dermatitis Society’s “Allergen of the Year” in 2018!!
It’s in EVERYTHING from foods to lotions, including feminine creams, hydrocortisone cream, most medications, I.V. fluids, heart attack injections, ultrasound gels, beauty/hygiene products, drink mixes, flavor extracts for cooking, processed foods & liquids… I mean EVERYTHING!
I didn’t know it was usually palm-derived. Last night I ate a homemade cookie treat I purchased at a farmer’s market. Sugar free, gluten free, and the only ingredient I did not normally consume was palm shortening for the creamy filling between the cookies. I had a nibble and immediately had tingly lip & throat clearing that stopped after a couple hours. I wasn’t aware it was the treat that caused it, I thought it may have been coincidental. Then this evening I ate the rest and BAM! I immediately had super tingly lips, then my whole mouth, and then a puffy sensation in my throat that made swallowing awkward. I took benadryl & lots of water and it got better eventually.
I now realize, thanks to your article, that chocolate treats resulting in throat irritation prolonged throat clearing & mouth sores are likely palm oil too! (And it didn’t used to do this to me, I only noticed the last few years so I’m guessing it is due to palm oil now being used!
I treated myself to a very rare treat of store bought candy (maybe twice a year). I had 2 Payday candy bars the other day & got severe stomach pain followed by diarrhea the next day. Lo’ and behold, palm oil in it! I think I’m seeing a pattern here
Thank you for your thorough article. It was eye opening. I will be reporting to the FDA this week!
Wow, Thank you so much for sharing your story. I am so glad I found this article. I’m in Australia and developed my allergy about 4 years ago, completely out of the blue. Was baking and felt really unwell so went to my GP who advised I was in anaphylaxis. I was treated with prednisolone ( which has magnesium stearate in it) took me ages to convince pharmacists and doctors that it was palm oil. Like most other readers doctors are reluctant to believe palm oil is the cause. I have narrowed it down to exactly that. My symptoms are immediate swelling and tingling of the tongue and lips, also my blood pressure tends to get high. I now bake everything myself. There are a couple of places I can go who cater for me. I find in Australia brands are now starting to put palm oil on the labels, and its scary to see just how many things actually have it. I also struggle with #2 plastic which is HDPE. so milk bottles and some yoghurt containers. I might be able to have the contents but because of the container it rules them out as well. I hope you find answers for your familis peace of mind. It’s good to see we are not alone in our struggle.
Hi! This article is extremely helpful. With tears in my eyes I type: Thank you for posting! This describes my son perfectly! My son was diagnosed with epilepsy at age 6 which he “grew out of” at age 9. Around the time the seizures stopped, the allergic reactions began. I never allergy tested him or kept track of his diet prior to age 9. Everything pretty much lines up with your story—even the grapes! Is your son also allergic to pure maple syrup? Thank you again for posting. Pam
Thank you so much for taking the time to reach out and write. My son can have pure maple syrup. (We never use the imitation ones because of the palm oil derivatives in them.) Please write anytime.
Thank you for your research. I discovered in 1999 that I was sick every time I ate something with palm oil. Only my initial reaction was a nose bleed. Over the last 20 years my reaction has gotten worse. I can’t even touch a palm frond or even transference from paper, bulletins on Palm Sunday where when I discovered that. I initially started with nose bleeds when eating anything with palm, then hives when I was exposed to palm fronds, I get contact dermatitis and sore hands when I use products with sulfates and now, I have anaphylactic reactions when I am exposed to palm. I was able to get an epi-pen, I had to fight for it initially. I have had allergists call me crazy, argue that no one can be allergic to palm oil, to having doctors say we really don’t understand all allergies. I did find a study a few years ago about exposure to pesticides and the development of allergies to palm and other things. That helped my doctor at the time to understand that I was serious. We are our best advocates we just have to fight hard to be heard.
I found out about my Palm Oil issues in the last few years, as the use has exploded into our food. It is cheap is the only reason it is used. Really not much about trans fat as much as cheap. Cheap.
I get hives, and heart palpitations. Hives occur the next day while the heart issue is 2 hours after eating Palm Oil laced foods.
