How do I know if it is a whey protein allergy?

How do I know if I could be allergic to whey protein?  After drinking it I get hot, sweaty, runny nose and sometimes diarrhea. I have been drinking shakes for 6 months now and in the last 2 weeks I have started to feel this way after 20 minutes of drinking them.  I use milk with them, I drink milk and do not have any problems with it. On the average I will drink about 1/8 of a cup here and there of milk but when I do drink 8oz or more of milk I will get hot and sweaty then too. I do not get gassy or bloated. Could it be whey allergy or could it be lactose that is causing this.  Is there a test that can be done?  Do you know of some soy protein powders out there? Does Vita-lady have any? Thanks for the help

If it happens when you drink a glass of plain milk, then it's probably a reaction to the lactose.  It sounds almost like dumping, more than lactose intolerance.  Lactose is a sugar, it's just one that not many people dump on.  Whey isolate protein powder is actually lactose free.  So I would try mixing that with water or soy milk instead of regular milk and see if you have a reaction to that.

 You can do one of two things.  You can switch to Almond milk (unless you have an allergy to that) and see if that helps.  Or, you can find a different type of protein and see if that helps.  When I get worried about being intollerant to something I eliminate it and see what happens.  It's the cheapest "treatment" I've found.

Good luck.

Could be the milk.  You don't say whether you are using whey isolate, whey concentrate, or a "blend" of whey proteins. Using whey isolate minimizes lactose intolerance issues, as most of the lactose if filtered out.  There are multiple soy proteins out there, and I even found a generic one for friends who have lactose intolerance issues.  Only real way to tell if anyone is really allergic to anthing is by testing with an allergy doctor.  I had a friend who suffereed from allergies for several years. He finally "broke down" and saw a doctor for allergy testing. Guess what?  He was allergic to the trees that were in the front yard of every house on his street. He had to move to overcome his allergy issue. DAVE

Dave,I did not know that there was different protein.  I have 2 that is isolate and 1 that is concentrate. What is the best one? I think I will go and get tested.



Thanks everyone that answered my question.  I had VSG I did not think that we dump.

I am pre-op but started drinking protein supplement shakes several months ago to determine which ones I like.  I knew I was allergic to milk (not lactose intolerant, but to milk itself). Through the process of elimination, I learned that I am also allergic to whey isolate and soy.  So -- I found an egg white protein supplement at Vitamin Shoppe (thanks to Dave on this website) and am mixing it with almond milk.  That seems to be working fine.  So -- long way of saying that if you suspect allergies, I suggest you try an organized process of eliminate and substitution until you find something that works.  It cost me a bit of money to get it all straight, and I've been told by Kelly on this website that post-op some allergies can disappear or new ones appear.  So, I just know that I'll be going into wls knowing that my combination works and seeing if it continues.  Oh,well... it's going to be all worth it once I'm on "the other side", I'm sure!! I offer this up in case it becomes a path you find you need to travel.

Thanks I have a Vita Shopee down the road I will have to check it out.