Allergic (..Sensitive?) to Sugar?

[RackDaddy]

I am a 35 YO male who has had multiple abdominal hernia surgeries -- three mesh repairs and one nissen fundoplication.  Ever since the surgeries, I'm either reacting to or more sensitive to sugar.

Within 2-3 minutes of ingestion of anything containing >2-3 grams of sugar, I receive symptoms of (always) stomach gas and LOUD stomach noises, nausea, abdominal pain, bloating, diarrhea (always); itchy face or scalp (usually); headaches and tiredness (occasionally).

I've been able to control this all with a very restrictive diet.  Carbs don't seem to be an issue (because they take longer to break down..?), and neither does sugar from fruits.  HFCS is the worst and causes the most immediate problems; cane sugar takes a few more minutes.

So here is my question....  With all of the searching I've done, I've not been able to find any justification for my sensitivity, nor have I really heard of anyone else talk about it.  I think this has been a lifelong issue, but the nissen caused me to be more aware, since I can't burp normally.  (I'd always had an aversion to sweet things -- ice cream always caused problems, so did jello.  I always assumed I was lactose and gelatin intolerant..).

Because symptoms spring about so immediately (like an allergy) and my symptoms are more than GI-related, I can't imagine it's just an intolerance.  But if anyone else has any advice, I'd greatly appreciate it!

[jemma116]

You would have to have a glucose test carried out to find out.

Hyperglycaemia is when there is far too much sugar in the blood stream.  This happens in people with diabetes and they then have to inject some insulin to bring the level down.

Hypoglycaemia is when the sugar level in the blood is very low.  You don't have to be a diabetic to suffer from this.   To remedy this problem is to eat or drink something to bring your sugar levels up again.  Although sugary foods will spike the blood sugar up very quickly which OK initially in a hypoglycaemic attack, it is better to eat slow energy release food.

Urine and blood tests for diabetes only show up if the level of sugar is above a certain limit.  But you can still have prediabetes symptoms and this can still damage nerves.

There is a blood test for diabetes that measures the blood for the average sugar level over a 3 month period.  Can't remember what this test is called at the moment.

Best wishes.

[KisekiShiawase]

oh thanks for the info.
was it a test for diabetic or something?
i also heard about hyperglycemia and hypo and it says its different than diabetic and its not easy to detect need to test a couple of times.
i did a blood test to check my blood sugar level but i didnt really eat anything sweet though. anyway my symptoms was when i eat sugary food i get aplpitation or heart raise and my stomach got some problems too. so i dont know what caused it.
i also read about histamine intolerance but there are no tests for that here unfortunately :(

[jemma116]

I was diagnosed as having glucose intolerance.

The test was carried out at the hospital, I was not allowed to eat for 24 hours and a blood test was taken.  I was then given a glucose drink, and after a while they took another blood test.  I knew that I had a problem because after the glucose drink, I just could not stop drinking.

This is classed as prediabetes.

If you have not been tested for diabetes, it may be a good idea to have a test done.  Or like Caryopteris says it may be that your intestines cannot tolerate the concentrated glucose (sugar).

[KisekiShiawase]

im even sensitive  to anything that sugary (fruit, starch, carbs, etc). weird. so only low sugar food.

[Caryopteris]

Another thought is that sometimes surgery triggers Celiac disease.  It could be not only sugar, but gluten you are reacting to.  It would take a blood test.  

[Caryopteris]

It sounds like you could have yeast overgrowth.  It could be adrenal fatigue.  

You can treat this with a probiotic, oil of oregano tablets, and odorless garlic.  Eat very little sugar or simple carbohydrates.  Do eat lots of vegetables.  Unsweetened green tea or mint tea would be a good choice for you.  Avoid antibiotics except when necessary.  For skin discomfort, consider neem soap and neem shampoo, or tea tree oil.  Feel better soon!