Hello,
Wow I’m so glad I searched this but I am sorry your going through this with your son. It really is an obnoxious allergy. I learned I had this allergy 11 years ago after a few months of having reactions like hives and lip swelling. Well after eating McDonald’s french fries (since this occurred McDonald’s has stopped using palm oil) I had a serious reaction where my throat closed and I started tracking my foods and found palm oil as the common ingredient. It’s definitely not a fun allergy to have. There are many different names for it and so many products and foods that use it. I hope your son grows out of the allergy eventually since he is young!
Took me about 2 years to figure out it was Palm Oil the same way by tracking the food ingredients!
I have suffered from palm oil allergy/intolerance for years. I discovered when ill by reading labels of everything I had eaten. Doctors and allergists don’t seem to recognise it. The best way to stay healthy is eat home cooked food from scratch. Do not use sauces, bottled foods, processed foods etc. Butter only if its pure – some has palm oil in, as do spreads etc. Cheese has palm oil except goats cheese. Full fat milk seems to be OK. Look out for foods that are shiny, fruit can be coated and therefore risky. Laws should be enforced so that all ingredients and sub-ingredients containing palm oil are displayed in bold print. All the inflammations can cause damage to the body (in my case the digestive system). Most supermarket foods contain palm oil. We need to be vigilant with labels to protect ourselves from pain and suffering. Best advice is buy fresh food and cook yourself. Good luck to everyone suffering from this awful allergy/intolerance.
I am suspecting phenols and salicylate in many foods as causing so many debilitating symptoms like fibromyalgia. I know coconut has salicylate in it but cant find out if palm oil has it. I wonder if you after so much research would know if palm oil does contain either phenols or salicylate?
Interesting! Unfortunately, I don’t know. I wonder what type of doctor would have that information. Or if there is a university study about it?
Thank you for this amazing post. I had an IgG food panel done and can’t have coconut as it affects my heart. Recently I’ve noticed that palm has the same affect on my heart. Sometimes it hurts and other times it just feels really weird and then causes anxiety. This information has been really insightful and helpful. I also can’t have gluten or dairy and try to stay away from soy. Feels like finding butter or other food alternatives is almost impossible.
I am allergic to coconut and palm and shellfish. It sucks and foods need to be better labeled to show palm as an allergen. I thought I was the only one with palm allergy. Is there a support group for palm or coconut allergies cause sometimes I feel like no one understands these allergies?
Thanks for making your website.
I have a long list of do not eat foods. One nemesis is celery and the entire celery family. Basically no processed foods at all. Feel for you.
But you are not crazy. My husband can’t eat mandarin oranges. He gets “instant flu”. 106 degree fevers, in bed sick as a dog flu for days. But he doesn’t show an allergy to them. Just cannot eat them.
I am having problems with a new product that funnily enough has high palm oil ingredient. So thank you again for sharing.
I just pieced together the fact that I have a PEG intolerance. I realized it after my colonoscopy, my intestines are still not the same after 1 1/2 months, I was able to come to this realization due to having re-actions to Ultrasound Jell, the Pfizer COVID 19 shot and now the Sutab Prep (PEG8000). I’ve always had problems with the colon preps, and now I know why. But I had no idea that palm oil and polyethylene glycol were related ! I once had a Radiologist tell me that I couldn’t be allergic to ultrasound jell because it was just the same as hand sanitizer, which I may add, has Caprylyl Glycol and Glycerin ingredients. And just because it is an inactive ingredient does NOT mean you can not have an intolerance reaction. Word of warning, most colon preps contain Polyethylene Glycol in them, either active or inactive. Beware !
This article is older but it’s been really helpful to me. I wasn’t able to find the previous app mentioned, but I currently use Fig on iOS(allergy app with lots of palm oil versions you can select as an allergen and avoidant).
If this helps anyone, as someone older(25) and probably been allergic to palm oil for awhile, all the allergy has done for me was build upon itself and get worse with time. This isn’t an allergy that I can gradually lower through exposure.
PEG is a main thing I need to avoid in medication. However “pure” oil has been the worst with symptoms.
I have experienced anaphylaxis a few times now.
Got a depo(birth control shot) and went into anaphylactic shock due to PEG. Also ate popeyes(didn’t realize they switched to palm oil, the chicken was good but was not worth the health scare)
Hives typically with shampoo and soap of any kind as well as contact dermatitis and allergic reactions that appear similar to acne(but are not acne).
If you think you’re allergic to palm oil and are going to be allergy tested, I would recommend fighting to be tested for PEG. It’s a more medically recognized allergen and could make a good Segway with your doctor.
PEG is in a lot of medication, especially medicine in the form of shots like vaccines.
Though some allergic reactions may appear less harmful depending on what version of palm oil I’m ingesting, the more I ingest of the same one the worse the symptoms will get overtime.
Coming to realize that life threatening allergies to palm oil could be correlated to “asthmatic symptoms” in my youth.
^(please keep in mind you should seek professional help and work with a doctor if you think this could be correlated. They could be very separate things.)
Thanks again for this blog post though, it’s genuinely helpful and amazing <3 (:
I’m allergic to palm oil as well. Self diagnosed BUT I tested positive to a date palm allergy when running routine tests when I lived in Hawaii.
I didn’t correlate the two until later.
I’m also highly allergic to nickle which is in all foods and everything in the world.
I’m sure you have already tested your son for nickel. It’s a rare allergy as well.
Thanks for including his symptoms. I didn’t know about congestion and fever.
Hi! Thank you for the detailed post. I got her by searching whether palm and coconut oils were related because I have a coconut allergy (among many others). Have you asked for patch testing? Can the test him for palm oil contact dermatitis? The longest list I have of reactions are from contact dermatitis allergens that were discovered through patch testing. I can’t put the allergens on my skin (or hair) and I also can’t eat them. For eating, I don’t always react immediately compared to my food allergy responses that are almost immediately. The itchy scalp you mentioned is my primary response to contact dermatitis allergens whether I eat them or use products. It turns into hair loss if I continue to eat or use the allergen. Hope this helps! Good luck!
I am so pleased i found your web page! I too get ill after eating food that contains palm oil and now avoid it. My symptoms are mainly stomach pains and sometimes sickness.
Palm oil gives me acne. Cannot believe it is in so many products under so many different names. It’s crazy making!
I had a huge amount of trouble figuring out that I’m allergic to palm, because I’m also allergic to coconut. I was informed that I couldn’t be allergic to either, because they’re “hypo-allergenic”, it was awful to be informed that my throat closing up, my heart arrhythmia, and the anaphylaxis were just in my head, and not an actual problem. I know this will shock everyone, but after I cut out the items (and the doctor) that were poisoning me from my diet, my “made up” symptoms went away! I feel so validated seeing other people with the same problems as me, as sad as it is that we’re all struggling with the same thing.
Chin up everybody, It gets better!
My husband was having really bad sore throats and awful stools, he was tired and his personality would change. We discovered it happened after he was eating a shop bought cake that had palm oil and palm oil derivatives. He also suffered after eating biscuits (cookies) with palm oil. His moods were a worry too me. I decided to try giving him foods without palm oil and the improvement in his sore throat was immense. We have now changed how we shop, it takes longer but it is worth the effort. I am pleased to say that I want palm oil to be banned for peoples longterm health, but also to save the sweet orangutans. Humans are a selfish bunch and take what is not ours and then we learn it is not good for us either. Thank you for sharing your research it has made me feel validated.
I’m glad you were able to find out what was causing you to have reactions. It is frustrating when doctors and allergists say you can’t be allergic or have reactions to something. Ours said my son shouldn’t be having issues with palm oil because it “doesn’t contain proteins.” After also saying that, another allergist then went on and on about gluten being the issue. While I am open-minded and was seeking answers (and I’m also gluten free), I had been tracking his food for months and knew for sure it was palm oil and not gluten.
We’ve been avoiding palm oil for almost 5 years now. While it is at times scary eating outside our home, it has forced us to eat so much healthier. We eat so many more fresh fruits and vegetables now, cook at home 95% of the time, make all our own desserts, and read labels on everything. It’s been interesting to learn how companies use ingredients and how they’ve changed their ingredients over the years. It is all worth it for him to not have symptoms, and we all feel better eating more “real foods” and less processed foods. We also buy soaps, shampoo, etc. with less ingredients.
And yes, it is sad that so many people are struggling with health issues from palm oil. I continue to write about it on this site hoping that medical professionals will take notice. It would be amazing if the FDA would require labeling for palm oil ingredients and palm oil derivatives like they do for the major allergens. I’m also hoping that the companies who do make palm oil free products will realize what a selling point this is, and certify their products Palm Oil Free.
It really is in most skincare products.
Thank you for reading and for your response.
Those are scary symptoms; I’ve experienced them with my son as well. I’m glad you were able to figure out the foods and ingredients that were making him sick.
Thank you for taking the time to write with your experience and suggestions to help me and others. I appreciate it. A reader once emailed me to suggest the skin patch test as well. I haven’t done this with my son because I didn’t want to have to make him go through with it. At one time, I really wanted answers, but I know for sure palm oil makes him sick. We avoid palm oil at all costs.
I wanted to write this post because when I was searching for information many years ago, there wasn’t any information about it. I didn’t think my son could be the only person who had allergic reactions and other reactions from palm oil.
I have gone through the same thing although as they have got worse I also struggle with breathing. E fags especially the really smoky ones are terrible I carry liquid piriton with me which again has palm in it but at least I can breath with the piriton I get max of 2 weeks used before I react to the piriton badly enough and use as little as I can get away with. I’m down for allergy testing but was told by my doctor I can’t be allergic to palm and not to be so stupid. Over the years I’ve learnt to deal with it but my reaction is now dangerous.
I also have a palm oil allergy. It’s in everything more than it was years ago. My Drs listened to me and it’s included in my allergies list. The roof of my mouth starts itching, then lips swell. Large amounts of mucus run down my throat, which causes a coughing fit. I end up with congested nose and sore throat for days. It’s real. I check labels now, things I used to eat, then suddenly this happens. Every time I read the label, it’s got palm oil or some derivative of it. The Ingredients have changed and companies are using palm oil. Advice, read labels and notify these companies what happens.
Thank you for taking the time to share your story to help others. That’s great to hear your doctors acknowledge that you react to palm oil. It’s encouraging!
Hello! I am 51 years old and I have been allergic to palm, coconut and all of its derivatives my entire life. Since 2018 I have really been struggling. This article has been extremely helpful. Thank you for taking the time to out all of this together. I wish you and your family the best. I know how terrible it is. On the daily I suffer.
Thank you for taking the time to write in with your experience. It’s very helpful to others. I appreciate your feedback and wish you well.
@editor, for two years I have found if I eat anything , from icecream, bake well tarts or anything cooked with palm oil I get a reaction I do have intolerance to other things… I do cook most of my food now and check it doesn’t in palm oil
Thank you for writing in to share your experience. Best wishes
I am completely allergic to palm oil. It’s a newer allergy to me that I discovered. I didn’t realize it was in SO much! I get bad acne, horrible period-like cramps, sore throat, fatigue. And that’s only what I’ve noticed.
Sorry to hear! I always wonder if people with bad acne changed their skincare to include palm oil free soap if it would improve their skin.
Thank you for sharing this. I have checked online for palm oil allergy for so many years and same experience, doctors won’t believe me. I believe I have an intolerance as a get reaction only if I eat something with palm
Oil for a couple of days in a row. Bad painful spots on my face that last months.
OH MY GOSH. I am so sorry your son and yourselves had to go through this, however, this article is so informative. I am nearly 39 and though I might have a wheat allergy which I have yet to see the specialist about, everything I have eaten the past month has palm oil in it and I noticed particular hive intensity on even Non GMO food like Tyson chicken strips. I had like two packets of gummy snacks the other day and it had canola in it. Last month I had an ear infection and the HEB Similasan ear relief had vegetable glycerin in it and it made me break out badly and my lip swell up. This has been life altering for me and I am trying to figure out what I can have. It is like in EVERYTHING. It IS frustrating there isn’t more diversity in diet out there. Thank you so much for this article. I am crying out of frustration but also some relief to see there are some foods out there listed I can have. Thank you so much.
I just did a test with Maple Almond Butter made by MaraNatha as I’ve been experiencing this mucus generation for years without understanding what is causing it. Sure enough, I’m getting the reaction. Not as serious as what I see others in this post but annoying nevertheless. My wife mentioned if the almond butter looks “creamy” it’s likely they added something like palm oil.
On the label, the manufacturer touts their “signature process then double grinds our almonds to deliver a velvety smooth texture…”.
Interesting! She is correct! Online on MaraNatha’s website, it says their Raw Maple Almond Butter contains
ALMONDS, MAPLE SUGAR, PALM OIL, SEA SALT. CONTAINS: ALMONDS. MAY CONTAIN PEANUTS.
If you have a high performance food processor (Vitamix, etc.) it’s easy to blend almonds and pure maple syrup, or choose a jar from Wild Friend Foods or another brand if you can find it locally (also online). Please check out my post about peanut butter without palm oil for other brands.
Thanks so much for writing in with your experience.
I have an adult son who determined that he had a palm oil sensitivity.
His reactions include changes in his thoughts. He can feel very anxious often with a sense of doom due to severe panic attacks. His thinking turns very negative. Not so much usual allergy responses , but can cause coughing.This has gone on for years. He is meticulous about label checking. Unfortunately, he gets exposed unexpectedly at times. He bought two types of cream cheese,original and whipped. There
is no palm oil in the original. It is in the whipped style. He tasted a little of the whipped and immediately began symptomatic. Needless to say, it has been a constant struggle.
Thank you for writing in and sharing his story. I am familiar with the coughing and the sense of doom (which is really scary). My son hardly eats any processed foods anymore because of all the hidden ingredients. I wish companies would certify their foods Palm Oil Free; it would be so helpful and good for them as well.
Why we should stay away from palm oil:
Thanks for writing this! I knew I was experiencing symptoms to dates and coconut, and a few months ago, I finally made the connection of symptoms from palm-derived ingredients. I had no idea it had so many different names, though! It’s been discouraging to lose one food after another as their ingredients have been replaced with palm oil or other palm-derived ingredients. I get dishidrotic eczema.
@Laura H, Me too! I wheeze and show asthma symptoms. Specifically in Aldi’s protein bars.
First id like to say may God bless you and your child for what you have gone through. Thank you so much for the detailed research. I was traveling in Thailand and got sick and was given antibiotics without a label on them by the doctor in a local clinic. The antibiotics had a 5 day course but on the 3rd day my stomach was hurting and i had to go to the bathroom every 5-10 minutes so I immediately stopped taking them. Ever since then (actually the next day) I developed an allergy to a few things such as processed white bread, rice, and coffee. I used to be an avid coffee drinker and ate rice and bread almost everyday. I believe the antibiotics were the cause of my new allergies. The latest thing I discovered to add to my list of allergies is palm oil. As you mentioned its snuck into our foods and really hard to discover you’re allergic to it. If i eat any of these above mentioned products i get sever headaches, weakness and nausea and i go to sleep for the rest of the day. Now I mostly eat natural foods and stay away from anything man made altogether but once in a while ill slip up and eat something only to discover it had palm oil in it. I fry foods with olive oil or coconut oil and lately started using ghee as well. Most food containing palm oil is unhealthy for human consumption anyway but its still a burden. Im still seeing doctors to see if there is any solution or at least confirmation for all this. Good luck and i wish you all the best.
I didn’t see Acia berry listed. That is another palm oil. I know since I have issues with it. Also agave bothers me. Cotten seed and canola oil is also really bad for you. Cotten seed comes from cotten. So why is added in food?
I have issues now with eggs and pretty much all antibiotics and zinc allergies.
Since I got really sick with fibromyalgia in 2001 and now CFS. Allergies have popped up and intolerances. I was never allergic to anything. Oregano is another one.
I feel your pain! I refuse to do covid vaccines due to most vaccinations are incubated in eggs. Yes one vaccine is not. But since my allergies are daily from mild to life threatening. I am not taking a chance with a untested mixed reviews vaccine.
Not sure if allergist told you but reactions can take up to 72 hours to happen. I know that experience. I have issues with wind, rain,cleaning supplies,perfumes (certain ones)
But never know which ones since the 72 hr rule. I am pretty much house confinement.
I do benadryl almost daily. Epi pen is my backup. I have my uvula swell up.
Such a great life now at 57. I have none.
I do organic as much as possible but they use all you listed. Add eggs and such and there’s not much you can do. I am to sick to cook so eat basically the same things.
Oh I forgot to says all peppers too cause issues. I would go to holistic Dr. But they don’t take disability insurance.
I also have HS which are painful abscesses that the medical community has no clue about.
Most of their drugs cause cancer. Or they put you on antibiotics and cut you open a drain infection. Can’t do that because of No antibiotics.
A lot more people are getting HS and CFS and Fibromyalgia. Why!!!
And no relief for me with any of this.
Maybe if I was rich.
Unfortunately my life is mostly unlivable.
Is it because of all these new additives??
All my illnesses go hand in hand.
They have to. I am on ssdi. And get very little due to getting sick at age 36. It took until 2005 to get it. And they still think I can work.
Yeah right
@editor, I have had a sensitivity to palm oil. I really wouldn’t call it an allergy but it’s definitely a sensitivity stomach intestinally yeah it’s a PIP I have to stay away from everything. Basically it is in everything no matter how they word it palm kernel oil or palm oil. Lindts chocolate truffles has it. It is truly in everything even the bakery at the market my favorite cinnamon chip muffins from Safeway. It has it in it because it’s in the cinnamon chip. I used to buy Hershey cinnamon chips. I used to make a wonderful cookie at Christmas and I can’t eat them because of the palm oil in the cinnamon chips so read labels everybody read labels also the palm oil industry if you read about that makes you not want to buy it even if you don’t have a sensitivity, it’s a shocking industry terrible. Enjoyed your article very much. I was happy to see so much written about some thing that I have known about for a long time, but could never find anything well written about it, so good job.
So lucky to have stumbled upon your article tonight. I know I am allergic to Calcium Stearate since it was the only additive in my thyroid med and it caused severe urticaria. After a recent bout of poison ivy, my doctor prescribed a Medrol dose pack, twice since the first did not work. Come to find out the steroid has calcium stearate in it causing large hives with blisters primarily on my forearms. These caused cellulitis so I was admitted for IV antibiotics for three days. It took three weeks for all the hives/wounds to heal. Three doctors later I am still having problems with urticaria on my forearms so I did my own research on Calcium Stearate only to learn it is derived from palm oil. For the past month, I have been keeping of log of palm oil consumption. Tonight I was coughing so hard after eating a derivative of palm oil that I decided to Google it and your post popped up. You taught me coughing and sore throat are symptoms. Thank you for all the time you took to post your experience. I have learned so much. You are a great mom. Now I am searching for an allergist who will do a skin scratch test. I would love to join your crusade to eliminate palm oil from all products.
Thank you very much for commenting with your experience. It’s helpful to everyone!
Thanks for writing in! I agree that once you learn the environmental concerns with palm, it makes you want to avoid it as well.
Cinnamon chips, white chocolate, vanilla chips, butterscotch chips, peanut butter chips, baking chips, almond bark, melting wafers (from Ghirardelli and others)… they are made with palm oil now. If someone reading this is looking to avoid palm oil, look for dark chocolate, semi-sweet, or milk chocolate chips, chunks, etc. It shouldn’t say “chocolate flavored” or “Chocolatety”. You still have to read ingredient labels as well because even in chocolate, companies will use palm oil.
I am allergic to titanium , I get face swelling , eyes swell shut and bad rash all over my face only , soap has titanium in it , I found goat milk soap with only three ingredients, goat milk , olive oil and red palm oil , my face was getting worse and worse , I haven’t used soap on my face now for about a month and it’s the clearest it’s ever been!! Dr. Now believes it’s the red palm oil , I will be getting tested for it!!
Thank you for writing with your experience. If you can, please write back after your appointment. Would love to hear what the doctor says about the red palm oil.
After two days of itchy welts all over my body, I eventually figured out that palm oil was the culprit! Which is the strangest thing because I usually could eat things with palm oil/palm kernel oil/ palm shortening without any problem. I guess it’s a later-in-life allergy.
It’s disappointing for sure—I didn’t realize it’s not officially considered an “allergen”. Well, for me it definitely is! I’ve currently got the itchy welts to prove it! Thank you for this website! I already avoid seed oils, palm will just have to be one more. I just wish there was a non-seed oil, non-palm shortening available.
Thanks for writing with your experience. Palm oil presented as an allergy in my son as well. It was awful, and we never knew which reactions would appear.
I’m not sure what you use shortening for but could you use (real) butter or lard instead? I use butter but haven’t used lard.
I recently had to go to the ER for insane pain in my stomach that was followed by intense vomiting. Only IV morphine has made the pain tolerable. I have broken my collar bone and this was worse. Through the process of elimination I have determined that Palm Oil and/or Palm Kernal Oil was present in the ingredients of food I ate out at a restaurant each time. It normally takes a couple of hours for the pain to set in and then a full 5-7 hours of vomiting and utter pain until it finally subsides. The next day I have no issues eating but am exhausted. The allergist said there were no tests for Palm Oil and that she had never heard of that during her career. I have been racking my brain trying to think what has changed in m y life that might have caused this. I have always drank bottled water that is filtered by reverse osmosis. To save on plastic waste, I recently bought a countertop filter that filters with reverse osmosis but also has an additional filter to make the water more alkaline. I have recently seen some studies that suggested high alkalinity could lead to cancer of the colon but I haven’t found anything about the two that directly relate to my problem. Four “attacks” since November 2023. I try not to eat out anymore but that isn’t always an option. Every time feels like I am taking a huge risk. Tons of tests by various doctors have shown no other problems that we can attribute it to, including gall bladder, liver, or stomach bacteria. The next test is an endoscopy, not looking forward to it…
Thank you for commenting with your experiences… It’s a tough situation for sure but it definitely gets easier. Eating real, unprocessed foods was a gamechanger. Rice, quinoa, beans, eggs, fruits, vegetables, nuts, real butter, whole milk, meat; anything whole and “one ingredient”. Bake from scratch. Do not buy grocery-store desserts or any processed desserts. Palm oil is everywhere in desserts. Many breads with a long list of ingredients contain palm oil ingredients.
Going out to restaurants is very difficult unless you order foods that are whole… salad with vinegar & oil, grilled meat, real cheese, etc. I’d avoid the bread unless you can read the ingredients in advance. If you are a meat-eater, steaks, pork, fish, and chicken made in sit-down restaurants (not fast food) are typically fine. Frozen French fries in restaurants are 50/50. They won’t be cooked onsite with palm oil but they often come frozen to the restaurant with palm oil in the ingredients. Most foods cooked in sit-down restaurants that are made onsite are fine. The exception is if they would use margarine to cook in.
I recently had to go to the ER for insane pain in my stomach that was followed by intense vomiting. Only IV morphine has made the pain tolerable. I have broken my collar bone and this was worse. Through the process of elimination I have determined that Palm Oil and/or Palm Kernal Oil was present in the ingredients of food I ate out at a restaurant each time. It normally takes a couple of hours for the pain to set in and then a full 5-7 hours of vomiting and utter pain until it finally subsides. The next day I have no issues eating but am exhausted. The allergist said there were no tests for Palm Oil and that she had never heard of that during her career. I have been racking my brain trying to think what has changed in m y life that might have caused this. I have always drank bottled water that is filtered by reverse osmosis. To save on plastic waste, I recently bought a countertop filter that filters with reverse osmosis but also has an additional filter to make the water more alkaline. I have recently seen some studies that suggested high alkalinity could lead to cancer of the colon but I haven’t found anything about the two that directly relate to my problem. Multiple “attacks” since November 2023. I try not to eat out anymore but that isn’t always an option. Every time feels like I am taking a huge risk. Tons of tests by various doctors have shown no other problems that we can attribute it to, including gall bladder, liver, or stomach bacteria. The next test is an endoscopy, not looking forward to it…
Also disappointed that the Spoon Guru app is no longer active. Does anyone know of an alternative?
Thank you for commenting with your experience. It’s helpful for others. Keep tracking your foods and symptoms… even at home. It’s interesting to be able to go back and make connections. Also, companies change ingredients often, so keep reading labels. I hope you get some answers!
Thanks for telling me about Spoon Guru. I will remove the info. It’s a shame because they were really on top of it with knowing the different names for palm oil ingredients, such as Vitamin A Palmitate, Glycerin, Glycerine, Tocopherols, Mono- & Diglycerides, etc.